PHOENIX – Admiral Schofield danced around the floor for a few moments Sunday afternoon when the buzzer sounded at Talking Stick Resort Arena.

Then the Vols senior forward took off toward a corner near the hoop where he made so many important shots against No. 1 Gonzaga. And he didn’t stop when he got there.

Schofield ducked around the rows of seats next the floor and headed for the stairs. He got halfway up and stopped, having located his target.

“I was looking for my father,” Schofield said. “He is a big part in this. Him and coach (Rick) Barnes are the same person. They really coach me the same way. My dad is probably my biggest critic."

The moment shared between father and son started two days before Schofield led No. 7 Tennessee (7-1) with a career-high 30 points in a 76-73 win against No. 1 Gonzaga (9-1).

Schofield texted his father, Anthony Schofield, on Friday to see if his dad would be in Phoenix to see the Vols take on No. 1 Gonzaga.

The elder Schofield promptly bought a ticket to Arizona, arriving on Saturday night. His son wanted him to come by the hotel later that night. Anthony Schofield declined.

Anthony Schofield’s logic was defined: He wanted to allow his son to focus on Sunday afternoon’s game.

“I didn’t see him until we were shooting in warmups,” Admiral Schofield said. “He surprised me, so I had to go give him a hug.”

Before the hug, Schofield scored 25 second-half points, netting UT’s final 11 points.

He made a game-tying 3-pointer with 3:17 to play. He gave UT the lead with 1:20 to play with another 3-pointer. He gave UT the win with a final 3-pointer with 22 seconds to play.

“Admiral played big,” Barnes said. “Toughness is a big word used in sports. One of them is when you’re not shooting the ball well, but staying with it and taking your shots. He did that. It was probably the difference in the game.”

Schofield, whose previous career high was 25, made six 3-pointers in the game. He made five in the second half.

And his dad was there to see it all, flying in from Illinois at a moment’s notice.

“I wanted to go up to him and say thank you for being here because I texted him two days ago and asked him if he was coming,” Schofield said. “He bought a flight and came out.”