No. 18 Tennessee returns to action Saturday against Northern Kentucky in Knoxville, Tenn., and coach Rick Barnes hopes to see his Volunteers play better than they did in Monday’s season-opening win.
The Volunteers beat Mercer 76-61, but they were sluggish at the start. Mercer led 8-4 in the first 5 1/2 minutes, but Tennessee rattled off an 8-0 run moments later that put them on top. The lead grew to as many as 23 midway through the second half.
One of the biggest issues for Barnes was his team’s 19 turnovers that led to 16 Bears points, but he also found other causes for concern.
“We had too many point-blank shots that … we weren’t even close,” Barnes said. “We’ve got to do that. We need those guys to get fouled to get us to the free-throw line more.”
Nate Ament, a highly touted freshman forward, scored 18 points and grabbed nine rebounds in his Tennessee debut. The 6-foot-10 Ament is among the players being considered for the Naismith and Oscar Robertson player of the year awards.
Teammate J.P. Estrella came off the bench to score a career-high 12 points and matched his personal best with five rebounds.
Ja’Kobi Gillespie, a senior guard and Tennessee native who was a third-team All-Big Ten selection for Maryland last season, finished with eight points and six assists in his Volunteers debut.
Ament and Gillespie were named to the preseason All-SEC second team last month, and the Volunteers, who have lost in the Elite Eight in each of the past two seasons, were picked to finish third in the preseason SEC media poll.
The Norse, meanwhile, tied their single-game scoring record in their opener Monday, beating Cincinnati Clermont 126-69. The team picked to finish sixth in the Horizon League went 10 of 17 from 3-point range in the first half against the USCAA Division II school.
Six players scored in double figures for Northern Kentucky, and no one played more than 23 minutes. Kael Robinson scored 22 points on 9-of-10 shooting from the field, including 4 of 5 from beyond the arc. Dan Gherezgher finished with 18 points.
“In a game like this, really what you’re looking for is can your team stay focused,” Norse coach Darrin Horn said after the win. “Not only how they come out, but we got up very big early, very quickly. Can they stay focused on playing the game the right way, and I thought our guys by and large did a really, really nice job of that.”
Gherezgher was named to the Horizon League’s preseason second team in a poll of the conference’s coaches, media and sports information directors. The 6-4 senior guard averaged 7.5 points a game last season, his first with the Norse.
Horn is in his seventh season coaching Northern Kentucky, which is in its 14th season as a Division I school. The Kentucky native, who played collegiately at Western Kentucky, took the Norse to their third and most recent NCAA Tournament appearance in 2023.
Horn has Southeastern Conference experience, as he led South Carolina for four seasons until 2011-12.
