Tennessee basketball and Vanderbilt are set for a rubber match this Friday in the quarterfinals of the SEC Tournament in Nashville. Previously this season, both teams claimed wins on the road to even the in-state rivalry at one win apiece on the season.
Now, there will be a likely (barring an NCAA Tournament meeting) winner-take-all game between the two for bragging rights. The Vols enter the game after putting together an impressive come-from-behind win over Auburn on Thursday. After the win, UT stars Ja’Kobi Gillespie and Nate Ament were asked about matching up with the Commodores for the third time this season.
Here’s what they said:
JA’KOBI GILLESPIE: “Yeah, I mean, I feel like we’ve shown ourselves we can do it for one game. We have to show ourselves that we can stack games together and treat this game — Vandy, they beat us at home. We got to come out and play with some urgency.”
NATE AMENT: “I didn’t get to play last time, but watching the game, we can’t come out slow like we did last time with a team like Vanderbilt. They’re super well-coached, disciplined. If you give them some wiggle room, give them a lead early, they’re going to capitalize it. For us, it’s respecting our opponents utmost and taking care of the game for a full 40 minutes.”
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This will be the second time in a week that the teams are meeting, as well. Tennessee lost on its Senior Day to Vanderbilt this past Saturday, 86-82, to round out the regular season. However, Ament was not available to play in the game as he nursed a leg injury suffered the prior weekend.
Gillespie played, but was inefficient. He finished with 17 points on 5-for-22 shooting from the field and 1-for-11 from three. He also contributed four assists, two rebounds and a steal, but turned it over five times.
In the first meeting, the Vols won 69-65 on the Commodores’ home floor. Gillespie was UT’s leading scorer, producing 17 points on 6-for-14 shooting from the field and 3-for-7 from range. He added three rebounds, two assists and three steals to his line, as well.
Ament finished that game with 13 points on an inefficient 3-for-13 shooting. He grabbed nine rebounds, though.
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