NCAA Basketball: Key observations from Tennessee vs. Gonzaga exhibition

Tennessee and Gonzaga faced off in a highly anticipated preseason matchup. Here are some takeaways from the Vols victory.

NCAA basketball is back! Well, it’s kind of back. Tennessee and Gonzaga tipped off last night in an exhibition game for charity in Texas. While the game didn’t count for official records or for postseason resumes, it’s the perfect opportunity for the nation to see how these two teams with deep March aspirations stack up against each other.

Most importantly, it gives all of us hoop heads something to overreact to before the season starts! Tennessee dominated the second half (outscoring Gonzaga 49-26) and won 99-80 and looked like total world-beaters in the process. Oh, and they did it without senior forward and defensive specialist Josiah-Jordan James! What’s not to be excited about for fans on Rocky Top! On Gonzaga’s side, the overreaction can be that this team is automatically not as good as last season or that there might be some serious defensive issues.

Here is what we can actually take away from both teams from Friday night’s epic exhibition.

Tennessee takeaways

Let’s start with the winners. The Vols went back and forth with Gonzaga before a 24-7 run in a seven-minute span opened the game up in the second half. This Vols team brought back many key pieces from last year’s team but after one exhibition, it’s clear how this team will be different from the last few Vols teams.

First off, they played fast and up-tempo. One of Rick Barnes’ biggest points of emphasis over the off-season is to play more up-tempo and to be able to deploy a wide variety of lineup combinations. They did both of those well on Friday night.

Point Guard Zakai Zeigler proved that he is more than ready to step in for the full-time starting floor general role. He got the Vols quickly into their offense and did so without many hiccups (committed only one turnover). The Zags have loved playing that fast style of play for years and Tennessee executed it better than they did on this given night. Zeigler is lightning quick and his tight handle on the ball allows him to move quickly while also being in total control: a perfect combination to do what Barnes has emphasized.

Barnes played nine players at least eight minutes on Friday, showing the lineup versatility that is expected from them this season. When they went on their game-changing 24-7 run in the second half, the main five on the floor featured starters Santiago Vescovi and Uros Plavsic as well as reserves Tyreke Key, Jahmai Mashack, and Tobe Awaka. They went big, deploying forward combinations of the seven-footer Plavsic as well as 6-8 Olivier Nkamhoua. They also deployed some smaller and faster lineups with forward Julian Phillips playing the four.

When evaluating the rest of Tennessee’s performance, it’s easy to note Zegler’s excellent point guard play and Nkamhoua’s 11-point, 14-rebound double-double, but the contribution that should get Vols fans excited is the 26-point performance off the bench from Key, the super senior transfer from Indiana State.

Key scored from all over the floor, creating his own shot off the dribble and knocking down threes off of the catch. He will be a major x-factor for the team moving forward and his 26 points on only 12 shots is a great depiction of his efficiency. The Vols struggled to find additional wing scoring last season when Vescovi’s shot wasn’t falling but Key looks to be that missing piece. I had him as the number 19 transfer coming into the SEC this season and if his impact is anything like it was against Gonzaga, I will have ranked him way too low.

Highly touted freshman Julian Phillips started in place of Josiah-Jordan James and played well in the second half. He finished the game with 12 points, making all three of his three-point attempts. Once he is more acclimated to playing college basketball, he can use his athleticism and scoring ability to become a significant contributor on a veteran-led team where he won’t have the pressure to carry the offensive load.

Lastly, the Vols frontcourt rose up to the challenge of facing Drew Timme and Anton Watson. Plavsic scored 13 points without missing a shot from the field and dished out four assists to go along with his three blocked shots, Nkamhoua scored 11 points and grabbed 14 rebounds, Jonas Aidoo scored nine points off of the bench with three assists and a blocked shot (and even made a three-point attempt) and in only eight minutes of action, freshman Tobe Awaka scored four points and grabbed three rebounds. This group played well defensively, got Timme in foul trouble, and contributed to Tennessee’s incredible 28:11 assist-to-turnover ratio.

This performance is what the Vols’ best-case scenario looks like. Great ball movement, excellent three-point shooting on high volume (13-28 from deep), and game-changing scoring depth (41 bench points). If Tennessee is to make a deep run in March, this is exactly how it would look.

Gonzaga takeaways

The first half looked like Gonzaga of last season: fast break points, crisp movement in the offense, and lights-out shooting (5-9 from deep). The second half, however, things fell apart. The Vols got too many easy buckets, the Zags missed way too many free throws and Drew Timme’s foul trouble prevented him from maximizing his aggressiveness. The result? A 49-26 half that took the game out of their reach.

But there are still some positives for the Zags. For one: the backcourt combination of Nolan Hickman and Rasir Bolton displayed great chemistry and established a fast-paced offensive rhythm that helped give them a halftime lead. Drew Timme was also in All-American form as he led the Zags with 17 points, Julian Strawther provided a boost defensively with three steals that were converted into fast break points and Anton Watson scored ten points with ten rebounds and a team-high four assists (tied with Hickman).

The biggest positive? Offensive rebounds. Even when they were missing shots, they dominated Tennessee on the offensive glass by a total of 12 to 7 (Watson grabbed seven of those himself). The ceiling this offense has with their three-point shooting is sky-high and if Watson provides offensive rebounding like this, it raises their floor significantly.

The new additions of Malachi Smith and Efton Reid will eventually provide a bigger spark than they did in this game. Reid provided good minutes in relief of Timme but got in foul trouble himself. There will be a learning curve on how they can fit in the offense but by January, I expect them to be much larger contributors to this team.

One thing Zags fans should feel concerned about, if anything after an exhibition game, is the defense. Last season, Chet Holmgren erased a lot of mistakes and made up for many defensive lapses the team might’ve had. He’s not there this season and there are no legit rim protectors. Tennessee was able to not only get good looks near the rim but convert as well as get into the paint at will off of the dribble (leading to the Vols’ putting up 34 points in the paint).

The defensive lapses are one issue they faced but what might be worse was the inability to play defense without fouling. Timme’s foul trouble (four in the first half) kept him limited at times and his replacement off of the bench, LSU transfer Efton Reid, committed four fouls in his 14 minutes of action.

Lastly, Gonzaga was awful from the free throw line. They did a good job of getting to the line (26 attempts) but made only 57% of them. Lost opportunities at the free throw line and Timme battling foul trouble is a perfect storm of how Gonzaga can lose some games that are close down the stretch.

I’m also not sounding the alarm on Hunter Sallis just yet, but would still like to see more from him. The former blue chip recruit only saw 13 minutes per game and a minimal role (4 points per game and under one assist). He scored only two points on 1-6 shooting in 22 minutes. Sallis is expected to take on a larger role with the departure of Andrew Nembhard and if the Zags are to contend, they’ll need his contributions.

Despite the loss that doesn’t count, the Zags are still an elite, top-five team in all of NCAA basketball that is deserving of their ranking. Tennessee exposed some warts but with an experienced group and Malachi Smith getting more involved to provide depth, they will still bulldoze the WCC and be a force this season.