x
Breaking News
More () »

Vols roll past Arkansas 84-66, headed to SEC Tourney championship

Jordan Bone's 17 first-half points provided the spark the Vols needed to break away from the Razorbacks.

Tennessee has a chance to win its second championship in two weeks after beating Arkansas 84-66 in the SEC Tournament semifinals Saturday.

After a poor offensive performance in Friday's win over Mississippi State, the Vols were on fire to start the Arkansas game, shooting 76 percent (19-25) in the first half.

"After we waited until the game was over last night, and we talked as a team after I had a chance to see a little bit of the tape, I said, we're not going to sweep this under the rug now," head coach Rick Barnes said.

"We weren't very good. Not only did we turn it over 17 times, but Admiral and Grant took some really bad shots yesterday where they were pressing, and it was simple. You do that against Arkansas, they're going to ring you up really pretty quickly. We went back and said, we've got to see the mental concentration, the physical concentration, where on defense the details, pressuring the ball, making sure we filled the lane up, not giving driving lanes, and if you're not doing it, you're telling us you're not locked in."

Jordan Bone’s 17 first-half points provided the spark the Vols needed to break away from the Razorbacks; Tennessee never trailed in the game.

"I just think starting off the game we were really aggressive," Bone said. "It's really just playing within the offense. Shots were falling, and we were playing against a really good defensive team. But we were just getting to our spots, and we were making shots."

VIDEO: Jordan Bone talks to the media after scoring 17 first-half points in SEC semifinal win

The No. 2-seed Vols (25-7) will play No. 4-seed Kentucky (23-10) for the SEC Tournament championship Sunday at 1 p.m. ET. Tennessee beat Kentucky on Jan. 6 at Thompson-Boling Arena, 76-65; and beat them exactly one month later in Lexington, 61-59.

Sunday will mark Tennessee’s first appearance in the SEC Tournament title game for the first time since Bruce Pearl’s team made it in 2009.

VIDEO: Admiral Schofield postgame interview

Tennessee is riding a conference-best six-game win streak into Sunday.

The Vols’ lead slipped in the opening five minutes of the second half, when Arkansas went on an 8-0 run in a span of fewer than two minutes. However, the Vols were able to keep the lead and avoid the Hogs’ comeback by clutch performances from starters Admiral Schofield (16 points, seven rebounds), Grant Williams (12 points, five rebounds), and Kyle Alexander (12 points, seven boards).

VIDEO: Grant Williams postgame interview

James Daniel III shot three-of-four from three-point range, helping him add 12 points to the Vols' cause.

UT got revenge on the Razorbacks (23-11), who beat them in their first conference game of the season, 95-93, in an overtime thriller on Dec. 30. Tennessee is now 7-0 in rematch games this season.

With Saturday’s win, Rick Barnes’ squad becomes the fourth in program history to reach 25 wins; the others came in the 1999-2000, 2007-2008, and 2010-2011 campaigns.

The 1979 SEC Tournament champion Vols were the last Tennessee team to beat Kentucky three times in one season.

VIDEO: Looking back on Vols 1979 SEC title game with broadcaster Jay Randolph

Before You Leave, Check This Out