Rick Barnes uses narrow escape vs. Texas A&M to warn Tennessee

Tennessee basketball is in the midst of a transitional period after bidding farewell to Zakai Zeigler, Chaz Lanier, Jordan Gainey and Igor Milicic Jr., among others. The Volunteers were a legitimate national championship contender entering last year’s NCAA Tournament. Now, after falling short of the Final Four yet again, they must figure out how to become a genuine threat this season. Tuesday’s 87-82 double overtime win over Texas A&M showed how resilient Rick Barnes’ group can be.

But it also taught the squad some tough lessons. While the Aggies are certainly a formidable foe after winning their first three SEC games, fans expected Tennessee to have a less stressful victory in Thompson-Boling Arena. The Vols do not make it easy, however. They committed 19 turnovers, struggled on offense and trailed for most of the contest, but Nate Ament and company got the job done in this extended slugfest.

Barnes is probably feeling more relief than joy, though. Following a 91-67 loss to Florida in Gainesville on Saturday, the longtime head coach was hoping for a cleaner showing at home. Instead, it is clear that No. 24 Tennessee still has much work to do.

“If you’re not ready to play every night, you’re going to get beat,” Barnes said, per Caleb Jarreau of Daily Times Sports, after his team improved to 2-2 in conference play. The four-time Big 12 Coach of the Year and 2018 SEC Coach of the Year is issuing a stern message to his team: if they do not get their act together, things will unravel rather quickly.

A team does not usually survive such a sloppy outing. Fortunately, the Volunteers relied on their toughness to vanquish Texas A&M. They out-rebounded the Aggies 60-35 and held them to 36 percent shooting from the field (they shot 37 percent). Ament led all scorers with 23 points on 7-of-16 shooting, while also recording seven rebounds and two blocks. Jaylen Carey added 10 points and nine boards off the bench.

It is obviously important to win ugly when necessary, but Tennessee basketball needs to prove it can consistently compete at a high level. Perhaps Rick Barnes can ignite the Vols (12-5) for their home matchup versus Kentucky (10-6) this Saturday afternoon.

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