KNOXVILLE – Tuesday night, Kyle Alexander didn’t worry about the repercussions.
He played hard. He played aggressive.
And he affected the basketball game while reminding people why opponents’ plans have been scripted to take him out of it.
For about a month, foul trouble and sickness have prevented Alexander from being the sort of consistent interior presence fifth-ranked Tennessee needs to make a postseason push. For a night, though, the 6-foot-11 senior center reminded people how disruptive he can be.
Blocking shots. Altering shots. Extending offensive possessions. Alexander was everywhere the Volunteers (27-3, 18-0 Southeastern Conference) needed him to be in a 71-54 dismantling of Mississippi State at Thompson-Boling Arena.
He finished with 10 rebounds (three offensive), six points and four blocks in 25 minutes, but the Vols were 20 points better than the Bulldogs in that span, with Alexander ranking second on the team behind only Admiral Schofield’s plus-26 in 33 minutes.
Alexander stayed on the court by staying out of foul trouble, finishing the game with just two – one in each half. He had fouled out of four of the previous 11 games, and he was limited to only 11 minutes at Ole Miss on Feb. 27 after coming down with the flu earlier that week.
“I didn’t go for any offensive rebounds I didn’t think I could get,” Alexander said Tuesday. “I was trying to stay aggressive, and it worked in my favor. I have had a rough couple of weeks. I’m just happy to have played and been part of this win, part of the success.”
The 10 rebounds were his most since grabbing 17 at Missouri on Jan. 8. He also blocked four shots against the Tigers when they visited Knoxville on Feb. 5, and that total and Tuesday’s were one off his season high, set against Alabama on Jan. 19.
Tennessee coach Rick Barnes has been outspoken in saying he believed Alexander had been officiated “harshly” the past couple weeks. Some of that comes with facing physical opponents who have gone after Alexander, who remains the team’s primary rim protector.
His per-game averages for the season have dipped to 7.6 points and 6.6 rebounds – he was once at 10.6 and 8.1 – but nights such as Tuesday remind people just how important he’s going to be down the stretch, starting with Saturday’s regular-season finale at Auburn (21-9, 10-7).
“Our players thought that was the best officiated game that they have been in all year,” Barnes said Thursday. “Kyle got caught in where he needs to be aggressive, and he has to be aggressive. In his own mind, he felt like if he was aggressive, then he was getting into foul trouble. He was trying to stay out of trouble, and you always get into trouble if you are trying to stay out of trouble when it comes to not fouling.
“I’m just glad he was able to get out and play on senior night. Hopefully he will be in full stride right now.”
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @genehenley3 or at Facebook.com/VolsUpdate.