Zakai Zeigler: When Josiah-Jordan James is attacking, 'nobody is stopping him'
Three weeks ago, it was fair to wonder if Josiah-Jordan James would ever get back to this point with No. 9 Tennessee. The senior wing was sidelined for eight of the first 13 games of the season, and was coming off his second stretch of four straight games missed, while dealing with nagging knee soreness.
He finally returned — a change in his medication and treatment plan finally eliminated the knee pain — for the SEC home opener on Mississippi State on January 3 and hasn’t missed a game since.
He played a season-high 34 minutes at Mississippi State on Tuesday, relied on more heavily with the Vols missing senior guards Santiago Vescovi (shoulder) and Tyreke Key (illness).
James scored 13 points, going 5-for-12 from the field and 3-for-7 from the 3-point line, with four rebounds and two assists in the 70-59 win at Humphrey Coliseum in Starkville.
He played another 31 minutes at LSU on Saturday, leading Tennessee (16-3, 6-1 SEC) with a season-high 22 points and seven boards in the 77-56 win.
Josiah-Jordan James had 35 points, 11 rebounds, 3 assists in 65 combined minutes at Miss. State, LSU
The only question sophomore point guard Zakai Zeigler had Saturday night was who is going to stop James when he plays at that level.
“When he is attacking and he is getting going, he is really hard to guard,” Zeigler said. “It just makes us so much better. He definitely needs to be like that at all times. When he is in that mode, nobody is stopping him.”
Attacking, James said, is just him doing what he’s been asked to do — by everyone.
“(The coaches) want me to come out aggressive,” he said, “and my teammates want me to come out aggressive. I feel like it makes the game easier for other people not only to score but offensive rebounds is a big key for us so just getting shots up on the glass.”
The Vols had 14 offensive rebounds Saturday, leading to 20 second-chance points. They had a season-low eight turnovers.
James was 9-for-16 from the floor at LSU, season highs for shots made and attempted. His four 3-pointers matched another season high.
Up Next: No. 9 Tennessee vs. Georgia, Wednesday, 7 p.m. ET, SEC Network
“We know that every time down we want to get a shot up,” James said, “and usually when you turn down shots, something bad happens, usually a turnover in our case. Coming out with that mindset I feel like in practice is when it really starts so it’s easier in the games just to keep it flowing.”
The best part, both for James and this Tennessee team moving forward, is he was ready to play another 31 minutes Saturday after playing 34 minutes Tuesday.
“I felt like the last two days in practice my energy has been up,” James said. “My legs have been feeling good and I feel like the work that I’m putting in extra before practice, after practice, is just paying off.”
