Hoops Central: #9 Tennessee vs. Lenoir-Rhyne

October 30, 2023 | Men's Basketball

Tennessee Game Notes Watch (SECN+)Listen Live Live Stats Buy Tickets

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – The ninth-ranked Tennessee basketball team is geared up for its first home action of the 2023-24 season, taking on Lenoir-Rhyne Tuesday in Food City Center at 6:30 p.m. ET for its second of two exhibition contests this year.

MORE INFO

GAMEDAY TIMES & BROADCAST INFO

Opponent: Lenoir-Rhyne
Tipoff: Tuesday, Oct. 31 | 6:30 p.m. ET
Venue: Food City Center
Watch Online: SEC Network+
Online: Listen Live | Live Stats

TENNESSEE

Roster Schedule Game Notes

LENOIR-RHYNE

Roster Schedule

THE LATEST FROM THE VOLS

#9/10 Vols Log 89-88 Exhibition Victory at #4 Michigan State Knecht Named to Julius Erving SF of the YearPreseason Watch List Vescovi Named to Jerry West SG of the Year Preseason Watch List Zeigler Tabbed to Bob Cousy PG of the Year Preseason Watch List

Fans can catch Tuesday's game on SEC Network+ and online or on any mobile device through WatchESPN. WatchESPN can be accessed through the ESPN App, or online at espn.com/watch. Roger Hoover (play-by-play) and VFL Steve Hamer (analyst) will have the call.

The Vols are fresh off an exhilarating, 89-88, charity exhibition triumph at fourth-ranked Michigan State Sunday.

Fifth-year guard Dalton Knecht poured in a game-high 28 points for Tennessee, which never trailed despite two starting guards being unavailable. The Volunteers ultimately sealed the game on a free throw by junior guard Jordan Gainey, who scored 20 points, in the closing seconds.

UT started 12-of-14 from the field (6-of-7 on 3-pointers), including making 11 shots (five 3-pointers) in a row to extend their advantage to 30-12 with 10:11 left in the half. Tennessee went nearly nine full minutes (18:17 to 9:19) without missing a field goal, a stretch during which Gainey scored 14 of his game-best 15 first-half points on a 5-of-5 clip (four 3-pointers).

THE MATCHUP
• Tennessee is 1-0 all-time against Lenoir-Rhyne. The lone regular season matchup came on 11/6/18, with UT winning, 86-41, at home.
• The two sides have met twice in exhibition play, with Tennessee posting a 103-62 win on 10/30/21 and a 77-49 victory on 11/8/14, both at home.
• The Bears are coming off an 11-15 (6-12 SAC) season and return one double-digit scorer in graduate student guard Nas Tyson, who put up 10.3 ppg and 5.1 rpg in 2022-23.
• After graduating from Hickory High School in 1973, Rick Barnes played for Lenoir-Rhyne—his hometown school—from 1973-77 and won the Captain's Award for Leadership as a junior and senior.
• A class of 1977 graduate, Barnes was named a Lenoir-Rhyne Distinguished Alumnus in 1997 and later received an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters degree from Lenoir-Rhyne in 2005.
• Bryan Lentz, UT's director of player development, is the son of former Lenoir-Rhyne head coach John Lentz, who was Barnes' college roomate.

NEWS & NOTES
• The Volunteers' most recent home exhibition contest came on 10/30/21, also against Lenoir- Rhyne, with Tennessee posting a 103-62 victory.
• This is the first time in Rick Barnes' tenure the Vols have an exhibition game in Knoxville, Tenn., after also playing one away from home.
• This is Tennessee's 115th season of varsity basketball.
• UT is playing on a brand new court at Food City Center this season after posting a 108-22 (.831) record in eight years, going back to the start of Barnes' tenure, on their previous floor.
• Tuesday will mark the first game at the Food City Center for freshman guard Cameron Carr, freshman forward J.P. Estrella, junior guard Jordan Gainey, redshirt sophomore guard Grant Hurst, fifth-year guard Dalton Knecht, sophomore guard Kaylan Makan and freshman forward Cade Phillips, while redshirt freshman guard Freddie Dilione V and D.J. Jefferson will be active at home for the first time.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS
• Tennessee opened the 2023-24 campaign Sunday evening in East Lansing, Mich., with an 89-88 road victory over fourth-ranked Michigan State. A box score can be found on Page 42.
• The Vols, who made 12 of their first 14 field-goal attempts and hit 11 in a row, jumped out to a 9-0 lead that became a 17-1 edge and eventually a 30-12 advantage.
• UT never trailed in the contest and led for all but 78 seconds.
• Fifth-year guard Dalton Knecht led all players with 28 points, shooting 8-of-16 from the floor and 9-of-11 at the line to go along with seven rebounds and four assists.
• Junior guard Jordan Gainey, who hit the game-winning free throw with 1.9 seconds left, totaled 20 points on 6-of-10 shooting, including a 4-of-7 mark beyond the arc, while adding a co-game- best six assists to lead the Vols.
• Junior guard Jahmai Mashack totaled 11 points, all in the second half, while junior forward Jonas Aidoo had nine points and a team-leading eight rebounds.

THE PRESEASON PICK
• Tennessee placed first in the SEC preseason poll, as voted on by a select panel of both SEC and national media members.
• This is the fifth time the Volunteers have been picked to win the league since polling began in 1989-90, with each nod coming since the turn of the century in advance of the 2000-01 season. UT's five first- place selections during that time are more than the combined total of every other program in the league except for Kentucky, as Florida (twice) and Alabama (once) are the only schools that have taken the pole position besides the Vols and Wildcats.
• The Volunteers have now been picked first in two of the last four seasons, as their prior such recognitions came in 2020-21, 2008-09, 2007-08 and 2000-01.
• The complete SEC preseason poll can be found below:
    1. Tennessee
    2. Texas A&M
    3. Arkansas
    4. Kentucky
    5. Alabama
    6. Auburn
    7. Mississippi State
    8. Florida
    9. Missouri
    10. Ole Miss
    11. Vanderbilt
    12. Georgia
    13. LSU
    14. South Carolina

SEC PRESEASON PLAUDITS
• Santiago Vescovi earned Preseason First Team All- SEC status, while Zakai Zeigler collected Preseason Second Team All-SEC recognition. Both earned the same designation before (and after) the 2022-23 campaign.
• Tennessee was one of four schools with multiple Preseason All-SEC distinctions, joining Alabama, Arkansas and Kentucky.
• Vescovi is the fifth multiple-time Preseason First Team All-SEC designee in program history—polling began in 1989-90—alongside Allan Houston (thrice), Tony Harris (thrice), Chris Lofton and Tyler Smith.
• Zeigler is the eighth Volunteer to pick up multiple Preseason All-SEC honors, a list that also features Jeronne Maymon and Jarnell Stokes.

TALENTED TRIO
• Three Volunteers were tabbed to Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame "Starting Five" Preseason Watch Lists.
• Zakai Zeigler is one of 20 players on the Bob Cousy Point Guard of the Year Preseason Watch List.
• Santiago Vescovi is among 20 individuals on the Jerry West Shooting Guard of the Year Preseason Watch List.
• Dalton Knecht, before even playing a game at Tennessee, is one of the 20 selections for the Julius Erving Small Forward of the Year Watch List.