Rick Barnes, Vols reflect on senior class, 2023-24 season after Elite Eight loss to Purdue

DETROIT — There was no noise. The locker room was silent, with every Vol sitting in their respective lockers.

Tennessee basketball’s 2023-24 season campaign had just come to a close on Sunday afternoon after an Elite Eight loss to Purdue.

With the loss also comes the end of the collegiate careers for Josiah-Jordan James, Dalton Knecht and Santiago Vescovi. James and Vescovi both spent five years as Vols, while Knecht spent just one year. No matter the time, all three made a lasting impact on the program.

Eventually, noise filled the locker room again. Reporters’ questions filled the void, asking what went wrong or if the season was a failure because of the loss.

It was also a time for reflection, especially for James, Vescovi and Knecht.

Here’s what the Vols had to say about the Elite Eight season and the graduating seniors.

Santiago Vescovi 

“Our hats off to Joe and DK and all the guys really. But like coach said, we all hurt right now, but I think we left the, Tennessee basketball, especially with Joe, in a great place, and it’s all about leaving it better than what you got it. And I think we’re leaving Tennessee basketball even better. Still sad that we couldn’t get it done, but, yeah, like I said, in the future we’re going to look back and probably be grateful that we got this chance, and we made it all the way that we made it.”

Josiah-Jordan James

“It’s impossible to put words how much these people in this place means to me. It just as much as I’m hurting right now — I don’t know everybody is — I’m just grateful and happy for the last five years and the people that I was able to meet, and the experiences that I was able to have will last me a lifetime. And I love everybody that I encountered at the University of Tennessee to death, and I’m just so grateful.”

Dalton Knecht 

“Yeah, I just love these guys, and I wish we could have one more game. I’m thankful for all these guys for accepting me for my one year here, as well as the coaching staff.”

Jordan Gainey 

“Joe, Santi, (Colin Coyne) and DK have just been amazing and showed us the ropes around here and for me and DK whenever we first got here and just been able to really weather the storm with this fall. They’ve been, they’ve been here for a long time and just being able to build this program up to what it is today.”

Tobe Awaka

“They meant a lot. All those guys, Josiah, Santi, DK, (Coyne), they’ve meant a lot to this program with what they’ve built, the work that they put in. My heart breaks that we couldn’t have pushed the season a little further for them.”

Jahmai Mashack

“I’ve really grown a connection with them, being with them for as long as I have. It kind of just doesn’t feel real, you know, the fact that they’re not going to be here and that everybody’s moving on because it’s been such just a long year, long and hard year.

“But they’ve really made a culture here and they built on it, and obviously you can see by how they played that they’re extremely tough, extremely physical, but they’ve made a career here that I don’t think people really understand how much really went into it from when they got here to where they are now.”

Head coach Rick Barnes

“I go back to where we were five years ago and what Josiah and Santi did and where they started, where we are today, they left it so much better than they found it. Zakai certainly has made an unbelievable impact. But Dalton coming in and having just a year that will be hard — I mean, think about it, just out of nowhere. Nobody expected it.