KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Josiah-Jordan James came back from missing four games with an injury to score 18 points to lead No. 11 Tennessee to an 85-45 victory over South Carolina on Saturday night.
James, who suffered an ankle injury against Vanderbilt on Feb. 8, hit 4 of 7 3-pointers for the Volunteers (21-8, 10-6 Southeastern Conference). Jahmai Mashack scored 14 points, Zakai Zeigler had 13 points and 11 assists, and Olivier Nkamhoua and Uros Plavsic scored 10 each.
“(James) was terrific,” said Tennessee coach Rick Barnes. “His presence has a major impact on the team. He takes a lot of pressure off.”
“(James) is a good player; very skilled,” said South Carolina coach Lamont Paris. “He can contribute in a variety of different ways. (Tennessee is) really good when he’s in there.”
“I don’t feel any pressure,” said James, who had missed eight games earlier in the season while recovering from offseason knee surgery. “It’s just basketball. I’ve been doing it for a long time. I want to make it easy for my teammates.”
Hayden Brown led the Gamecocks (10-19, 3-13) with 18 points. GG Jackson II scored five points, 10 below his average.
A 22-4 Tennessee run in the second half turned a competitive game into a lopsided one. The Gamecocks were the 12th Tennessee opponent held to 50 points or fewer.
