WATCH: Tennessee Volunteers Basketball Wins Big Over Northern Kentucky

Watch the highlights as the Vols defeat Northern Kentucky.

Tennessee forward J.P. Estrella (13) celebrates after winning a NCAA basketball game between the Tennessee Volunteers and Northern Kentucky Norse at Thompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center on Nov. 8, 2025. | Angelina Alcantar/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The Tennessee Volunteers jumped to a 1-0 start after defeating Mercer in the season opener in a closer 76-61 fashion than many may have wanted, but the guys got the job done.

The Vols regrouped with a more dominant performance in the most recent win.


The Tennessee Volunteers are now 2-0 on the season after a big 95-56 win over Northern Kentucky on Saturday.

Freshman Nate Ament led the team in points (23), with over half of that coming in the second half. Ja'Kobi Gillespie finished the night with 20-points, as J.P. Estrella also contributed 17-points of his own.

Take a look at the highlights from the 95-56 win on Saturday.

Head coach Rick Barnes, along with players Nate Ament and Ja'Kobi Gillespie would join the media following the contest to field questions.

Rick Barnes

Nov 8, 2025; Knoxville, Tennessee, USA; Tennessee Volunteers head coach Rick Barnes during the game against the Northern Kentucky Norse at Thompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center. Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-Imagn Images | Randy Sartin-Imagn Images

Rick Barnes on the turnover progress-

“We did. I mean, some, you look at Nate’s (Ament), he stepped out of bounds. Ja’Kobi (Gillespie), his first turn over, I said what are you doing? I said we’ve never tried to make that pass in our transition game, ever. So, things like that. Obviously, sometimes you don’t understand it. I thought for the most part when we went to the numbers and getting guys in, they stayed within the flow. And second half, we turned it over. Guys didn’t finish cuts, like with the DeWayne (Brown) turnovers, that was not DeWayne’s turnover. Even when it kept going, it was the right play. So, some of that, again, we’ve got a chance to get a lot better, but we took care of the ball a lot better tonight than we did the other night, obviously," Barnes said.

Nate Ament

Nov 8, 2025; Knoxville, Tennessee, USA; Tennessee Volunteers forward Nate Ament (10) moves the ball against Northern Kentucky Norse guard Dan Gherezgher (0) at Thompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center. Mandatory Credit: Randy Sartin-Imagn Images | Randy Sartin-Imagn Images

Nate Ament received a question about Ja'Kobi Gillespie's dunk, and he responded with a smile covered face-

“I thought he was about to lay it up. I didn’t know he had bounce like that, but um, we were all just happy. It’s good to be a part of the, you know, bench energy when something like that happens. I didn’t know he had that in him to be honest," Ament said.

What's next for Tennessee?

The Vols will be at home on Wednesday as North Florida rolls into Knoxville for a 7pm scheduled tip-off.

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