Rick Barnes on how Tennessee mustered 11-point comeback to top Auburn

Tennessee basketball head coach Rick Barnes was proud of the way his team rallied Saturday against Auburn. The Volunteers trailed by 11 points with just over 16 minutes remaining, and things weren’t looking good.

But they didn’t back down, stringing together a 17-2 run over the next eight minutes to take the lead. Once they had it, they never let go on their way to a 67-62 victory.

In his postgame press conference, Rick Barnes discussed what went into the comeback as well as what it meant to get a win against a top-five team in Auburn.

“I thought we did get more pressure defensively,” the coach said. I thought Zakai (Zeigler) coming in and his ball pressure was a big part of that happening. It took some time for our guys to get used to their length and when to go and how quickly they’re going to play to the rim. Rebounding obviously in the second half, we had three turnovers and they ended with 15. But the first half we did have a lead and then we had two blunders that you really can’t have. It really flipped the game a little bit. But the more aggressive we became defensively, I thought the better we became on the offensive end. (Santiago Vescovi) was having a tough time getting going, but that’s a credit to their defense and what they do. Overall, Auburn’s a terrific team and you’re not going to get a bunch of easy baskets.”

At one point in the second half, Tennessee held the Tigers without a field goal for more than eight minutes. The Volunteers used a balanced offensive attack to wear down Auburn, with four players finishing the game in double figures. Vescovi led the way with 14 points on 2-for-5 from 3-point range while Zeigler added 13 points — 11 of which came during the second half.

Tennessee improved its record to 21-7 overall and 12-4 in SEC play, putting them just one game behind Auburn for first place in the conference. With just two regular-season games remaining before the SEC Tournament begins on March 9, the Volunteer finds itself in a three-way tie for second place. That makes a strong close to the season even more pivotal for them, as they were listed as a four seed in On3’s most recent bracketology projections.

Saturday’s loss was the second in three games for Auburn, which finds itself slipping as postseason play approaches. The Tigers still remain a contender to win the national championship this season, and were projected as the conference champion and a number one seed prior to the loss.

The Volunteers will aim to keep their winning streak alive at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday against Georgia before closing out the season against Arkansas.