CLEMSON, S.C. — Tennessee is set for its second exhibition game of the 2017-18 preseason Sunday, as the Vols travel to play Clemson at Littlejohn Coliseum for a 12:30 p.m. ET tip.
The NCAA approved a waiver enabling Clemson to host a men’s basketball charity exhibition game against Tennessee, with net proceeds going toward hurricane relief efforts in Texas and Florida. Admission is free, although donations to the Salvation Army’s continued hurricane relief efforts in Texas and Florida are encouraged.
The game will not be televised, and there will be no video stream available. However, there will be a live audio feed of the game, which can be found here.
Tennessee is entering its 108th season of basketball and its third season under head coach Rick Barnes. The regular season begins next Friday, Nov. 10 when Presbyterian comes to Rocky Top (7 p.m. ET, SEC Network +).
HAPPENING NOW…
• Proceeds from Sunday’s game will be donated to the Salvation Army’s hurricane relief efforts in Texas and Florida.
• This is Tennessee’s first domestic road exhibition game since a 77-66 loss to “Spirit Express” in Memphis on Nov. 26, 1987.
• Tennessee has never played a public exhibition against a “Power Five” opponent.
ABOUT CLEMSON
• Founded in 1889 and located in Clemson, South Carolina, Clemson University is a member of the Atlantic Coast Conference.
• Clemson head coach Brad Brownell is entering his eighth season with the Tigers and his 16th season as a head coach. He led Clemson to a 17-16 (6-12 ACC) record last year, and the Tigers lost in the opening round of the NIT.
• Clemson boasts an athletic roster highlighted by senior forward Donte Grantham (7.3 ppg, 4.3 rpg) and senior guards Marcquise Reed (10.0 ppg, .400 3FG%) and Gabe DeVoe (7.1 ppg).
• Significant contributions also are expected from point guard Shelton Mitchell (10.8 ppg, .453 3FG%), a Vanderbilt transfer who had offseason knee surgery.
• The Tigers defeated Augusta University, 80-56, in a home exhibition game last Thursday. Grantham led all scorers with 18 points on 8-for-11 shooting from the field, while also chipping in eight rebounds.
BARNES’ SUCCESS AT CLEMSON WAS SPRINGBOARD TO TEXAS
• Rick Barnes is entering his 31st season as a collegiate head coach. He spent four of those years as Clemson’s coach, guiding the Tigers to a 74-48 (.607) record from 1994-98 before being hired at Texas.
• Barnes led the Tigers to a school-record three consecutive NCAA Tournament appearances (1996, 1997 and 1998) and 13 wins over ranked opponents. Clemson climbed as high as No. 2 in the national rankings during the 1996-97 season, and Barnes’ Tigers advanced to the Sweet Sixteen that year.
• While Barnes was the head coach at Providence in the early 90s, he suffered one loss to Clemson. And since leaving Clemson to take the head coaching job at Texas in 1998, he has never faced the Tigers.
TWO VOLS QUESTIONABLE
• Two players on Tennessee’s roster are questionable for Sunday’s exhibition.
• Junior guard Chris Darrington, a juco transfer, is nursing an ankle injury.
• Redshirt freshman wing Jalen Johnson, who underwent a procedure to address a chronic stress fracture in his left shin in July, was recently cleared by team medical staff for full participation, but he is gradually working his way back to full speed.
• Neither Darrington nor Johnson played in last Thursday’s exhibition win over Carson-Newman.
VOLS’ SCHEDULE IS ACC HEAVY
• In addition to today’s exhibition at Clemson, Tennessee’s 2017-18 schedule features three games against ACC opposition: Dec. 3 at Georgia Tech, Dec. 17 vs. North Carolina, Dec. 23 at Wake Forest.
• There is also a chance the Vols could face NC State at the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament later this month.
CARSON-NEWMAN (EXH) RECAP
• Grant Williams logged a double-double off the bench, and Tennessee cruised to an 86-44 win over Carson-Newman at Thompson-Boling Arena Thursday night in the team’s first exhibition game of the preseason.
• Williams finished with 18 points and 12 rebounds, both of which were game-highs. Admiral Schofield enjoyed a strong performance as well, dropping 17 points to go along with five boards. Also finishing in double figures was sophomore Jordan Bowden, who went 3-of-6 from beyond the arc. Jordan Bone dished out a game-high eight assists while committing just one turnover.
• The Vols outscored Carson-Newman 26-2 in points-off-turnovers. Tennessee also drained 12 3-pointers.
• Tennessee’s 44 points allowed were the fewest allowed by the Vols in any game (exhibition, regular season or postseason) since March 14, 2014, when they held South Carolina to 44 points in the SEC Tournament.
ROSTER BREAKDOWN
• The Vols’ 2017-18 roster features 16 players (13 scholarship student-athletes) representing nine states as well as Ontario, Canada, and France.
• There are five Vols who hail from the state of Tennessee, two from North Carolina and one each from Alabama, Delaware, Illinois, Missouri, Ohio, Texas and Virginia.
• This is the first time since 2006-07 that the Vols’ roster has not included at least one player from the state of Georgia.
• Tennessee has one senior (a graduate transfer), five juniors, four sophomores and six freshmen (including three redshirt freshmen).
• This is the tallest roster third-year head coach Rick Barnes has had at Tennessee. This season’s team includes six players listed at 6-7 or taller. For each of the previous two seasons, UT had just three players listed at 6-7 or taller.
SUMMER EUROPEAN TOUR A SUCCESS
• Tennessee completed a 10-day European tour that saw them post a 3-0 record in exhibition play while visiting Barcelona and Valencia, Spain as well as Paris, France.
• All three games were played against local professional clubs and were contested with a FIBA ball under international FIBA rules.
• Chris Darrington finished the tour with the highest scoring average on the team (14.3 ppg)—barely edging out Lamonté Turner (14.0 ppg).
• True freshman forward Derrick Walker averaged 13 points and eight rebounds over the three games.
• Tennessee’s top rebounders in Europe were forwards Grant Williams (9.3 rpg) and Kyle Alexander (9.0 rpg).
TENNESSEE RETURNS TO BATTLE 4 ATLANTIS
• Tennessee will make its second appearance in the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament later this month. The 2017 field includes the Vols, Arizona, NC State, Northern Iowa, Purdue, SMU, Villanova and Western Kentucky. The Vols open against Purdue Nov. 22.
• The Battle 4 Atlantis takes place at the Atlantis Resort on Paradise Island, Bahamas.
• In Atlantis in 2013, Tennessee dropped its opening game to UTEP before bouncing back to defeat Xavier and Wake Forest.
-UT Athletics
