It's time for the rest of the country to start showing Tennessee Vols guard Zakai Zeigler the respect he deserves. On Wednesday night, things got off to a bit of a slow start for No. 6 Tennessee in its showdown with No. 23 Georgia.
However, things completely turned around in the second half, with UT posting a dominant 74-56 win. Tennessee has now improved to 16-1 on the year, but they most likely wouldn't have come out on top if it wasn't for Zeigler.
In the victory, Zeigler heated up in the second half, including going three-of-three from 3-point land during an impressive run. He scored 16 points on the night, adding seven assists. Oh, and he also had six steals, giving him 215 for his career, which is a new program record:
🔒 PROGRAM RECORD
— Tennessee Basketball (@Vol_Hoops) January 16, 2025
Zakai Zeigler is Tennessee’s all-time steals leader (215) pic.twitter.com/WSXz50tMDZ
Zakai Zeigler set Tennessee's all-time steals record in the win over Georgia
Talk about getting the job done on both ends of the floor. Zeigler has been a defensive stud throughout his Tennessee career. He's been named to the All-SEC Defensive Team in the past three seasons and he was named the SEC Defensive Player of the Year last campaign.
The fact that he's also getting the job done for head man Rick Barnes on the offensive side of the floor only makes things even more special for him. Chaz Lanier continues to struggle, as he's going through a rough three-game stretch for this team.
Barnes isn't worried about Lanier's cold streak, but the fact that a veteran like Zeigler has stepped in to help things out has been fantastic. This was the same case against Texas, with Lanier struggling to find his rhythm. However, Zeigler was there to lift the team to a 74-70 victory.
The off nights aren't going to last the rest of the season for Lanier, everyone knows that. Zeigler, Barnes and the rest of the team are confident in the sharpshooter to bounce back sooner rather than later. In the meantime, Zeigler will continue to deliver whenever his number is called - and he'll have a huge smile on his face knowing he'll have his name in the Tennessee records books as well.