KNOXVILLE - Not having Lamonte Turner as part of the Tennessee basketball lineup has had a ripple effect on the program.
While not all of it has been good, it mostly has been fine so far.
Turner, the Southeastern Conference's co-sixth man of the year last season, has played in only three games this season as he deals with complications from offseason shoulder surgery. The negative is that it has shrunk the depth substantially as the third-ranked Volunteers (9-1) - who host Wake Forest at noon Saturday at Thompson-Boling Arena - continue to play with only three guards: juniors Jordan Bone and Jordan Bowden and sophomore Yves Pons.
A season ago, nobody on the team averaged more than 28.8 minutes per game. So far this season, Bone and forwards Admiral Schofield and Grant Williams have averaged more than 30 and Bowden - who has come off the bench the past five games - is at 28.6.
"I think it (has to do) with Lamonte being out," Tennessee coach Rick Barnes said Friday. "John Fulkerson didn't play the other night (against Samford). There's no doubt we've had to shorten our bench. But this time of year, would you like to have guys playing fewer minutes? Yes. But games dictate that. At this point in time, after we get through tomorrow, we'll have a couple days off. Hopefully when we get back we'll have the full allotment of players back."
Fulkerson missed the Samford game with a shoulder injury but should be ready to go today.
Turner's absence has led to some other players being needed to step up. Fulkerson and Pons have provided hustle and presence on the floor. Sophomore Jalen Johnson, a talented 6-foot-7 guard-forward, has struggled on the defensive end but has started to string together some solid performances. He had some big first-half minutes against Memphis last Saturday and followed that with a season-high 12 minutes Wednesday against Samford.
Johnson said this week that Barnes has been stressing the need for the reserve players to step up, and Barnes noted Friday that increased playing time for Fulkerson, Johnson, Pons and forward Derrick Walker are going to be "big minutes down the road."
"He's been telling us we need our bench guys to come in, bring energy," Johnson said Tuesday. "What he would like is not to have a drop-off from the starting five. He wants the bench players to bring energy, get us going, and when a starting guy goes in, they can keep it going from there."
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @genehenley3 or at Facebook.com/VolsUpdate.