From left, Kansas players Marcus Morris, Tyshawn Taylor, Markieff Morris, Thomas Robinson, C.J. Henry and Elijah Johnson watch from the bench as time dwindles in the Jayhawks' 76-68 loss to Tennessee Sunday, Jan. 10, 2010 at Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville.

‘Lucky’ shot

Walk-on Skylar McBee swished a three-pointer with 36 seconds left, giving the Vols a 74-68 lead.

“I think it was lucky. He didn’t know where the clock was,” KU senior Sherron Collins said of the freshman, who barely beat the shot clock horn.

“It definitely deflated us,” Collins added. “We played good defense, ran the shot clock down, and he hit it. He’s a good shooter.”

Half-brother excels

Renaldo Woolridge, the half-brother of future KU player Royce Woolridge, had 14 points off 4-of-6 three-point shooting. He said he would not text Royce after the game.

“I don’t really know him, to be honest,” Renaldo said.

He said the Vols never doubted they could beat KU, despite the fact they lost Tyler Smith to a season-long suspension and three other rotation players, currently suspended.

“I expected to win. We all did,” he said. “The big thing is we never get rattled. When they tied it (at 64 with 4:21 left after UT blew nine-point lead), we kept our composure, poise. We stayed together.”

This ‘n’ that

KU coach Bill Self, who said last week he likely would be trimming the rotation, with players earning their shots in practice, used eight players 13 or more minutes. Thomas Robinson and C.J. Henry were used three and two minutes. Elijah Johnson did not enter the game. … KU is 5-2 against the SEC in the Self era and 29-30 all-time against the conference. … KU shot its second-lowest field-goal percentage of the season, making just 37.7 percent of its shots. Tennessee shot 48.1 percent from the floor, the best shooting percentage by a KU opponent this season. … KU had a season-low three steals. … Cole Aldrich (18 boards) had 12 the first half, to mark the most rebounds in a half by a Jayhawk since Nick Collison pulled down 13 in the second half versus Syracuse on April 7, 2003. … Aldrich had four blocked shots for his 14th game with three or more rejections. … Collins scored in double figures for the third-straight game and 12th time this season, as he finished with a team-best 22 points. Collins also attempted a season-high 20 field goals. … Freshman Xavier Henry recorded double-digit points for the third-straight game and 14th time this season. He scored all 10 of his points in the second half. … Sophomore Tyshawn Taylor had three assists. He has three-plus assists in seven of his last eight games and 10 times this season. He also attempted a season-high 11 field goals. … Tyrel Reed hit a three-pointer at the end of the first half to tie the score. He has at least one trey in each of the last six games.

Classy crowd

The Vols’ fans did not storm the court after the first game against a No. 1-ranked team in Thompson-Boling Arena. The public-address announcer reminded fans with over a minute left that not only could they be arrested for running on the floor, but tickets could be revoked for future games.