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Tennessee Basketball issues first injury report ahead of SEC opener vs. Arkansas

IMG_3593by:Grant Ramey•01/03/25•

GrantRamey

Tennessee Basketball | Randy Sartin-Imagn Images
(Randy Sartin-Imagn Images) Dec 31, 2024; Knoxville, Tennessee, USA; Tennessee Volunteers head coach Rick Barnes speaks with his team during the first half against the Norfolk State Spartans at Thompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center.

Tennessee Basketball issued its first injury report Friday night, ahead of the SEC opener against Arkansas on Saturday afternoon at Food City Center. The only Tennessee player listed was sophomore forward JP Estrella (foot), who is out for the season.

Arkansas listed guard Johnell Davis as probable after Davis missed the last two games with a wrist injury. Estrella underwent season-ending foot surgery in late November, addressing a lingering injury that dated back to the offseason. 

No. 1 Tennessee (13-0) and No. 23 Arkansas (11-2) are scheduled for a 1 p.m. Eastern Time start Saturday on ESPN.

Davis is averaging 9.2 points and 3.8 rebounds in 30.2 minutes per game this season.

“He’s been practicing,” Arkansas associate head coach Kenny Payne said of Davis on Thursday. “He’s getting better. He still is missing a little bit of his rhythm, but he’s back, and he’s getting better every day, and he’s been going hard.”

Tennessee has a couple players playing through injuries.

Freshman guard Bishop Boswell injured his right shoulder in the second half of the 84-36 win over Western Carolina on December 17 after colliding with an opposing player on a screen. He did not dress for the 82-64 win over Middle Tennessee State on December 23, but returned to practice last week and played three minutes off the bench against Norfolk State on Tuesday.

Senior guard Jahmai Mashack injured fingers on his left hand early against Middle Tennessee State on December 23, but played the rest of the game and played

Both Boswell and Hofstra transfer wing Darlinstone Dubar missed a game each while in concussion protocol earlier this season. 

Sophomore wing Cameron Carr missed a month with a thumb injury that required surgery. He left Tennessee abruptly on December 23, opting to transfer.

Payne on Thursday said both Jonas Aidoo and Zvonimir Ivisic, the Razorbacks’ two centers, are coming back from illness. 

“He was sick for a while,” Payne said of Ivisic, “and he’s just now getting healthy. We need him to prepare to play great, have great practices leading up to a game, because that’s how you know you’re going to play well in the game, by how you practice. And he’s been trying really hard, and we need for him to bring it.”

“(Aidoo is) getting better each day,” Payne added. “You know, curious to see — we hadn’t practiced yet today — but curious to see how he feels today and what he brings to the table and practicing. We need him. We need him 100%. 

“We need his physicality. We need his scoring around the basket. We need his defensive presence. So we’re hoping that he’s feeling better and better, and he can come out and help us fight for a win.

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