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National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Tennessee 92, NC-Greensboro 63
When: 7:00 PM ET, Friday, November 11, 2011
Where: Thompson-Boling Arena, Knoxville, Tennessee
Officials: # Bruce Benedict, # Marc Ellard, # Tim Gattis
Attendance: 17483

Tennessee’s new coach and playmaker produced the same old winning result, crushing UNC-Greensboro 92-63 in the season opener for both teams.

Cuonzo Martin made his coaching debut in Knoxville, replacing Bruce Pearl, who was fired in March. Martin continued Pearl’s aggressive full-court defense but employed a much smoother motion offense that was supposed to ease in a crop of inexperienced players on a team that lost its top two leading scorers from last season. Trae Golden scored a career-high 29 points and hit five of the Vols’ 15 3-pointers.

Senior guard Cameron Tatum was thought to be the focal point of the offense as he was the top returning scorer for Tennessee (1-0), but Tatum, finished with just seven points. Martin preached an open competition for scoring duties and through one game, it looks like Golden will be the go-to guy.

Golden, who averaged just 13 minutes a year ago, delivered nine assists for the three-guard offense, as the Vols dropped 21 assists on 31 field goals. There’s still plenty of concern in the paint, as UNC-Greensboro (0-1) grabbed 16 offensive boards. The Vols were outscored in the paint in their final two exhibition games and didn't carry a distinct physical advantage inside against a team picked to finish sixth in the Southern Conference.
Top Game Performances
 
NC-Greensboro   Tennessee
Korey Van Dussen 12 Scoring Trae Golden 29
Derrell Armstrong 3 Assists Trae Golden 9
Derrell Armstrong 8 Rebounds Renaldo Woolridge 8
Korey Van Dussen 3 Free Throws Made Trae Golden 4
Korey Van Dussen 3 Steals Trae Golden 2
Aloysius Henry 1 Blocks Yemi Makanjuola 2
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
NC-Greensboro 63 41.5 3-10 6-15 12 30 1 8
Tennessee 92 64.6 15-24 15-22 21 30 6 7