Tennessee coach Rick Barnes recaps the Vols' win at Wake Forest on Saturday Mike Wilson/News Sentinel
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. – Tennessee basketball walked into the locker room at Wake Forest on Saturday and had a tough conversation.
The Vols were outhustled, outrebounded and out-toughed by the Demon Deacons for the first 20 minutes of foul-filled, physical basketball. And it had to change.
“They were kind of punking us,” sophomore forward Grant Williams said. “They were leading the rebounding. They were driving to the basket and getting fouled. We just knew we had to come out aggressive and that’s what happened.”
The No. 20 Vols led the entire second half and turned the win into a blowout in the final minutes, beating Wake Forest 79-60 at Lawrence Joel Veterans Memorial Coliseum.
“We came in and I thought they played harder, tougher getting to those rebounds in the first half,” Vols coach Rick Barnes said. “In the second half, I think our hard work did pay off. We were talking to them and said, ‘If we are who we think we, we’re going to find a way to get stops and win this game.’ And we did.”
Tennessee forward Grant Williams recaps the Vols' win at Wake Forest Mike Wilson/News Sentinel
UT had five players score in double figures, led by Jordan Bowden. The sophomore guard had 17 points, hitting all five 3-point attempts he took after tying a career high with 21 points against Furman on Wednesday.
“He’s consistent,” Williams said. “He knows what shots are going to go in. He knows what his looks are. He knows what shots to take.”
More: Vols basketball after more aggressiveness from hot-shooting Jordan Bowden
Admiral Schofield had 14 points, while Jordan Bone scored 12. Kyle Alexander and Williams chipped in 11 each.
The Vols (9-2) punctuated the win with a huge push to open the second half, scoring on seven of their first 10 possessions. Then they capped the game emphatically, holding Wake Forest (7-5) scoreless for the final 4:33 and going on a 13-0 run to turn a largely competitive game into a rout.
Tennessee held Wake Forest to 32.1 percent shooting in the second half after the Demon Deacons shot 44 percent in the first half. The Vols shot 58.6 percent from the field in the second half and outrebounded Wake Forest 18-16 after being beaten 19-11 in the first 20 minutes.
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Tennessee was in deep foul trouble in the first half. Williams was assessed a foul one second into the game for bumping a Demon Deacon during the tipoff. He picked up his second foul with 12:32 left before halftime and he sat for the remainder. Schofield sat for the final 9:23 and Bowden was on the bench for the final 8:39 after each picked up their second foul.
“I also think the key of the whole game was the way we ended the half when the game didn’t get away from us, when we had all those guys on the bench,” Barnes said. “What Derrick Walker, what Kyle Alexander and what John Fulkerson did to keep us in place and even go into the lead at halftime. That was the difference in the game just to keep us there.”
After Wake Forest started to take control late in the first half, Alexander scored seven quick points for Tennessee. He also drew a charge and blocked a shot in the sequence, which included a key offensive rebound that turned into a three-point play.
Tennessee took a 36-35 lead into halftime after Bone hit a pair of free throws in the final seconds. The Vols opened the second half on an 8-2 run, sparked by Bone and Williams. Bone hit a jumper to open the half, then dropped a perfect pass to Alexander for two points before Williams scored four straight.
Wake Forest pushed back a few times, but never got within a single possession again. Bowden buried the Demon Deacons with four second-half 3-pointers and Bone scored 10 points in the second half as the Vols improved to 3-1 against ACC teams in the regular season.
“We just knew we were going for it,” Williams said.
All the players, kind of
Tennessee had to dive deep onto the bench in the first half with so much foul trouble.
Freshman forward Yves Pons saw his first action since he played three minutes against Lipscomb on Dec. 9. Redshirt freshman guard Jalen Johnson played for the first time in December, registering his first minutes since he played four against Mercer on Nov. 29.
“Overall, I really appreciate Jalen Johnson going in the game,” Barnes said. “Yves Pons, those guys going in there when we needed them even if it was only two or three possessions. They went in and did what we asked them to do.”
The Vols played 12 players in the first half, with Walker seeing extended action.
Up next
Tennessee starts SEC play at Arkansas on Dec. 30. The game tips at 1 p.m. ET on SEC Network.
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