Three takeaways from Tennessee’s 96-50 thrashing of Georgia

Tennessee just flat ran over the Georgia Bulldogs today in Knoxville. The Vols grabbed control early on and got some key Bulldogs into foul trouble, and that was that. Tennessee cruised to a 96-50 win, improving to a convincing 1-0 in SEC play.

Tennessee’s most dominant game of the year

We’ve talked a lot about Tennessee getting their opponent’s best shot this year, being as highly ranked as the Vols are. That did not happen today.

Two quick whistles on Georgia’s big man Derek Ogbeide within the first minute of the game quite honestly seemed to seal the Bulldogs’ fate today in Knoxville.

With Ogbeide on the bench, Grant Williams immediately went to work down low, getting whatever he wanted in the paint. After Grant, it was Admiral Schofield. After Schofield, it was Jordan Bowden getting in on the action. Kyle Alexander ate Georgia alive on the boards, grabbing 14 rebounds in total. It was all Vols all the time and it was spearheaded by the Vols’ rebounding and suffocating defense.

Make no mistake, Georgia isn’t exactly ready to compete in the SEC. But Tennessee absolutely trashed them on Saturday afternoon. This was an impressive showing to open SEC play for the nation’s No. 3 team.

Turner’s Return

In a total surprise, Lamonte Turner took the court once again for the Vols this afternoon. Turner has been struggling through a shoulder issue all year and was actually told to sit until he’s right by the Tennessee staff after a couple of ineffective games in November. Turner was seen shooting before the game and checked in just a few minutes into the contest.

He made his return today, even after Barnes said he didn’t expect him to play today. Turner scored six points on 2-5 shooting, but missed each of his three shots from long range. Expect a couple of rusty games over the next couple of weeks for Turner, but he should be ready to roll when it counts in March.

Hello again, Jordan Bowden

We know what we’re getting in Grant Williams, Admiral Schofield and even Jordan Bone these days. It’s the other pieces of the puzzle that can truly make Tennessee great. Today, Jordan Bowden was that guy for the Vols.

Bowden poured in 20 points for Tennessee today, doing pretty much all of his damage inside of the three-point arc. He finished the game 8-13 from the field. For reference, Bowden had scored 17 points total in his last three games.

The junior guard has been largely inconsistent during his time in Knoxville, but when Tennessee is getting production from Bowden — I’m just not sure how you beat this team. When Bowden is on, Tennessee has another scoring threat that you can’t ignore. This only opens the door for Grant and Admiral and makes the offense nearly impossible to slow down.

Of course, the deal with Bowden is doing it consistently, which we have no proof of yet. Maybe this is the jumpstart he needs.

Tennessee heads to Missouri on Tuesday to face Cuonzo Martin’s Tigers.