In front of a sold-out crowd at Food City Center, No. 6 Tennessee basketball cruised to a 68-56 victory over No. 14 Mississippi State.
The Tennessee Volunteers extended its winning streak at home to 14 in an in-conference matchup versus Mississippi State.
On Tuesday night, Rick Barnes’ team had 15 assists on 23 made baskets, making it the fifth game in a row with 15 or more assists against SEC opponents.
The Vols led from the beginning to the end in the first-ever ranked contest between the two longstanding conference foes.
Takeaway #1: Chaz Lanier finds his rhythm
After a three-game stretch of averaging 8.3 points per game while shooting a poor 18.6% from the field and 16.7% from three-point range, standout transfer Chaz Lanier returned to form against Vanderbilt, finishing with a team-high 17 points on 45% shooting overall and 67% from beyond the arc.
He carried the momentum from the team’s loss in Nashville into the game against the Bulldogs.
Lanier ignited Tennessee’s offense against the Bulldogs right away, starting the game with a triple and adding another two possessions later to give the Volunteers an 8-0 lead before Mississippi State head coach Chris Jans called a timeout. Lanier went on to score 14 points on 4-of-7 shooting from beyond the arc in the first half.
The Volunteers’ leading scorer ended his night with a game-high 23 points on 8-of-17 (47%) shooting from the floor, 5-of-12 (42%) shooting from deep, and 2-2 (100%) from the stripe.
Rick Barnes and his teammates must continue to get Lanier going offensively if they are to win big games in the nation’s toughest conference.
Takeaway #2: The Bulldogs allow another 35% three-point outing
Mississippi State has struggled to defend the 3-point line. This season, the Bulldogs’ opponents are shooting 35% from three, ranking 250th in the nation. Furthermore, Mississippi State gives up 35.4% of its three-pointers, much higher than the national average.
For the fourth consecutive game, the Bulldogs allowed their opponent to shoot at least 35% from three and make ten or more attempts, as Tennessee went 10-28 from distance.
Igor Milicic Jr., Zakai Zeigler, and Chaz Lanier combined for seven of those makes, but Tennessee had a couple of unexpected subjects convert from distance.
Jahmai Mashack made both of his three-point attempts on his way to a good offensive effort, scoring 10 points on 4-of-6 shooting from the field.
Felix Okpara hit perhaps the most significant three-pointer of the game as the shot clock expired with 14:22 left in the second half. Okpara pulled the lead back to ten points, and it never fell below that mark again.
“We cut it to seven and then Okpara made the three at the shot clock,” Mississippi State head coach Chris Jans stated. “That to me was the backbreaker — not that we were going to come back and win the game but if he misses and we get it down to five or four, it can change the momentum.”
It was Okpara’s first perimeter attempt of the season, and his first in more than two years. Okpara last saw a 3-pointer go down as a true freshman at Ohio State on Dec. 3, 2022, against St. Francis (PA).
“I’ve had it,” Okpara remarked about having the go-ahead to shoot.“It’s my first, and I won’t say it’s my last, but for now it’s my last.”
Head coach Rick Barnes saw differently and joked, “It was a lucky play because he had not taken one all year.” “If he was smart, he wouldn’t take another one —- he’d leave as the all-time leading 3-point shooter, percentage-wise. He would be Tennessee’s version of Danny White at Notre Dame.
The 6’11” forward totaled nine points, a season-high 12 rebounds, and a block.
Takeaway #3: Volunteers harass the Bulldogs defensively
Tennessee’s defense struggled in a way that it rarely does in its Saturday defeat to Vanderbilt. The Vols conceded a season-high 76 points to Vanderbilt.
The Volunteer’s third-ranked defense regained focus Tuesday night.
Mississippi State scored only four points in the first eight minutes and was completely out of sync offensively. The Vols forced numerous turnovers early in the game, while the Bulldogs battled to find open baskets from the field.
Those eight minutes reflected the whole first half, as Mississippi State scored only 16 points on 6-for-27 (22%) shooting from the field and 3-for-15 (20%) from three while turning the ball over eight times.
Before this game, the Bulldogs offense averaged 82.9 points per game. The Volunteers restricted them to a season-low 56 points.
Tennessee will travel to Auburn, Alabama, to face No. 1 Auburn in a top-10 matchup broadcast live on ESPN from Neville Arena, which will also host the season’s first College GameDay that morning.
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Next up for Tennessee basketball (17-2, 4-2): vs. at No. 1 Auburn (17-1, 5-0) – Jan. 25 at 8:30 p.m. EST
Next up for Mississippi State basketball (15-4, 3-3): at South Carolina (10-8, 0-5) – Jan. 25 at 1 p.m. EST