Tennessee’s Jordan McRae, right, goes up for the basket over Xavier’s Quinton Chievous, center, as teammate Jarnell Stokes looks on during their NCAA basketball game in Paradise Island, Bahamas, Friday, Nov. 29, 2013. Tennessee won 64-49.PARADISE ISLAND, Bahamas – A few hours sleep was all Tennessee needed.
Jarnell Stokes scored 20 points and grabbed 10 rebounds, Jordan McRae added 16 points and the weary Volunteers beat Xavier 64-49 on Friday afternoon at the Battle 4 Atlantis, earning a trip to the tournament’s fifth-place game and avenging a loss to the Musketeers two and a half weeks ago.
Jeronne Maymon scored 14 poins on 6-for-8 shooting for the Vols (4-2), who led by as many as 21.
“Our guys played with emotion — the right emotion, level of energy, toughness and pride for the University of Tennessee,” Vols coach Cuonzo Martin said. “They represented each other well. But we had to compete.”
Xavier (5-2) was led by Matt Stainbrook’s 10 points. Semaj Christon, who dealt with cramps in Thursday’s loss to Iowa, was held to four points, snapping a streak of 25 straight double-figure outings for the Xavier guard.