Box Score: Totals from Tennessee's exhibition win over Lithuania U21
Tennessee basketball’s newcomers were on display Friday in Florence, Italy, where the Vols took down the Lithuania U21 national team 97-57 in the first of three exhibition games during the team’s foreign tour.
Redshirt freshman point guard Freddie Dilione V started and made the biggest statement for Tennessee in his 22 minutes, scoring 13 points on 5-for-9 shooting, including 2-for-3 from the 3-point line, while finishing with five assists, five rebounds and three steals.
Dalton Knecht, the transfer wing from Northern Colorado, played a team-high 24 minutes and led Tennessee with 14 points. He went 5-for-14 from the field and 4-for-11 from the 3-point line. He had five rebounds, three steals and two assists. He had a pair of turnovers and was called for four fouls.
Jordan Gainey, the transfer shooting guard from USC Upstate, played just under 23 minutes, scoring 12 points on 4-for-12 shooting, including 4-for-10 from the 3-point line. He had four assists.
Dilione started alongside veterans Josiah-Jordan James, Santiago Vescovi and Jahmai Mashack.
Mashack was another standout with 12 points, a team-high six steals and five rebounds in just under 24 minutes.
James played 18 minutes, scoring seven points and grabbing four rebounds. He was 3-for-8 from the field and 1-for-6 from the 3-point line. Aidoo played 18 minutes and also went 3-for-8 from the field. Vescovi in 16 minutes had five points, going 1-for-2 from the 3-point line.
Freshman forward JP Estrella had a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds in just under 18 minutes off the bench. He finished 5-for-7 from the floor. Redshirt freshman DJ Jefferson played 14 minutes, scoring just two points on 1-for-7 shooting, including 0-for-3 from the 3-point line.
Tobe Awaka picked up where he left off after an impressive performance for Team USA in the FIBA U19 World Cup earlier this summer, scoring 13 points and grabbing 10 rebounds in 18 minutes on Friday. He went 6-for-9 from the field and added two blocks.
Up Next: Tennessee vs. Lithuania U21, Saturday, 1 p.m. ET, Flo Sports (Streaming)
Tennessee will face the same Lithuania U21 team on Saturday, a 1 p.m. Eastern Time start and streaming through Flo Sports. When the Vols leave Florence, they’ll head to Rome and on Monday will face A.S. Stella Azzurra, a professional club that played last season in Italy’s second division.
On Friday Tennessee held Lithuania to 29.3 percent shooting from the field. The team was just 4-for-24 from the 3-point line. The Vols led 29-16 after the first quarter and 52-28 at halftime. Lithuania scored just six points in the third quarter and was outscored by Tennessee 45-29 in the second half.
The 10-day trip started in Milan and the Lake Como area earlier this week. After bussing to Florence, the team will train to Rome for the final leg of the Italian tour and the final exhibition game.
Final Box Score: Tennessee 97, Lithuania 57
| MIN | POINTS | FG | 3FG | FT | REB | FL | AS | TO | ST | BL | |
| (F) Josiah-Jordan James | 18:24 | 7 | 3-8 | 1-6 | 0-0 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| (F) Jonas Aidoo | 18:40 | 8 | 3-8 | 0-2 | 2-2 | 7 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| (G) Santiago Vescovi | 16:10 | 5 | 1-2 | 1-2 | 2-2 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| (G) Freddie Dilione V | 22:03 | 13 | 5-9 | 2-3 | 1-3 | 5 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 0 |
| (G) Jahmai Mashack | 23:50 | 12 | 5-9 | 0-0 | 2-2 | 5 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 6 | 1 |
| Dalton Knecht | 24:00 | 14 | 5-14 | 4-11 | 0-0 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 0 |
| Jordan Gainey | 22:53 | 12 | 4-13 | 4-10 | 0-0 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Tobe Awaka | 18:21 | 13 | 6-9 | 0-0 | 1-5 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 2 |
| DJ Jefferson | 14:06 | 2 | 1-7 | 0-3 | 0-0 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| JP Estrella | 17:56 | 11 | 5-7 | 0-0 | 1-1 | 10 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 0 |
| 200 | 97 | 38-86 | 12-37 | 9-15 | 53 | 28 | 25 | 14 | 16 | 7 |
