It wasn’t aesthetically pleasing, but it was college basketball, and that’s something the Tennessee Volunteers haven’t experienced in a while.
After enduring five cancellations due to COVID-19 related issues, the 12th-ranked Vols opened their promising season Tuesday night at Thompson-Boling Arena with a 56-47 downing of Colorado in a matchup that was put together this past Saturday. Tennessee’s deep roster repeatedly affected the Buffaloes, especially defensively, as the Pac-12 program coming off a 21-win season shot just 33.3% from the floor and committed 23 turnovers.
“It feels really different with the depth we have on the team right now,” Vols sophomore guard Santiago Vescovi said. “You know you can go 100% on every possession on offense or defense knowing that the guy coming in for you is going to give his 100% and will play at a high level. It’s really fun to play with them, because they can all score, and they can all play D. I think it all comes down to trusting each other.
“We’ve got a really great group this year.”
Tennessee only shot 35.8%, with senior guard Yves Pons struggling through a 1-of-9 night, but the Vols held Colorado guard McKinley Wright IV to just eight points. Wright had averaged 22 points in leading the Buffaloes to a 2-0 start with wins over South Dakota and Kansas State.