By Stephen Mason
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — When the Rice Owls (2-2) came into the Food City Center to take on the No. 20 Tennessee Volunteers (3-0), they were met with a physical challenge that, in the end, they could not handle as the Vols took the game 91-66. However, the Vols also took a few punches that could hurt the team long after the dust settles from this game.
The first blow came to Tennessee before the match when it was announced that they would be without sophomore guard Bishop Boswell, who sustained a leg injury at practice earlier this week.
Tonight’s matchup also marked a reunification of Tennessee head coach Rick Barnes with Rice head coach Rob Lanier. Lanier served as Barnes’s associate head coach on Rocky Top from 2015 to 2019, as well as an assistant for two years under Barnes at Texas.
“I admire him [Barnes] as much as you can admire another man. He’s as good a man I’ve known in my life,” Lanier said. “So I’m not surprised with how good they are, how tough they are, and how they rebound. All of those things are byproducts of who he is.”
It was a far-from-perfect first half for the Vols, who shot 17-of-39 from the floor and 3-of-9 from 3-point range. Ethan Berg was the one standout, shooting 3-pointers, as he went 2-for-2. Ja’kobi Gillispie also provided a spark for the Vols, scoring 10 points, mostly in the final 10 minutes of the half.
However, Tennessee turned the ball over to Rice six times, which the Owls turned into 10 points.
On the defensive end of the court, the Vols gave up 10 offensive rebounds to Rice. Perhaps more concerning, early in the half, Rice had several open looks from 3-point range, an area of the game that Barnes has been trying to get his team to clean up.
All these issues became small when forward J.P. Estrella went down on the court, holding his left knee with 1:26 remaining in the first half. Estrella started the season red-hot for the Vols, recording consecutive career highs in points in the first three games of the season as well as two double-doubles.
Estrella was helped off the court by the Tennessee training staff and taken to the locker room. He spent the second half on the Vols’ bench with ice on his leg, and was seen using crutches after the game.
“For J.P., we all hurt for him because he worked so hard to get back from the foot injury,” Barnes said. “He’ll do everything he can to get back, and we’re just hoping it’s nothing crazy other than a hyperextended leg.”
The Vols headed into the half leading 39-26.
In the second half, the Vols put together a much stronger offensive performance, led by 6-foot-11 forward Felix Okpara, who ended the night with 20 points. During the second half, Okpara used his size to dominate the Rice Owls, finishing with eight rebounds, just two away from a double-double.
“What we need from him is consistency and for him to keep fighting for his space,” Barnes said. “He’s a good free-throw shooter, and I told him you gotta throw up shots and go up strong and get fouled.”
With the loss of Estrella, Okpara will have to play a bigger role in the paint for Tennessee. While he put together a solid performance offensively tonight, he knows he needs to improve on the defensive end.
“I don’t really care about points right now, I just need to go do my job on defense, and the offense will find me,” Okpara said.
One concerning area for Tennessee going forward could be the foul trouble that they found themselves in midway through the second half. Freshman Nate Ament was the closest to fouling out, getting booked with four. Most of these fouls came from Ament reaching in on the ball handler or putting his hands on a driving Rice player.
While Tennessee will find itself locked into physical battles later in the season and contact will be unavoidable, ideally, it will show more discipline when playing inferior teams like Rice.
The Vols finished the night shooting 35-of-65 from the floor and 6-of-19 from the 3-point line. They outrebounded the Owls 47-31 in the game and showed more composure in the second half on the defensive end, only allowing four offensive rebounds.
Going past all the numbers and data from Tennessee’s performance on the court, the biggest story coming out of the game is Estrella’s injury. While nothing is confirmed about the injury yet, the reaction in the Food City Center when he went down is all you need to know about what an important part of this team he has become.
“He definitely did some good things for us in the past three games, and right now we just got to be there by his side, and also focus on the season,” Okpara said.
Down two key players already, Tennessee will have to regroup quickly, as its next game is only two days away. After that, the Vols will face some tough competition in Vegas next week, including a showdown with No. 2 Houston.
Up Next
The Volunteers will finish their five-game homestand to start the season on Thursday, Dec. 20, when they host the Tennessee State Tigers. Tip-off for the game is scheduled for 7 p.m., and the game will be broadcast on SECN+.