No. 1 Tennessee Basketball Pulls Away Late from MTSU

Tennessee basketball did not exactly cruise to victory on Monday night, but they did do enough to earn their 12th win of the season and remain undefeated.

Tanner Johnson | Dec 23, 2024

Dec 23, 2024; Knoxville, Tennessee, USA; Tennessee Volunteers guard Zakai Zeigler (5) brings the ball up court against the Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders during the first half at Thompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center. Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-Imagn Images / Randy Sartin-Imagn Images

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Tennessee Volunteers

Tennessee basketball did not exactly cruise to victory on Monday night, but they did do enough to earn their 12th win of the season and remain undefeated.

It was not easy, but Tennessee earned a hard-fought 82-64 win over MTSU on Monday night to improve to 12-0 on the season. The No. 1 Vols trailed for much of the game, but were able to pull away towards the end of the second half.

Chaz Lanier led the way with 23 points, but Zakai Zeigler was the catalyst of the offense with 17 points and 15 assists. Camryn Weston had 24 points to lead MTSU in scoring.

Felix Okpara had two early dunks to put Tennessee up 5-2, both were assisted by Zeigler. Lanier got going with two consecutive 3-pointers to give the Vols an 11-7 lead. After two Zeigler free throws, the Vols led 25-14 with under 10 to play in the first half.

The first half was full of sloppy play, with Tennessee having four straight turnovers during one stretch before the under-eight media timeout. Lanier then had another turnover but ended the scoring drought with a long-ball to give the Vols a 28-19 lead. However, an MTSU 12-3 run cut the lead to just two with under five minutes left in the half. The Blue Raiders took their first lead at 32-30 after another trey by Justin Porter. The Vols trailed 40-34 at the half after another 3-pointer by the Blue Raiders completed a stunning first half.

Tennessee came out with energy and started the second half with an 8-3 run to cut the lead to 43-42. The Blue Raiders hung tough, but continued to foul too much and put the Vols in the bonus with over 13 minutes to play. The Vols finally took the lead again at 52-51 and then led by four after a Lanier transition 3-pointer that sent the crowd into a frenzy.

The lead was 59-54 after two consecutive Zeigler lobs to Cade Phillips, but the Blue Raiders responded and made it a one-point game with nine minutes to go. The lead was 65-58 after two more Zeigler free throws. A Jordan Gainey 3-pointer made it 70-59 and felt like the dagger with under five minutes to play.

Lanier hit another 3-pointer and then Gainey put back a Lanier miss to give the Vols a 12-point lead with just two minutes left. The Vols dribbled out most of the rest of their possessions to preserve a win, their 12th straight to open the season.