What Rick Barnes liked about Tennessee's response after the exhibition loss to Duke

Rick Barnes didn’t like No. 18 Tennessee’s lacking physicality in the 83-76 exhibition loss to No. 6 Duke Sunday night at Food City Center. He didn’t like the substandard defense, either, after the Blue Devils scored 46 points in the second half while taking control of the game for good. 

But he liked what he saw from the Vols on Monday, both in the film room and on the court at Pratt Pavilion. 

“The best response was what happened after we watched the tape,” Barnes said on Thursday, “and then go out on the court and see guys really lock in. But it also goes back to the things we had talked about going in, about details and being able to talk through some situations. 

“Obviously, we’ve got a long way to go, like I think most teams do defensively, with as many new guys as we have. But it was a great experience for us. The best thing about it was the response after the film and how we went out and this week we have tried to get better.”

Up Next: No. 18 Tennessee vs. Mercer, Monday, 7 p.m. ET, SEC Network+

It wasn’t the best start for five-star freshman wing Nate Ament, either. He had a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds in his unofficial debut with the Vols, but wasn’t exactly efficient getting there.

Ament finished 5-for-19 shooting from the field and went 0-for-5 from the 3-point line. 

“Nate’s going to be fine,” Barnes said.

Ament’s response mirrored that of his teammates. The starting point, both for him and his new team, wasn’t good enough.

“Where Nate showed me, again, is his maturity level,” Barnes said. “I mean, no one was more disappointed than him after that game, because I think he would tell you that he didn’t have the right mindset going in.”

Barnes said it wasn’t that Ament wasn’t ready to play, but there was an evident shift after the loss. 

“He came in the day after the game,” Barnes said, “sat down with coaches and watched the tape, and then as we’re sitting in the film room as a team, pointing out the obvious, that day he went out on the court and showed his maturity at a high level.”

‘It’s just going to be so neat watching him grow as this year goes on’

The 6-foot-10, 207-pound Ament in April became the highest-ranked recruit to ever commit and sign with Tennessee. He was the No. 4 overall player in the 2025 class, according to the Rivals Industry Ranking, and the No. 2 small forward nationally.

One would never know it, though, according to Barnes.

“Nate’s not a person that thinks he knows everything,” Barnes said. “He’s very humble. You can’t get better in this game if you’re not humble. You can’t. If you’ve got an attitude — he’s anything but that. But no one took his performance harder than he did. 

“Being the kind of player he is, it’s just going to be so neat watching him grow as this year goes on. It’s just going to be so neat because, again, his maturity level is at an extremely high level.”