Late into the first half of Northern Kentucky University taking on number 18-ranked Tennessee, the Norse are bringing up the ball down 34-21.
Ethan Elliott blows by Ja’Kobi Gillespie and hands the ball off to Donovan Oday. Oday slips and turns over the ball. Gillespie picked it up and ran down the court. With no man to beat, he took flight.
Jumping off his left foot, he cocks the ball back with his right hand. Looking like the Jordan logo in mid air, “Boom!” he slams it home, and the arena goes wild.
After that monster slam, the Norse weren’t able to mount a comeback, as Tennessee forced their way to a 95-56 win.
Freshman phenom Nate Ament went off against the Norse, his first points of the game came off an and one three-pointer, putting the Vols back in front four minutes into the game. He finished with a game-high 23 points, eight rebounds and five assists, shooting 6-of-12 from the floor and 9-of-10 at the line. His performance was the most points by a Tennessee freshman since Julian Phillips put up 25 in 2022.
NKU’s Keal Robinson kept up his great performance from the UC Clermont game. He led NKU with a 14-point and eight rebounds. He took many tough threes over guys who were heads taller than him, burying them. He knocked down four threes on ten attempts.
Senior guard Oday was another bright spot of Northern Kentucky, also having 14 points. He came out hot, scoring seven straight points to start the game, giving NKU a 7-5 lead. He shot 6-10 from the field and finished with two rebounds, a steal and an assist.
Tennessee senior guard Gillespie was all over the floor, putting up 20 points on 8-14 from the field, including a 4-10 from deep. J.P. Estrella and Felix Okpara were also issues for the Norse.
The height difference proved to be an issue for NKU as they got out-rebounded 47-25 and got out-scored in the paint 42-22. The Vols’ firepower was also overwhelming for the Norse as they shot 52% from the field and 41% from three, while NKU 36% from the field and 30% from three.
Head Coach of the Tennessee Volunteers, Rick Barnes, praised the Norse and head coach Darrin Horn.
“Playing against a team that one I have a great deal respect for Darrin Horn and who he is and the way he runs things. We told our team coming in that this team will play us as hard as anyone can play you, they’re never going to stop playing,” Said Rick Barnes. “We are going to play against a team that we probably won’t see a defense with the way they play it, with their match-up zone, but I thought our size was a huge factor in the game.”
Ament was surprised by Gillespie’s monster dunk in the first half.
“I didn’t know he had bounce like that, but we were all just happy it’s good to be a part of the bench energy when a play like that happens. I didn’t know he had that in him, to be honest,” Ament said.