The lead for No. 19, Tennessee, dropped to seven points with South Carolina attacking Wednesday night at Thompson-Boling Arena. The Vols were seeing what a 16-point lead was just minutes before disappearing with one sloppy turn after another.
Then Victor Bailey hit corner three to regain breathing space. Then John Fulkerson cut to the edge and was fed with a perfect entry pass from Keon Johnson. Then Fulkerson ran across the court in the transition, ending the break with a dunk in another Johnson assist.
South Carolina Head Coach Frank Martin took a timeout after the 7-0 race – which took just 76 seconds – was crowned by Fulkerson’s two-handed exclamation point.
That’s what Fulkerson Tennessee needs – cut, run, dive, produce.
“I thought he did a better job of running tonight than he did all year,” Rick Barnes said after Tennessee’s 93-73 victory. “He really ran a lot on the ground.”
The fifth-year senior striker, mired in a fall most of last month, returned to form with 19 points, the record of the season, adding six rebounds, three assists and some steals in 30 busy minutes.
He submitted 7 out of 12 on the field after hitting just seven shots in his previous four games.
It was the kind of involvement that Barnes requires, and this Tennessee basketball team must have, from a constantly active Fulkerson.
“What it looks like to me,” said Fulkerson, “is having drop-offs, transition and offensive rebounds, running the ground. Stuff like that. Plays that do not require skill, which you can make only with energy, effort and haste. These are really the easiest baskets to get. “
Fulkerson finding his former form did not come without an alert.
During a break early in the first half of Wednesday, the assistant coach Michael Schwartz placed on Fulkerson for a lost defensive mission. When Schwartz finished, it was time for Barnes to give his word.
Barnes then signaled for a seated Fulkerson to get up and go to the bottom of the huddle during the break. Johnson occupied his chair.
“I did something I shouldn’t have done,” said Fulkerson. “I think that just shows the standard that the technician imposes on me”.
What made matters worse: Fulkerson initially tried to cover his tracks.
“He made an excuse,” said Barnes. “There are certain ways when we’re in a gap that we don’t leave (open) guys, certain guys who shoot a high percentage of the three. The fact is, he just didn’t do it.
“He made an excuse and that’s when I said no, no, no. You know what you did. He said that you are the right coach. “
Barnes’ demand hasn’t changed, despite Fulkerson’s recent downfall. After scoring double digits 11 times in the first 12 games of the season, he managed to do that only once in the previous seven games.
He scored four points against LSU and Georgia last week, making just eight shots while Tennessee split the two games. He was eliminated after battling initial problems in Kentucky on February 6, four points against the state of Mississippi 10 days earlier and seven in his home loss to Missouri on January 23.
Barnes’ message: it’s up to you to get involved.
“We cannot do much from the point of view of the technical team,” said Barnes. “Our offense since Fulky is here has not changed much. If any have changed, it’s because we’ve added to take advantage of some other talent. Otherwise, your position has not changed much. We just said hey, you’re going to have to do this. “
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He’s going to have to keep doing this. And he did better than on Wednesday against South Carolina, even after coming back to life with 19 points.
“I still think he has to play faster in office,” said Barnes. “He’s trying to get it, spin it and do it. He won’t have time to do this unless he really does his job early. “