After a back and forth matchup for most of the first half, Tennessee Basketball went into the locker room on an 8-0 run to build a 32-25 halftime lead and then scored the first three points of the second half to go up by 10. The Vols never looked back and punched their ticket to a third straight March Madness Sweet 16 for the first time in program history.
UT, ranked No. in both polls, continued to dominate the second half and beat the No. 7 seed UCLA Bruins. Although UCLA led for most of the first half, the game was close most of the time. The Vols really turned it up a notch late in the half to make sure they took control of the game and never looked back.
Rick Barnes’ team, ranked No. 6 in both polls, had to adjust to a tight whistle and UCLA deviating from what it had done all season by putting in two bigs. In response, Barnes switched up his game plan on the fly by establishing a press and halfcourt trap defense.
It worked.
The Vols started to force multiple UCLA turnovers and create more easy shots. They were able to overcome post players being in foul trouble in the process. Although the bigs weren’t much help, with Felix Okpara, Igor Milicic Jr. and Cade Phillips all scoring five points or fewer, the transition game made up for it.
Eventually, Tennessee Basketball built a 19-point lead. They then played keep-away and ran out the clock for a nine-point win that wasn’t even that close. This team proved it could handle matchup zones and anything that was thrown at it regardless of the quality of the opponent.
Chaz Lanier benefitted the most. Playing in space is what he likes to do, but UCLA’s compact defense made that tricky. Well, once the heat was turned up, he got many more open looks and managed to score 20 points while going 4-of-5 from three.
Zakai Zeigler, who thrives in a chaotic environment, finished with 15 points, six assists and three steals. Jordan Gainey also took advantage of the situation and had 13 points off the bench while going 3-of-6 from beyond the arc. Jahmai Mashack added two steals.
Up next for Tennessee Basketball, which improves to 29-7 on the year, is a trip to the Sweet 16 against either the No. 6 seed Illinois Fighting Illini or No. 3 seed Kentucky Wildcats. UCLA, meanwhile, finishes the season with a 23-11 overall record.
