COLUMBIA, S.C. - It was a forgettable afternoon for everyone on Tennessee's men's basketball team, but the struggles of three freshman guards were at the center of Saturday's 27-point loss at South Carolina.
Kwe Parker and Lamonte Turner flopped after they were inserted into the starting lineup, and Jordan Bone was not a factor for a second straight game. Their problems contributed to the Volunteers committing 20 turnovers to accompany season-low totals in points (55) and assists (three) as they lost for the fifth time in seven games.
"This time of year, man, it's high-level intensity, and everybody's going to take it up a level," Tennessee coach Rick Barnes said after the game. "They haven't been through it, and they're going through it and they're finding out that it's probably even harder. Each game gets more difficult, especially when you're trying to put yourself in position to finish strong.
"It's something that they're learning for the first time, but they've got to realize that what you did yesterday's over and done with. We've got to keep getting better, they've got to keep getting better, and like I said, it's my job to do that."
With Jordan Bowden unavailable for a second straight game because of illness and Bone ending Friday's practice with an ice wrap on his shoulder and a spot in his coach's doghouse, Tennessee started Turner for the first time since Jan. 3 and Parker for the first time. Bone, Parker and Turner struggled from the field as they combined for six points on 3-of-11 shooting with six turnovers and zero assists. Turner was 5-for-6 on free throws.
The Vols started poorly on offense for a second straight game. They had eight turnovers and nine points in the opening eight minutes as South Carolina took a large lead.
"It's not just (the turnovers), it's getting us into our offense," Barnes said. "We've seen them play better, obviously, but just like teams can go through some tough times, players can go through some tough times. But you can't let the pressure of the situation and the games override your execution and your love for the game. You've got to just enjoy playing it. We just have too many guys right now that it looks like they're back on their heels."
Barnes acknowledged confidence problems "could be" hampering his backcourt freshmen.
"I think confidence definitely has something to do with it," sophomore forward Kyle Alexander said. "Like when I was a freshman, I shied away from the ball because I didn't think I could score in confidence, but it's just getting in the gym, working on your craft once you feel confident in it. I think confidence definitely has something to do with it."
The Vols tried to stick with a frontcourt-heavy lineup that got them back in the game at the end of the first half, but it wasn't long before the Gamecocks pulled away again. They limited Tennessee to 25 second-half points.
"When we're playing better, we normally have many more assists," Barnes explained. "Today, because we weren't moving the ball, we had to revert to somewhat of an open set and just take guys off the dribble, which is what you (don't want), though we can do it. It just goes back to our guards have to be in tune with what we're doing to help us get everything going."
Barnes acknowledged he had lost trust in his freshman guards by the second half.
Turner logged the most minutes (nine), but after playing a little more than a minute early in the half, he didn't enter again until the 7:58 mark with Tennessee trailing 63-44. Bone scored immediately after entering the game in the first half, but in the second half he played only the final four minutes. Parker didn't leave the bench after halftime.
"Every time they went in the game, we went backwards," Barnes said, "whether it was defensively or offensively or just handling the ball. It's not a good feeling wondering if your point guard can get the ball across halfcourt. You've got to go, and there's no reason to handle it like we're handling the ball like that.
"It goes back to we just want to execute what we are supposed to execute, and it's their job to do that."
Contact Patrick Brown at pbrown@timesfreepress.com.