Vols steamrolled by Gamecocks, 84-58
South Carolina led by as many as 30 points on its way to a dominating win over the Kevin Punter-less Vols.
Lady Vols
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After upsetting then-No. 24 South Carolina in Knoxville in late January, Tennessee felt the full force of the Gamecocks’ revenge Wednesday night in an 84-58 drubbing.
“We just didn’t compete,” said Tennessee head coach Rick Barnes. “They did exactly what I would do against us, and what we thought they would do.”
The Gamecocks outscored the Vols 42-14 in the paint, and the Tennessee defense just kept looking for answers. Without leading scorer Kevin Punter, who missed his second-consecutive game due to an injured foot, there were not any answers to be had.
Tennessee struggled to contain South Carolina for much of the first half, but the Vols were within striking distance with 4:07 left before the break. That’s when Duane Notice and South Carolina closed out the half on a 11-3 run. Notice, who ended the run with three-consecutive three-pointers, finished with 17 points to lead the Gamecocks.
With 9:25 remaining in the game, the Vols cut the South Carolina lead down to 13 on an Armani Moore jumper. Moore finished with 10 points for the Vols, only behind Devon Baulkman’s 19 and Shembari Phillips’ 16. But, much like the rest of the night, South Carolina was just too much on offense.
The Gamecocks went on a 17-0 run over the game’s next 6:19 to take a 78-48 lead, more than enough to put the Vols away for good.
“We did some good things and some bad things,” said Tennessee senior guard Devon Baulkman. “But we just have to prepare for our next game at home.”
South Carolina shot 52.5 percent from the floor on 32-of-61 shooting, including shooting 40 percent and 8-of-20 from the three-point line. Without Punter, the Vols looked desperate for anyone to pour in points. Derrick Mostella, Derek Reese, Ray Kasongo and Kyle Alexander all played but failed to score a point.
Tennessee returns to Knoxville to take on the Arkansas Razorbacks at 7:30 p.m. ET on Saturday. The game will be televised on the SEC Network.
Featured image by the Tennessee Journalist
Edited by Cody McClure
Nathan is a junior at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville. He spends most of his free time eating meaningless foods and watching sports. If you wish to contact Nathan, you can email him at wodom3@vols.utk.edu or find him on Twitter, @NathanOdom11.
