No. 3 Tennessee lights up Syracuse in SEC-ACC Challenge, 96-70
Tennessee Basketball’s defense has already lived up to the Rick Barnes standard over the first month of the season. The 35 points the Vols allowed last week against UT Martin were the fewest in a game in 51 years and set a new Thompson-Boling Arena record.
But this team has been just as good on the offensive end. Tuesday night No. 3 Tennessee shot 53.8% from the field despite a slow start at the 3-point line and hammered visiting Syracuse 96-70 in the SEC-ACC Challenge game at Food City Center.
Tennessee (8-0) had five players in double-figures, led by 26 from Chaz Lanier. Lanier had 15 in the second half and Jordan Gainey scored all of his 12 points after halftime. Zakai Zeigler had 14 points and eight assists, Igor Milicic had another double-double with 12 points and 10 rebounds and Cade Phillips finished with 12 points and five boards.
Syracuse (4-3) got a team-high 24 from Elijah Moore.
The Vols entered Tuesday ranked No. 11 in adjusted offensive efficiency in the KenPom.com ratings and climbed up to No. 5 by game’s end. They’re ranked No. 2 in defensive efficiency after finishing No. 3, No. 1, No. 3 and No. 5 over the last four seasons, respectively.
The offensive numbers will only go up after lighting up Syracuse. Gainey scored 10 straight points in the second half to build Tennessee’s lead to 22.
After going 2-for-15 from the 3-point line as a team in the first half, the Vols started the second half 5-for-7 from deep to more than double the lead.
Lanier made back-to-back 3-pointers at the 8:02 and 7:34 mark, giving him 26 points on four 3-pointers in the second half and getting Tennessee’s lead to 31.
Tennessee finished shooting 61.3% from the field and 57.1.% from the 3-point line in the second half.
Chaz Lanier, Cade Phillips led Vols in first half
Tennessee led 45-35 at halftime after leading by as many as 12 points in the first half.
Lanier had 11 points and Phillips scored 10 to lead the Vols early one. Zeigler had nine points and four assists in the first half and Okpara scored six points and grabbed five boards.
The Vols shot 47.1% from the field in the first half but struggled at the 3-point line, shooting just 13.3%.
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Phillips scored his 10 on a perfect 5-for-5 shooting, including a pair of dunks, a layup and a tip-in in the first 11 minutes.
Up Next: No. 3 Tennessee vs. Miami, Jimmy V Classic
After back-to-back home games, Tennessee goes on the road for two games away from home over the next 11 days.
The Vols face Miami in the Jimmy V Classic at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday, a 6:30 p.m. Eastern Time start on ESPN, then go to Illinois on Saturday, December 14, a 5:30 p.m. ET start on FOX.
Tennessee is playing in the Jimmy V Classic for the second time in four years. The Vols lost 57-52 in overtime against Texas Tech in New York in December 2021. The Vols have played Miami just four times in program history and haven’t faced the Hurricanes since 1996.
The Illinois game is the second in a two-year home-and-home that started with an 86-79 Tennessee win in front of a capacity crowd in Knoxville last December.
Tennessee will host Western Carolina (December 17), Middle Tennessee State (December 23) and Norfolk State (December 31) at Food City Center before SEC play starts at home against Arkansas on January 4.
