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Tennessee basketball is at its best when Jonas Aidoo is on. He was elite at Arkansas.

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Tennessee basketball is at its best when Jonas Aidoo is on. He was elite at Arkansas.


Josiah-Jordan James beamed as he approached Jonas Aidoo.

Aidoo steadied himself and clapped his hands as he spun back toward the court, where James was the first of his Tennessee basketball teammates eager to greet him.

The seconds that preceded James’ joy featured Zakai Zeigler rifling a post feed to Aidoo, who took a single hard dribble to set up a spin to his left. He got the Arkansas defender in the air. Then he dunked it through Razorbacks forward Makhi Mitchell, the first act of a three-point play.

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“Jonas played a heck of a game for us tonight,” Vols coach Rick Barnes said.

File that quote as an understatement. 

Aidoo played a phenomenal game throughout No. 9 Tennessee’s 92-63 thrashing of Arkansas (12-12, 3-8 SEC) at Bud Walton Arena in Fayetteville, Arkansas. The 23-point, 12-rebound showing was the type of game the junior forward gave the Vols (18-6, 8-3) routinely early in SEC play. It was the type of game that harkened the reality that the Vols are at their best when Aidoo is at his best — and their ceiling will be tied in large part to their tallest player.

Jonas Aidoo elevates Tennessee basketball’s ceiling

Dalton Knecht is Tennessee’s best player. Zakai Zeigler is the heart and soul. Santiago Vescovi and Josiah-Jordan James are the backbone. 

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But it is Aidoo who might matter most for these Vols to reach their potential because, as Barnes believes, he can be as good as any big in the nation. They have to have him be that player on a game-by-game basis. Simply, Tennessee is a guard-heavy team with a lot of scoring threats on the perimeter. Aidoo is their unique post weapon, a 6-foot-11 forward who spent his first two seasons known for his defense. His offensive game and potent scoring ability took him to an All-SEC level.

“I think he is one of the most improved players that our league has,” Arkansas coach Eric Musselman said. “He is a big who rebounds the ball and plays really, really hard.”

Aidoo emphatically showed that during a five-game tear to start SEC play that featured three double-doubles. He averaged 16.2 points and 8.8 rebounds in that five-game spurt. He tailed off in the past five games before Wednesday. He had the same stat line in UT’s losses to South Carolina and Texas A&M: six points and five rebounds.

Barnes couldn’t explain Aidoo’s issues against USC. He knew UT needed more from Aidoo against the Aggies. Why? Because Tennessee cannot be at its best without Aidoo being his best.

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How Jonas Aidoo dominated Arkansas

Aidoo got going with a dunk Wednesday. He had a putback dunk. He made a midrange jumper. He made a left-handed layup running to the rim and bouncing off contact. He got another putback dunk. 

He terrorized Arkansas from start to finish as Tennessee had its way at the rim — and Aidoo had his way everywhere. 

“I thought he looked relaxed shooting his little 15-footers,” Barnes said. “What he did at the rim and his rebounding in the second half was really big. He came up with a lot of plays in there. His length affects things around the rim when he gets himself in position.”

Aidoo had five rebounds in each of UT’s past two games as it was beaten on the glass by LSU and Texas A&M. He owned it at Arkansas, doing everything well.

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Barnes spent the month of November preaching to Aidoo that he can be as good as any post player in the nation. Those affirmations came after UT faced three of the best in Purdue’s Zach Edey, Kansas’ Hunter Dickinson and North Carolina’s Armando Bacot.

Aidoo’s name should be alongside those three, Barnes believed then and still does. He also needs it to be true.

Tennessee was the best version of itself Wednesday. Aidoo was, too. Those facts have been paired before and will be paired again. They have to be for the Vols to have their best season.

Mike Wilson covers University of Tennessee athletics. Email him at michael.wilson@knoxnews.com and follow him on Twitter @ByMikeWilson. If you enjoy Mike’s coverage, consider a digital subscription that will allow you access to all of it.





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Tennessee

Tennessee first SEC team with regular-season titles in men’s basketball, baseball, softball in same season

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Tennessee first SEC team with regular-season titles in men’s basketball, baseball, softball in same season


Tennessee athletics are sitting on the Rocky Top, indeed.

The Vols have accomplished major history this season, becoming the first SEC school to win the regular season championship in men’s basketball, baseball and softball in the same season. The Lady Vols are the No. 3 seed and advanced to the NCAA Tournament Super Regionals this weekend in softball, while the baseball team is the No. 1 seed in the SEC Tournament, which kicks off Tuesday in Hoover, Alabama.

REQUIRED READING: Why it’s special for Tennessee softball seniors to lead Lady Vols back to NCAA super regional

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Tennessee clinched the men’s basketball regular season championship on March 6 with a road victory over South Carolina, its first outright regular season championship since the 2006-07 season. On May 3, Tennessee softball defeated Kentucky in Knoxville to clinch its second straight SEC regular season title. The Vols went on to lose in the quarterfinals.

Following a sweep of South Carolina over the weekend, Tennessee baseball clinched a share of the SEC regular-season championship with Kentucky. It was the second time in three years the Vols won at least a share of the conference championship. They are the No. 1 seed in the conference tournament and are currently projected as a No. 2 national seed in the NCAA Tournament by D1Baseball, entering last weekend.

Here’s a look at how each team performed this season:

Tennessee men’s basketball

Tennessee men’s basketball advanced to the Elite Eight in 2023-24, losing to eventual runner-up Purdue. The Vols have qualified for the NCAA Tournament for four straight seasons under coach Rick Barnes.

  • Final record: 27-9, 14-4 SEC
  • Season finish: Lost to Purdue in Elite Eight
  • SEC regular season titles: 11

Tennessee softball

The Lady Vols won their second straight conference regular season championship and the third in program history, all led by coach Karen Weekly. Tennessee swept through the Knoxville Regional to advance to its 13th Super Regional.

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  • Record: 43-10, 19-5 SEC
  • SEC regular season titles: Three
  • WCWS ranking: No. 3 overall seed
  • Next up: No. 14 seed Alabama in Knoxville Super Regional

Tennessee baseball

Tennessee baseball swept South Carolina, while rival Kentucky dropped its finale to Vanderbilt for the two schools to finish with a share of the regular season championship. The Vols ― led by coach Tony Vitello ― earned the No. 1 seed after taking two of three regular-season games against the Wildcats in Lexington, Kentucky, earlier this season.

  • Record: 46-10, 22-8 SEC
  • SEC regular season titles: Five
  • Next up: Winner of the No. 8-No. 9 matchup in SEC Tournament



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Tennessee

Heartbreak for Tennessee High, falling 5-1 to Gibbs to end their season

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Heartbreak for Tennessee High, falling 5-1 to Gibbs to end their season


Sunday was the final day to punch tickets to Murfreesboro, with Tennessee High softball looking to return to the state tournament with a win over Gibbs.

Spending the Sunday at Rotary Park, it was the Lady Eagles of Gibbs striking first with an RBI-Double from Lacey Keck in the top of the first.

Tennessee High at the plate in the bottom of the inning, the Vikings looked for a spark and it was provided by Addie Wilhoit with a stand-up double.

Unable to move the runners around, the Vikings bac on the field and it would be Carly Compton settling in on the mound and collecting strikeout after strikeout.

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Handling business in the top of the inning, it was Compton providing her own run support with a solo shot to even the game up in the bottom of the fourth.

Story of the day was stranded runners as Tennessee High came up short, fighting hard but falling 5-1 to close out their season.



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Why it’s special for Tennessee softball seniors to lead Lady Vols back to NCAA super regional

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Why it’s special for Tennessee softball seniors to lead Lady Vols back to NCAA super regional


Kiki Milloy kicked into another gear when Tennessee softball coach Karen Weekly waved her home Sunday.

The senior outfielder sprinted down the third baseline to beat the throw from left field. Milloy dove, sliding headfirst across home plate – safe.

She rose to her knees to smack the ground as she screamed in celebration. Milloy turned towards the field at Sherri Parker Lee Stadium as she stood up, yelling again for good measure as she put the Lady Vols up by three runs.

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Rylie West, who was on deck when Zaida Puni hit the RBI-single, came up to Milloy to join the celebration.

West and Milloy are the only two players left from Tennessee’s 2021 team. They’re the only ones left who felt the pain of back-to-back exits in the NCAA regionals on their home field. They’re two of the biggest reasons it hasn’t happened since.

West hit a two-RBI double right after Milloy scored, and by then, the win was well within their grasp. West followed it with a solo home run in the fifth, and No. 3 Tennessee (43-10) won 6-0 over Virginia (34-20) to claim the Knoxville Regional and advance to the super regionals for the second year in a row.

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Two straight years of elation, made even sweeter by the two years before that ended in heartbreak.

“(I’m) just super proud that … we can end our careers differently than how we started them,” West said.

Puni, who transferred to Tennessee from Oklahoma ahead of the 2022 season, called the early exit her first season at UT “heartbreaking.”

“So, we made a commitment to never having that feeling again,” Puni said.

The Lady Vols will host No. 14 Alabama (36-17) in the super regionals. The best-of-three series will start Friday.

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Weekly was already getting emotional after the Lady Vols run-ruled Virginia on Saturday. She fought back tears in the dugout as soon as the game ended.

“When they go out and play with so much joy and so much competitiveness and so much passion … They were just locked in and just really, really enjoying competing, and that’s what makes me the happiest,” Weekly said. “Usually wins come with that, but really, that’s what I want them to strive for every day, is just to go out there every day and compete their hearts out.”

Tennessee was dominant in all three victories, not conceding a single run. The Lady Vols outscored opponents 21-0 over 19 innings and hit .329. Karlyn Pickens and Payton Gottshall held opposing hitters to a .109 average and combined for 24 strikeouts.

MORE: Rylie West’s dad saw potential that led to Tennessee softball career. But first he told her to quit

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The three-game shutout was the first thing Weekly pointed out when she met with the team after Sunday’s win.

“That’s huge. I doubt that’s being done in any other regional in the country,” Weekly said. “I think it takes just a big weight off these guys’ shoulders as hitters, knowing that our pitchers … they both have the mindset that my job is to keep a zero on the board until our offense can figure things out and get runs up for us. I would imagine they’re a whole lot of fun to play behind.”

Cora Hall covers University of Tennessee women’s athletics. Email her at cora.hall@knoxnews.com and follow her on Twitter @corahalll. If you enjoy Cora’s coverage, consider a digital subscription that allows you to access all of it.





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