No. 5 Tennessee rallies from down 16 points to beat Vanderbilt, 81-76

What a difference a half can make. And some made shots. And some defense.

No. 5 Tennessee was lifeless and defenseless in the first half against Vanderbilt Saturday afternoon, trialing by as many as 16 points in front of a stunned capacity crowd at Food City Center, but woke up in the second half in time to rally to beat the Commodores 81-76.

Zakai Zeigler scored all of his 22 points in the second half and finished with eight assists to lead Tennessee (21-5, 8-5 SEC) in the comeback. Chaz Lanier scored 21 points and added seven rebounds while Igor Milicic had 10 points, three assists and two rebounds. Jordan Gainey had nine points, four rebounds and three assists off the bench and Jahmai Mashack had nine points and six rebounds.

Tennessee completed the comeback on a Zeigler corner three with 9:41 left and Lanier scored on the next possession, driving to the rim for Tennessee’s first lead of the day after a 7-0 run. 

Zeigler put the Vols in front for good at the free-throw line with 2:57 to go and put the game out of reach on a drive to the rim and layup with 19 seconds left, giving the Vols a 80-76 lead.

Vanderbilt (17-8, 5-7) got a game-high 24 from Jason Edwards, who went 6-for-10 from the 3-point line and scored 14 points in the second half. Jaylen Carey scored 18 before he fouled out with 4:13 left.

Edwards put Vandy up 70-69 on a three with 3:10 remaining, but Zeigler answered with two free throws on the next trip down and Mashack then extended the lead to four with a corner three. 

Edwards hit another three with 44 seconds left to get the deficit down to two, before Zeigler drove and scored on the next possession.

After digging the 16-point hole in the first half, Tennessee was back within five, at 50-45, after a Zeigler three-point play at the 13:43 mark, continuing what was one-way traffic in the second half.

It was back to a one-possession game two possessions later after two Gainey free throws got the deficit down to 50-47, giving the Vols a 16-6 scoring advantage to start the second half.

Zeigler hit a three with 11:39 to go to make it a two-point game, 52-50, capping a 12-2 run over 4:28 before the second media timeout of the half.

Vandy led by 13 at halftime after dominating first half

The game started with a Tennessee turnover and a three-point play for Vanderbilt on the other end, setting the tone for a half dominated by the visiting Commodores.

Vandy led by 16 twice in the first half and was up 44-31 at halftime, the most points Tennessee has allowed in a first half this season and the second-most points the Vols have allowed in a half. Missouri had 47 in the second half 10 days in Knoxville. 

Tennessee got dominated in rebounding, 21-10 overall and 5-1 on the offensive glass. Vandy scored six second-chance points and had nine points off of three turnovers committed by the Vols. 

Vandy shot 54.8% from the field in the first half, went 6-for-12 from the 3-point line and never trailed during the opening 20 minutes.

Tennessee got 13 points from Lanier, who went 6-for-10 from the field and 1-for-2 from the 3-point line, adding five rebounds and an assist. 

Up Next: No. 5 Tennessee at No. 8 Texas A&M

Tennessee does not have a midweek game this weeks and is off until the trip to No. 8 Texas A&M on Saturday, scheduled for Noon Eastern Time start on ESPN at Reed Arena in College Station.

The Vols are back on the road at LSU on February 25, then returns home to host No. 2 Alabama on March 1. The regular-season schedule closes with a trip to Ole Miss on March 5 and a home game against South Carolina on March 5. 

The SEC Tournament will be held March 12-16 at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville and the NCAA Tournament will be revealed on Selection Sunday on Sunday, March 16.