What Allan Houston told Tennessee basketball after Maryland win

Allan Houston waited down the Tennessee basketball tunnel before the Vols faced Maryland on Sunday.

The former Tennessee great watched for 40 minutes as the Vols made it look easy against the Terrapins for 20 and hard for 20. But he saw a consistent attitude from the Vols regardless of the score or moment.

“You all compete every play," Houston said in a video posted on Twitter. "One thing I noticed is every play, you don’t take a possession off. Then when it gets tough like that, you just got to keep making plays. So one thing I respect you guys is it’s not about making shots, it’s about competing. Keep doing that, y’all will have a special year. I look forward to it, man.”

The No. 7 Vols (9-1) held on to beat No. 13 Maryland (8-2) 56-53 on Sunday at Brooklyn's Barclays Center. Tennessee led by 21, but Maryland cut the lead to two in the second half. The Vols hit a trio of late 3-pointers to ward off the Terrapins and win their eighth straight game.

Houston remains Tennessee's leading scorer with 2,801 points. He was an All-American playing for his father, Wade Houston. He was picked No. 11 in the 1993 NBA Draft and played 14 years in the NBA, including 11 with the New York Knicks. He averaged 17.3 points per game and shot 40.2% on 3-pointers.

Tennessee plays at Arizona on Saturday (10:30 p.m. ET, ESPN2) and opens SEC play at Ole Miss on Dec. 28.

Mike Wilson covers University of Tennessee athletics. Email him at michael.wilson@knoxnews.com and follow him on Twitter @ByMikeWilson. If you enjoy Mike’s coverage, consider a digital subscription that will allow you access to all of it.