Barnes may experiment with bench a little more
KNOXVILLE — With the exception of two nonconference matchups in November, the Tennessee men’s basketball team’s starting lineup has remained the same through 17 games.
And since Southeastern Conference competition began, the on-court minutes for bench players have largely remained steady for the No. 21 Volunteers (12-5, 3-3), who play tonight at South Carolina (12-6, 3-3). SEC Network will televise the 6 p.m. game.
Tennessee coach Rick Barnes hinted Friday that some tweaks could be coming soon.
“I think it’s going to get back to maybe changing the rotation,” Barnes said while discussing Tennessee’s guards before practice at Pratt Pavilion. “I’m not sure. We’re still trying to figure it out, because we go into games, quite honestly, not knowing what we’re going to get.”
Behind the starting five of Kyle Alexander, Jordan Bone, Jordan Bowden, Admiral Schofield and Grant Williams, guards James Daniel and Lamonte Turner have been regular contributors off the bench, and forward John Fulkerson has played from eight to 19 minutes in all six SEC contests. Then there are Derrick Walker, Jalen Johnson and Chris Darrington on the fringes, with each getting opportunities to play but none logging more than 11 minutes in a conference game.
But after Bone, Bowden and Turner combined to shoot 2-of-19 from the floor in Wednesday’s 59-55 loss at Missouri, Barnes is looking for more from Tennessee’s backcourt.
“It goes back again to maturity, being patient and knowing that you’re going to have to fight the entire time,” Barnes said, “and at no point in time can you try to go for the spectacular play when you just need to be solid.”
Barnes’ concerns regarding the guards’ collective performance at Missouri extended beyond their shooting woes. He mentioned key defensive breakdowns at inopportune times, citing instances such as a guard going for a risky steal that resulted in a three-point play for the Tigers and a lack of alertness during a Missouri inbounds play that led to a dunk.
A poor offensive night only exacerbated the coach’s frustration with the lack of consistency from his backcourt.
“The guard play, we’re better than that,” Barnes said. “We can shoot the ball. There’s a lot of things that, by committee, we shouldn’t have nights like that.”
One idea Barnes is entertaining involves playing a bigger lineup, which could be good news for Johnson, who’s 6-foot-7, and 6-5 freshman Yves Pons, who has yet to appear in an SEC game.
Pons, who is from France, played a total of 18 minutes in six nonconference games. Barnes has said in recent weeks that the former fourstar prospect has a bright future in college basketball. However, the transition to the American style and a language barrier have kept the athletic wing from cracking the rotation on a deep roster.
On Friday, Barnes said Pons is “getting closer and closer.”
“I can tell you, personally, I’ve got to get him out there and let him get experience, because he needs that,” Barnes said. “I know he can help us.”
Playing Pons would give Barns another tool to experiment with: a bigger lineup when guard play is lacking.
“The biggest thing that’s held him back is he’s learning a whole new game and we’re moving quickly,” Barnes said. “There’s adjustments we have to make, and he has difficulty with that at times. But anybody that works as hard as he works, I think he’s got a great future and I’ve got to get him out there somewhere.”