Darlinstone Dubar continues to build confidence as he makes his return
Knoxville, Tenn. – Fresh off a buzzer-beater win over Illinois, Rick Barnes and the Tennessee Volunteers returned home to take on Western Carolina Tuesday night.
Three things to know following the win over the Catamounts.
-
Spreading the wealth
Entering the game Tennessee averaged 16.3 assists per game, their high was 24 versus Montana nearly a month ago.
Through the first period, Tennessee had just 10 assists and six of them came courtesy Zakai Ziegler.
In an off night shooting-wise for Zeigler, he continued to find opportunities for his team in the second half.
Again, he led the team in assists in the final 20 to finish with 9 on the night.
Darlinstone Dubar highlighted how Zeigler can impact the game in a number of different ways.
“He’s one of the best point guards in the country. He’s one of our leaders. Regardless if he shoots bad, he’s going to impact the game. And that’s what he did today,” said Dubar.
-
Cade Phillips developing as a passer
Usually, Cade Phillips is the recipient of a solid lob from his teammates. This time he threw one up for Felix Okapara and he dropped the hammer on his second dunk of the night with 14:56 remaining.
It also gave Tennessee its 14th assist on the night.
“It’s kind of rare to see the 4 and the 5 get the steal and the fastbreak, but we’ve worked on it a lot,” said Okpara.
With a smile, he added, “IT was a pretty good pass. I hit my hand on the backboard I wish he put a little less power on the pass.”
Rick Barnes also highlighted how Phillips continues to grow and develop as a passer for this team.
“Sometimes he probably takes a little bit too much of a chance, but if you don’t pressure him, he sees the floor well. He’s getting to where he’s making the right read most of the time,” said Barnes.
-
Meaningful minutes for Darlinstone Dubar
In his sixth appearance this season, Darlinstone Dubar put in nine minutes in the first half. In that stretch, he was a perfect 5-for-5 on attempts.
His first of four field goals came 33 seconds after subbing in following a Zakai Zeigler to Dubar who threw it down for the dunk.
His lone three in the first 20 minutes, followed an Igor Milicic defensive rebound leading to a fastbreak three-pointer by Dubar.
Though the moment slowed for him.
Enough time to take a step back and get both feet behind the three-point line. As he looked down at his feet, he found his shot and took it from the left corner, and he sank the triple try.
Dubar tacked on seven more minutes in the second period.
In that stretch, he strung together four points, a defensive rebound, and a block.
“I thought he tried really hard defensively,” said Barnes. “He was really locked in and that was the big thing that we’ve been talking to him about, about trying to be more consistent on that end.”
-
-