Vols Cruise to Easy 72-43 Win Over Florida A&M

(utsports.com) KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Behind a staunch defensive effort, No. 21 Tennessee moved past Florida A&M, 72-43, Wednesday night in Thompson-Boling Arena.

The 43 points scored by the Rattlers (0-7) were the second-fewest points scored by a Tennessee opponent this season. It also marked the fewest points for Florida A&M this season. It was the third time this season the Vols (7-1) held an opponent to fewer than 50 points.

The Vols limited the Rattlers to just 35.6 percent shooting from the field, as only two Florida A&M players shot better than 50 percent on the night. Tennessee’s 29-point margin of victory Wednesday was its second-highest margin this season.

Freshman Olivier Nkamhoua had a breakout performance, recording his first career double-double and the fourth for any Tennessee player this season.

The Helsinki, Finland, native nearly doubled his season-high with 13 rebounds–with seven coming on the offensive glass. He also posted a season-high 11 points on 5-of-9 shooting while adding a team-high two blocks.

Fellow Vols freshman Josiah-Jordan James finished with a season-high in points with 10, while freshman Davonte Gaines added seven. The first-year trio accounted for nearly 40 percent of the Vols’ scoring.

Their efforts helped push the nation’s longest active home winning streak to 31 games, the third-longest in program history.

In total, Tennessee had five players finish with double-digit points. John Fulkerson tallied a game-high 15 points on 7-of-12 shooting. It was just two points off his career high and was the sixth time in eight games this season he has scored in double-figures.

Yves Pons posted 14 points to go along with seven rebounds, two steals and a block. The 6-6 junior has now recorded at least one block in every game this season and double-digit points in six games. Lamonte Turner was the final Vol with double-digit points, all 10 of which came in the first half.

After Florida A&M scored a basket in the opening minute of the game, Tennessee held the Rattlers without a field goal for the next 9:15 in the half. During the stretch, UT built the lead to 14 points.

By halftime, the Vols had pushed the lead to 21 points, their largest lead at the midway point this season. Both Pons and Turner were in double figures as their combined 22 points outscored the entire Florida A&M team by four.

Tennessee made the most of its second-chance opportunities, scoring 14 points on eight offense rebounds in the first half. The Rattlers grabbed just 11 total rebounds through the first 20 minutes.