KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Wearing black “Dark Mode” uniforms for the first time in program history, the University of Tennessee men’s basketball team turned in an impressive 96-70 victory Tuesday night against Syracuse in the SEC/ACC Challenge.
Fifth-year guard Chaz Lanier logged a game-high 26 points, tying a season best, for third-ranked Tennessee (8-0) in front of a sold-out crowd at Food City Center that saw the home team lead by double digits for the entire second half and by 20-plus for the final 13 minutes.
After conceding the opening basket of the evening, the Volunteers scored eight points in 46 seconds—the stretch included two three-point plays, the latter of which was an alley-oop dunk by Lanier. They later scored 10 straight points in 1:41, capped with a four-point play by senior guard Zakai Zeigler, to go up by 12, 30-18, with 8:50 on the first-half timer.
Syracuse (4-3) soon responded with a 7-0 surge in 1:11 to pull back within four at the 6:09 mark, but Tennessee tallied nine of the next 10 points over 2:04 to push the margin back to a dozen, 41-29, with 3:45 left before the break.
The Volunteers took a 10-point advantage, 45-35, into the locker room behind a combined 30 points from Lanier (11), sophomore forward Cade Phillips (10) and Zeigler (nine). Tennessee shot 11-of-13 (84.6 percent) at the line, while the Orange went 3-of-10 (30.0 percent) on free throws.
Early in the second frame, Tennessee used a 7-0 run to go ahead by 18, 57-39, with 15:40 remaining to take full command and upped the margin to 23, 73-50, with 10:38 left.
Shortly thereafter, the Volunteers, aided by back-to-back 3-pointers from Lanier, posted a 12-0 burst—the fourth time they scored at least seven consecutive points in the triumph—in 3:26 to extend the margin all the way to a game-best 32, 85-53, with 6:33 to go. At that time, they were 15-of-21 from the floor in the second half, including 7-of-11 from deep.
The Orange never got any closer than 22 the rest of the way and Tennessee scored six of the last eight points to claim the 26-point decision, its fourth-largest margin of victory this season.
Lanier scored his 26 points on 8-of-16 shooting, including a 5-of-8 mark in the second half that featured a stellar 4-of-5 long-range ledger. He added a season-high-tying four rebounds, two assists and one steal in the victory.
Zeigler, who entered the top 10 on Tennessee’s career made 3-pointers list, finished with 14 points, eight assists and a season-high four steals, pacing all players in the final two categories. Fellow senior guard Jordan Gainey totaled 12 points, all in a second half during which he shot 5-of-6 from the field and made both his 3-point attempts. He added six rebounds, one shy of his season best, and two assists.
Phillips, who made his first five field-goal attempts, ended the affair with 12 points on 6-of-8 shooting to set a career best in makes, as well as pulled down six boards, blocked a game-high two shots and dished out two assists, with the latter two marks matching career highs. Senior forward Igor Miličić Jr., the Volunteers’ fifth double-digit scorer, registered a double-double with 11 points and a game-best 10 rebounds, adding two assists and shooting 6-of-7 at the line to set a season high in both makes and attempts.
Freshman guard Elijah Moore scored a career-best 24 points for Syracuse, finishing 8-of-12 from the floor, 3-of-6 beyond the arc and 5-of-6 at the line. Junior forward Chris Bell contributed 12 points, while freshman forward Donnie Freeman added 10.
The Volunteers shot 53.8 percent (35-of-65) in the win, including 61.3 percent (19-of-31) in the second stanza. They also notched a 34.5 percent (10-of-29) ledger from deep that featured a sizzling 57.1 percent (8-of-14) mark after the break.
Tennessee totaled a 40-26 edge on the glass, including a 13-5 margin on the offensive end that led to a 16-7 advantage in second-chance points. It also had a 44-28 cushion in paint points and a 19-10 ledger in points off turnovers, forcing 11 and committing just eight.
The Volunteers have a week until their next game, which is set for Dec. 10 at Madison Square Garden in New York against Miami in the Jimmy V Classic, with action televised live on ESPN.
