Tennessee men’s basketball hosted the Radford Highlanders for the Vols’ second regular-season game. The No. 11 Volunteers took the 70-47 win after a cold first half of offense.

Head coach Rick Barnes started Juke Harris, Terrence Hill Jr., Braedan Lue, Tyler Lundblade and DeWayne Brown II. 

Tennessee’s defense looked solid from the start. The Highlanders went nearly four minutes before scoring from the field on a Tristan Gross three. Tennessee frequently forced Radford deep into the shot clock, fighting through or switching screens instead of chasing.

The Vols’ first bucket, a Lundblade three, didn’t come until nearly three minutes in. Tennessee started ice-cold from the field. At the first media timeout, with 11:57 left in the half, they were just 2-for-10. Meanwhile, Radford took advantage to build a slight lead.

Jalen Haralson had a couple of solid moments midway through the half. Troy Henderson found him for a game-tying dunk, and Haralson then came up with a steal. The Vols were still cold and a bit sloppy on the offensive end. They finished the half with seven turnovers.

Miles Rubin got involved, converting back-to-back opportunities in the paint. Henderson followed with a steal and score to give Tennessee a 16-12 lead, forcing a Radford timeout with 7:58 to go. Shortly after, Rubin threw down an alley-oop.

Hill finally hit the Vols’ second three of the night with 4:07 left in the half to give Tennessee a 26-21 lead. Hill later got downhill and split two defenders for a layup, then hit another three off a Brown offensive rebound to reach 10 points. Hill’s scoring threat opened up opportunities for others. Haralson got free on a backdoor cut and flushed a dunk. Tennessee went to the half up 33-24.

Tennessee opened the second half with a couple of paint scores from Hill and Lue. The offense still wasn’t what you’d expect from this team, and the three ball hasn’t found its way to Knoxville yet. Instead, the points have come from getting to the paint and the free-throw line, something Hill has done consistently. 

Tennessee opened up a 44-29 lead with 13:59 to go in the game. Haralson slammed home a fast-break dunk. Radford’s Warren Keel and Jordyn Kee made some tough shots throughout the night, but Tennessee didn’t give up many open looks. 

Rubin showed more aggressiveness defending the paint in the second half. He tallied two blocks within five seconds and played solid defense overall. On offense, Henderson and Rubin showed good chemistry, connecting on an inbound lob that put the Vols up 50-36 with 10:47 left. Harris hit his first three at the 10:02 mark.

With 7:51 remaining, Haralson went down on a hard foul at the rim. He showed discomfort in his right shoulder. During the TV timeout, officials reviewed the play for a flagrant foul on Keel but kept it a common foul. Haralson hit both free throws to put the Vols up 57-36. He was aggressive with the ball in his hands and also had a solid night on the boards. He went on to finish with 11 points and six rebounds.

Dai Dai Ames came along stronger down the stretch and put up a quiet 13 points. Brown was quiet in the scoring column with just three shots taken, but did his job on the boards. He finished with four points and 12 rebounds. Hill finished with a game-high 18 points on 6 of 9 shooting, and Rubin finished with eight points, six rebounds, three blocks, and one steal.

The second half was cold for Radford, as they shot 24.2 percent. Tennessee opened up to a 62-38 lead with a 16-2 run before the under-four media timeout, and went on to close out the win.

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