LOUISVILLE, Ky. - Duke Crews grabbed a couple of his all-star teammates by their jerseys at the start of the fourth quarter and pulled them close.

What Crews said was not audible. But judging by the score - Crews' "black'' team trailed the "white'' 80-66 - and Crews' animated nature, it had to be something about staging a rally in front of the 14,072 on hand at Freedom Hall for the Adidas Derby Classic all-star game.

With Crews leading the charge, the black team did just that and held a 99-97 lead with 1.3 seconds remaining. If not for an ill-advised foul by McDonald's All-American Javaris Crittendon on the inbounds pass, the rally would have been complete.

As it turned out, the white team sank a couple of free throws, sent the game into overtime and won 118-106.

Crews, Wayne Chism and Marques Johnson, all Tennessee signees, were visibly bothered by the loss.

It might have been an exhibition, but it was a game, and if nothing else Vols' fans can expect these three signees to compete.

"I just wanted to win,'' said the 6-foot-7 Crews, who had a game-high seven blocked shots, a team-high 11 rebounds and scored 10 of his 12 points in the second half. "But that's not how the game worked out.''

Things might have been different if Crews' team had dumped the ball inside to him earlier. Instead, Crittendon and Louisville signee Edgar Sosa fired up 3-pointers with reckless abandon, connecting on only 4-of-22 attempts between them.

"That's OK,'' said Crews, who went up against 6-foot-11 McDonald's All-American Brook Lopez most of the night. "I love playing at the other (defensive) end.''

Indeed, Crews, Chism and Johnson played team ball on a night when many of the other all-stars attempted to turn the game into a personal highlight film.

There were no bad shot attempts among the Tennessee trio. In fact, Johnson didn't even attempt a shot.

Johnson did, however, show he could handle the ball (one turnover), pass efficiently (two assists) and rebound (two offensive rebounds, two on defense).

Chism, meanwhile, never found his groove offensively, connecting on 2-of-9 shots with a couple of his attempts blocked by the 6-11 Lopez.

Chism managed six rebounds and five points, including a fastbreak dunk when he exploded off the bounce and slammed the ball over 6-11 Robin Lopez, Brook's twin.

Chism also took the only charge of the game, a rarity in all-star games.

Crews also made a defensive stand, tightly guarding Memphis signee Willie Kemp and drawing a five-second call during the black team's rally.

Asked after the game what he envisioned for himself at Tennessee next season, Crews said "SEC Freshman of the Year.''

When the Rivals.com reporter who asked the question laughed, Crews let him know he was serious.

"You asked, and that's my goal,'' Crews said, "and that's what I'm going to do.''

After Saturday night's performance, it's hard not to take Crews and the Vols' signing class seriously.