With Oklahoma pushing into a significant Tennessee lead in the second half, Nate Ament drove left, stuck his shoulder in Tae Davis’ chest and finished through context for an old fashion three-point play. Ament ended a 9-0 Sooners run and continuously delivered down the stretch, tying his career-high 29 points in an 89-66 win over Oklahoma.
Here’s three quick takeways on how it went down.
A Reversal Of Turnover Fortunes
Tennessee has lost the turnover battle in nearly any game against quality competition this season. It’s been the Vols most consistent issue this season, and entering the matchup against Oklahoma there was no reason to believe it would change.
The Sooners don’t force many turnovers but they rank top 30 in the nation at limiting turnovers. Yet, Oklahoma turned the ball over nine times in the first half lead to 18 Tennessee points and a stellar 1.452 points per possession in the game’s first 20 minutes.
Tennessee did its part on the offensive side of the ball too. The Vols only turned it over twice in the first half which was one of its best halves from a turnover standpoint all season.
The disparity was not quite as dramatic in the second half but Tennessee won the turnover battle 15-7 and finished the night taking 17 more shots and four more free throws.
Nate Ament Turns In Complete Performance
Even in his great performances in SEC play, Nate Ament has been a streaky scorers at times. The five-star freshman put together one of his more complete performances of the season against Oklahoma.
Ament came out steady in the first half, scoring 12 points on five-of-10 shooting from the field and two made triples. He struggled to get the perimeter jumper to fall as much in the second half but kept his foot on the gas and more consistently got to the rim and foul line.
After not getting to the free throw line in the first half, Ament shot eight free throws in the second half. Ament finished the second half with 17 points but also consistently made correct reads, totaling two second half assists.
Finishing the night with a career-high 29 points, six rebounds, three assists, a steal and a block, Ament had perhaps his most complete performance of the season.
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Tennessee Struggled To Put A Game Away Before Stepping On The Gas
Tennessee led by nine points at halftime and opened the second half on an 11-2 run to take an 18-point lead with just over 15 minutes to play. But as has been the case throughout SEC play, the Vols struggled to put the game away without drama.
After Davis made one of two free throws coming out of the under eight media timeout, Oklahoma had cut Tennessee’s lead to six points. A Nijel Pack jumper cut the deficit to six points again with 6:18 to play.
As has often been the case of late, Tennessee’s offense went through a cold stretch in the second half. Oklahoma played a lot of zone which opened up inside scoring opportunities, especially for Jaylen Carey. But Carey struggled offensively in the second half, making just one-of-six field goals while missing all four of his free throw attempts.
Over a 6:38 stretch in the middle of the second half, Tennessee scored just five points and Oklahoma put pressure on the Vols. Tennessee then found its footing again down the stretch, holding the Sooners to just four points in the final six minutes and ending the game on a 21-4 run.
Final Stats
Up Next
Tennessee is back in action Saturday afternoon when it travels to Nashville to face Vanderbilt in its hardest remaining regular season game. Tipoff between the Vols and Commodores is at 2 p.m. ET. ESPN2 is broadcasting the game.
