Texas Tech, Shannon topple No. 13 Tennessee in OT
NEW YORK (AP) — Terrence Shannon, Jr. had 18 points and 12 rebounds, and Texas Tech continued its run of Jimmy V Classic upsets in an offensively anemic 57-52 overtime win over No. 13 Tennessee on Tuesday night.
Texas Tech (7-1) might want to petition to play in the Jimmy V Classic every season. The unranked Red Raiders knocked off No. 1 Louisville in 2019.
Tuesday's game was classic in title only. Want offense? You wouldn't find it at Madison Square Garden, where the Vols (6-2) missed a whopping 34 of 40 3-pointers overall and shot only 27% overall in regulation from the floor. John Fulkerson led the Vols with 10 points, followed by three players with nine points.
Tennessee missed 14 straight shots over a 10-minute stretch in the second half and had missed 27 3-pointers until Santiago Vescovi buried the tying 3 with 1:55 left to make it 41-41. Josiah-Jordan James hit another tying 3 with 31 seconds left and sent the game into overtime tied at 44.
With that, fans in place for the second game of the night (Villanova vs. Syracuse) erupted in boos as the already late start would be delayed.
They booed again when Vescovi sank another clutch 3 with 1.2 seconds to go in OT and cut it to 55-52. It wasn't enough for the Vols.
Through the first 13 minutes of the second half, the Vols had scored just 12 points and the Red Raiders 10. Tennessee missed 20 of its first 23 3-point attempts overall.
Tennessee fans stood and gave a sarcastic ovation when one free throw brought the Vols within one with 4:12 left headed into a timeout. Yes, a single free throw counted as an offensive explosion in this one.
James then slipped, comically missed a fastbreak dunk attempt and Texas Tech came right back and scored on the other end for a 41-38 lead.
BIG PICTURE
Tennessee: Should drop a few spots in the AP Top 25 poll. The Vols shot 5-for-28 from 3-point range in an 18-point loss last month to Villanova, and can’t expect to go deep in March without significant improvement from the arc.
Texas Tech: Received votes in this week’s AP Top 25 poll following its first loss of the season to Providence. Texas Tech wasn’t exactly challenged early in coach Mark Adams’ first season. Shannon scored 11 points — two shy of his total when the Red Raiders knocked off Louisville -- and sparked the Red Raiders to a 29-25 halftime lead.
KEEP FIGHTING, BABY!
ESPN announcer Dick Vitale was not at the Jimmy V Classic for the first time since its inception in 1995, though there were oversized cutouts of Vitale’s head left on seats.
Vitale, who is battling lymphoma, wrote on ESPN.com that he has bloodwork scheduled this week that could decide if he’s healthy enough to call the Villanova-Baylor game on Saturday.
“My team is very optimistic, and I am praying they are right again,” Vitale wrote. “Meanwhile, the challenge to win this battle for all cancer patients never, ever stops and continues with Tuesday’s Jimmy V Classic being played again in the name of my great friend, the late Jim Valvano.”
UP NEXT
Tennessee: Wrapped a six-day, two-game trip that spanned 3,909 miles, and returns home to Saturday to play UNC Greensboro.
Texas Tech: Hosts Arkansas State on Tuesday.
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