NASHVILLE — Donnie Tyndall remembered vividly Vanderbilt’s 84.2 percent shooting performance in the second half of Tennessee’s Feb. 26 matchup with the Commodores.
“It was bang, bang, bang, and we were up 13, and all of a sudden we’re down five or six,” the first-year head coach after UT’s second round SEC tournament matchup with Vanderbilt — the third contest between the two programs.
On Thursday, it was a hot stretch of shooting that propelled the Volunteers to a 67-61 victory to advance to the quarterfinals, as well as serve up a bit payback for that late-February defeat.
Trailing by 12 with 7:18 left to play, the Vols sank a trio of triples that changed the complexion of the game.
Robert Hubbs got the run started with a three from the left wing, and shortly after, others followed suit.
Hubbs missed another 3-point attempt on Tennessee’s ensuing possession, but after an offensive rebound from Derek Reese and a few passes around the perimeter, Kevin Punter found the bottom of the net from deep.
Moments later, Reese sank a triple of his own to cap off a 1:47 stretch that trimmed a 59-47 deficit down to three.
“Basketball is one of those games,” Tyndall said. “It’s a game of spurts … Fortunately, we closed it out the right way.”
On the other hand, Vanderbilt was unable to translate its past long-ball success, hitting just six of their 26 3-point attempts (23.1 percent) on the night.
“We just got them this time,” Hubbs said. “Plain and simple. We closed out, and fortunately they missed some shots.”
Hot topic: Damian Jones was dominating down low for Vanderbilt.
With starting forwards Armani Moore and Reese in constant foul trouble, the sophomore VU center posted an 18-point, 15-rebound performance in 37 minutes of action.
Yet, when it mattered most, Jones was nowhere to be found.
As Tennessee reeled off a 20-2 run over the final 6:20, Jones, who went into halftime a rebound short of a double-double, received limited touches down low, and as a result, failed to score.
“We switched and went with some man-to-man, and when they ball screen and rolled, we switched,” Tyndall said. “They were trying to isolate Jones against the perimeter player because we switched the screen.
“We did a good job of really sagging from the weak side to help.”
Vanderbilt head coach Kevin Stallings, however, did state that the Commodores “may have not done as good a job of getting (the ball) into him” as they had earlier.
“But I don’t have any complaints about the quality of looks that we had in the last seven minutes of the game,” Stallings added. “We got good looks t the basket and we just didn’t capitalize.”
The other guys: Backing up Jones was Wade Baldwin, who scored 16 points on 6-of-11 shooting while also dishing out five assists and gathering five rebounds.
Outside the box score: Junior guard Devon Baulkman scored 12 points — 10 in the first half — marking the first time since the SEC opener against Mississippi State on Jan. 7 that he scored double figures in a conference game.
Say something: Stallings on whether or not Vanderbilt’s youth had anything to do with the loss: “It’s frustrating when you control the game for most of the day and then don’t do enough to win it. I think we got tentative and I think that was apparent. I think that is a sign of youth.”
By the numbers:
17: Tennessee recorded 17 points off of turnovers, 13 of which came in the second half.
15: Vanderbilt shot 15 free throws in the first half, compared to UT’s five.
Up next: Tennessee matches up well physically with Arkansas?
The statement during his post-game press conference made Tyndall chuckle.
“Have you seen their team,” Tyndall asked. “And you think we match up pretty well? I don’t know if we have six guys that equal Bobby Portis.”
Limiting the recently named SEC Player of the Year will be the focal point of Tennessee’s game plan after the sophomore forward averaged 17 points and 9.5 rebounds per game in two contests against the Vols this season.
Those same bouts, though, are what have Josh Richardson excited to face off against the No. 2 seed Razorbacks inside Bridgestone Arena at 7 p.m. EST on Friday.
“Arkansas’s a great team, and I think we have good matchups with them,” the senior guard said. “They didn’t beat us by very much when they did at their house, so I think it will be a close game.”
