Wiedmer: Vols almost as good as Red Panda these days

Tennessee's Admiral Schofield passes while guarded by Florida's Jalen Hudson in the first half of Wednesday night's game at Thompson-Boling Arena.
Tennessee's Admiral Schofield passes while guarded by Florida's Jalen Hudson in the first half of Wednesday night's game at Thompson-Boling Arena.

KNOXVILLE - The really scary stuff for anyone rooting for Tennessee's Big Orange against Florida on Wednesday night came at intermission, when the greatest halftime show in history - Chinese unicyclist Red Panda - enlisted former Volunteers star and current Miami Heat guard Josh Richardson to help with her routine.

If you've never seen Red Panda, whose real name is Rong Niu, put her on your bucket list. Yesterday. Perched atop a 7-foot unicycle she pedals with her left foot while balancing, then kicking bowls onto her head with her right foot - sometimes five at a time - she just might be the only halftime show in sports that's routinely better than the game.

Put another way: When NBA superstar Stephen Curry was playing for Davidson, he once swished a 75-footer against the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga to close out a first half inside McKenzie Arena. Because Red Panda was in the house that evening, Curry's shot was only the second-best highlight.

So with the Vols leading the Gators by a healthy nine points at the half, 27-18, here came Red Panda riding her unicycle onto the court and here stood Richardson, smoothly tossing her another large white bowl whenever she signaled.

Asked later if he was nervous, Richardson - who's wrapping up the NBA's All-Star break - nodded in the affirmative, then said, "I was terrified, I was completely terrified."

In some ways, this eventual 62-57 Vols victory was a terrifying game for both teams. The Vols had dropped two of their past three Southeastern Conference matchups after a huge victory at Kentucky. Florida was even worse, losing five of its previous seven within the league.

Something had to give, even if neither side looked much like a title contender in the opening half, with Florida missing 19 of its 26 field goals to that point (27 percent) while Tennessee torched the nets by bagging 11 of 29 (38 percent).

Even worse was the 3-point shooting in the opening half. Florida hit one of 10. The Vols were 1-for-7.

Still, someone had to win this one and Tennessee was just enough better when it needed to be to win its 10th conference game in 15 outings. That leaves the Big Orange two games in back of league-leading Auburn with three to go, but also now moves them two games clear of that six-way logjam in third that now includes Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Kentucky, Mississippi State and Missouri.

Moreover, it once more underscored how good the Vols are when their bruise brothers - height-challenged but well-muscled forwards Admiral Schofield and Grant Williams - are both producing on the same night.

After scoring 10 points in an opening half cut short by foul trouble, Williams finished with 23 and six rebounds. After totaling six in the first 20 minutes, Schofield finished with 16 points and eight boards.

It was the kind of performance the Vols have perfected many more times than not this season, finding a mismatch and exploiting it time and time again. Some nights it's the ability to hit from outside with their smallish but maddeningly efficient guards. Other nights it's the inside power of Schofield, Williams and, on occasion, Derrick Walker.

The biggest beauty of this team may simply be that it seems to know who it is and who it should turn to on most nights (Williams) to produce a victory. Just as important, Williams seems to know it, too.

So now the Vols are not only 20-7, but coach Rick Barnes is now the owner of 20 seasons with at least 20 wins, which - given the nonbasketball giants he's coached (George Mason, Providence, Clemson, Texas and Tennessee) - should give his supporters at least some reason to hope he'll one day be a Hall of Famer.

Especially because, unlike so many others in his profession, there has never been a hint of scandal associated with him.

This isn't to say such continued good work from both Barnes and his players is yet quite as impressive as Red Panda kicking stacks of bowls atop her head while riding a 7-foot unicycle. But unlike her night, which always ends at halftime, the Vols are producing winning performances the whole game through.

In a league where almost everyone else save Auburn is flirting with a .500 league mark, that should be at least a wee bit terrifying for the remaing three SEC teams - Ole Miss, Mississippi State and Georgia - on the Vols' schedule.

Contact Mark Wiedmer at mwiedmer@timesfreepress.com.

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