Top Ranked Vols Fight Off MTSU 82-64

(utsports.com) KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – The University of Tennessee men’s basketball team increased its season-opening winning streak to a dozen for the third time in program history with an 82-64 win Monday night against Middle Tennessee State.

Facing a halftime deficit for the first time in 2024-25, top-ranked Tennessee (12-0) controlled much of the second stanza to claim the win in front of 20,706 fans at Food City Center. Fifth-year guard Chaz Lanier paced the victors with 23 points, while senior guard Zakai Zeigler posted his second straight double-double, notching 17 points and career-high 15 assists, tied for the fifth-most in program history.

The Volunteers scored eight straight points in just 94 seconds midway through the first half to take a 25-14 edge with 9:31 on the timer. However, Middle Tennessee State (9-4) soon put together a 13-2 surge, including seven unanswered points in 55 seconds by redshirt senior guard Camryn Weston, to go in front for the first time, 32-20, with 3:06 left before the break.

After Tennessee leveled the score just 18 seconds later, the Blue Raiders scored eight of the last 10 points in the frame, making it a 21-6 run over the final 6:33 of the frame, to earn a game-high six-point advantage, 40-34, at the intermission. Weston, who capped the scoring on a 3-pointer with 12 seconds left, tallied 17 points on 7-of-9 shooting in the session.

Tennessee scored nine of the opening 12 points coming out of the locker room, evening the score at 43 with 16:01 to play. Middle Tennessee State thrice went back ahead by three before the Volunteers pulled ahead, 52-51, with 12:21 to go and never conceded the lead. It pushed the cushion to six, 57-51, with 11:09 remaining after making it a 9-0 burst over 1:44.

The Blue Raiders got the deficit down to one, 59-58, with 9:23 to go, but Tennessee then went 5:58 without allowing a field goal—that included 3:35 without a point—and posted a 14-2 run during 5:15 of that span to take a then-game-best 13-point edge, 73-60, with 3:39 left.

The Volunteers eventually won by their largest margin of the night, 18, after scoring the final seven points in the last 1:37 of action.

Lanier, who had his fifth performance of 22-plus points in the last eight games, shot 5-of-10 from 3-point range to lead the team in scoring for the ninth time, including the eighth outright. Zeigler, who logged his 11th-career double-double, scored or assisted on 19 of the team’s 27 made field goals, plus shot 8-of-9 at the line to set season highs in makes and attempts. His 15 assists marked the highest total by a Volunteer since Feb. 28, 1987, and the top figure by an SEC competitor in non-conference play since Nov. 15, 2019.

Junior forward Felix Okpara scored 12 points, including 10 in a first half during which he shot 4-of-4, all on dunks. Senior guard Jordan Gainey added 10 points, six rebounds and a game-best two blocks, while senior forward Igor Miličić Jr., paced all players with 12 rebounds.

Weston led all scorers with 24 points for the Blue Raiders, adding a game-high four steals. He shot 9-of-18 from the field, the most makes by a Tennessee opponent this season, despite missing his final six attempts and scoring just one point in the last 14 minutes. Junior guard Kamari Lands added 13 points on a 5-of-10 field-goal clip for Middle Tennessee State.

Tennessee limited Middle Tennessee State to 8-of-27 (29.6 percent) shooting in the second half, including a 3-of-14 (21.4 percent) mark from beyond the arc. The Volunteers shot 18-of-23 (78.3 percent) from the stripe in the win, while the Blue Raiders went just 7-of-14 (50.0 percent).

Following a one-week hiatus from game action, Tennessee wraps up its non-conference slate Dec. 31 at 3 p.m. against Norfolk State, live on SEC Network+ from Food City Center.