KNOXVILLE – If the Tennessee Volunteers didn’t realize things wouldn’t be easier as the No. 1 men’s basketball team in the country, they got quite the introduction Wednesday night.
Vanderbilt took the Vols into overtime in Nashville before the visitors, led by a dominant performance from junior forward Grant Williams, won 88-83 to improve to 17-1 for the season and 6-0 in the Southeastern Conference.
In some ways the Commodores (9-9, 0-6) played above their heads. They entered the game averaging 7.8 3-pointers but were 10-for-21 on the long shots Wednesday. Some of that could be attributed to hosting a top-ranked team and hoping to pull off the upset, but Vanderbilt had hit at least 10 3s in a game three times prior to Wednesday, including making 15 against Savannah State on Nov. 27, four days after losing star point guard Darius Garland to injury.
Also, it was Vanderbilt’s penetration that set up some of those looks, most of which were wide open.
It’s what helped the Commodores hold a 76-70 lead with 1:22 to play in the second half. And that’s when the Vols’ experience took over. Williams was fouled going up for a rebound, a foul that was upgraded to a flagrant. He hit the two free throws, then followed with a layup. Admiral Schofield then hit what was the game-tying shot, a runner in the lane to force overtime.