Tennessee Bests Alabama In Thrilling Finish
The Tennessee Volunteers entered play on Saturday evening as the No. 4 team in college basketball and tied as the No. 1 SEC squad. However, they faced a tough challenge, as the Alabama Crimson Tide was the No. 14 team in the country and shared the No. 1 seed in the SEC with the Vols. Their home crowd was rowdy from tipoff, and both squads traded body blows for forty minutes.
Tennessee guard Dalton Knecht has been a superstar this season, averaging 20.8 points per game entering play. The leading SEC Player of the Year candidate dealt with foul trouble and early shooting woes, though, and the Vols surrendered a 12-0 run ahead of halftime to head into the locker room down by one. He finished the evening with 13 points on a 5 for 14 shooting clip.
Both sides played with energy and toughness on the defensive side of the floor in the second half, making physical plays near the rim and contesting shooters on closeouts hard. Everyone struggled to find their shot, but the Tennessee starters found ways to create shots for each other. Guard Zakai Zeigler paced the Vols in scoring with 18, but four of five starters ended the game in double figures.
The Vols seized control of the game with a few minutes left and managed to outlast Alabama by making their free throws and forcing the Crimson Tide into quick, tough shots. The final scoreboard read Tennessee, 81-74.
Tennessee improves to 23-6 on the season, notching their 13th conference win against just three losses. They swept the regular season series against the Crimson Tide and have five wins against top-25 teams. Tennessee has two regular season games left - they travel to the No. 18 South Carolina Gamecocks on Wednesday before closing out the regular season at home in front of their own fans against the No. 16 Kentucky Wildcats.
Tennessee Volunteers G Dalton Knecht during the win over Alabama. (Photo by Gary Cosby Jr. of USA Today Sports)
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