Tennessee finished fourth place in the Players Era Tournament from Las Vegas after an 81-76 loss to Kansas on Wednesday night. The Vols ended the three-day stretch with a win over Rutgers to open things on Monday, a win over No. 3 Houston on Tuesday, and a loss to the Jayhawks on Wednesday.
Tennessee went into halftime up by seven points, but let things slip away in the second half. A rough stretch offensively impacted the Vols’ defensive ability as the Jayhawks wound up outscoring UT by 12 points in the final 20 minutes. Tennessee shot 31.3% from the floor and 16.7% from the perimeter in the second half, putting up just 35 points compared to 41 in the first half.
Freshman wing Nate Ament led the way with 20 points, but went 0-7 from the floor in the second half. He recorded his first 14 points in the first half. Jaylen Carey tallied a double-double on the night with 11 points and 10 rebounds.
After the game, Tennessee head coach Rick Barnes and Nate Ament spoke to the media on the main stage. RTI also spoke with forward JP Estrella after the contest.
More From RTI: Three Quick Takeaways As Tennessee Basketball Lets Second Half Lead Slip Away Against Kansas
Check out both interviews after Wednesday night’s loss to Kansas below:
Tennessee HC Rick Barnes and Freshman Nate Ament
Tennessee F JP Estrella
