KNOXVILLE – The play was designed for Kevin Punter, but Tennessee’s top scorer was in the giving mood.
And Detrick Mostella rewarded his generosity.
The mercurial sophomore sank the go-ahead 3-point basket from the corner in front of Tennessee’s bench with 58.3 seconds left as the Volunteers finished on a 15-2 run and scored the final nine points in a 76-67 comeback win Tuesday night against East Tennessee State in Thompson-Boling Arena.
“That was a really good win for us, the way we won,” Tennessee coach Rick Barnes said. “We won a game where we were down, a close game. I’ve told the guys all year we’re going to be down, we’re going to be in close games and when it gets down to winning time, that’s where we’ll find out what we’re made of.”
Four of Tennessee’s five losses this season were by a combined 20 points, so winning a close game was a welcome sight.