Tennessee basketball pulled away late in the second half thanks to a clutch offensive performance that pushed Tennessee across the finish line with a 77-69 road win over Texas A&M.
lone star statement pic.twitter.com/24K9swHl2S
— Tennessee Basketball (@Vol_Hoops) February 22, 2025
Chaz Lanier led the team in scoring. He scored 22 of Tennessee's 36 points in the first half in a dominant shooting performance, but Zakai Zeigler stepped up and iced the game in the final minutes.
Zeigler scored seven points in the final three minutes and assisted Jordan Gainey with a clutch three-point shot with two minutes remaining in the game.
Regardless of who had the ball in their hands, Tennessee's offense made every shot when they needed it throughout the game, but it didn't start that way.
Tennessee suffered tough starts in the first and second half. It has become a trend for the Vols to start slow, but if they can finish every game the way they did against Texas A&M, there won't be many complaints from fans.
While the offense was the highlight in the final couple of minutes, Tennessee's defense set them up for success down the stretch.
Mississippi State gave Tennessee the blueprint to beat the Aggies. All Tennessee had to do was bring its defense and shut down the Aggies' unimpressive offense.
To do that, Tennessee had to limit second chances through offensive rebounds and lock down Wade Taylor IV. The latter can be more difficult, but the Vols did a good job doing both.
A&M finished the game with only 14 offensive rebounds, and Taylor finished the day with 18 points. The combination of both defensive efforts was plenty to get the job done and earn the win over another top-ten team.
Tennessee earned a much-needed win against a top-ten team ahead of the final couple of weeks in the regular season. The Vols are now preparing for a road trip to LSU on Tuesday to take on the Tigers at 9:00 PM ET on SEC Network.