Tennessee basketball has three freshmen listed on the availability report heading into its SEC Tournament clash against Auburn. Nate Ament and Troy Henderson are listed as questionable, while Amari Evans is probable to play on Thursday. For more information on Ament, click here.
Both Evans and Henderson were partial participants in Wednesday’s practice open to the media in Nashville. The freshman duo each did drill work and then participated in five-on-five portions of practice. Tennessee held them both out for the final 20 minutes of practice but neither suffered any setback while on the court.
Meeting with the media before practice, Evans said that he believes he will play on Thursday when Tennessee faces Auburn.
Evans has stepped up in Nate Ament’s absence, starting each of Tennessee’s last two games. He’s excelled in the starts, totaling seven points, three rebounds and three steals against South Carolina then scoring a career-high 24 points along with six rebounds and three assists against Vanderbilt.
The 6-foot-5 guard injured his ankle early in the second half against Vanderbilt and re-aggravated it in the final minute before checking out and not returning.
Henderson has been in-and-out of the lineup in SEC play as he deals with a left shoulder injury. When healthy, the combo guard has competed with Ethan Burg for the Vols’ backup point guard minutes behind Ethan Burg.
The 6-foot-1 freshman played three minutes against Vanderbilt, knocking down a triple and recording an assist before re-injuring the shoulder. Barnes noted Wednesday that Henderson will have shoulder surgery when the season ends. But for now, he is trying to grit things out.
Tennessee is looking to solidify its spot as a five-seed in the NCAA Tournament. According to ESPN’s Joe Lunardi, Tennessee is currently the final five-seed. The Vols need at least one win, if not two, to solidify their case.
Tipoff between the Vols and Tigers is at 3 p.m. ET on Thursday afternoon at Bridgestone Arena. Karl Ravech, Jimmy Dykes and Alyssa Lang are on the call for the SEC Network.
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