No. 6 Tennessee basketball topped No. 7 Texas A&M Aggies on Saturday at Reed Arena.
Tennessee basketball rallied from a nine-point deficit to defeat seventh-ranked Texas A&M, 77-69, at a sold-out Reed Arena on Saturday.
The Volunteers achieved their first road win over a ranked opponent this season and tied a program record with their seventh AP top-25 victory of the season, including their second top-10 decision of the month.
Tennessee hadn’t played since an 81-76 home win over Vanderbilt a week prior, and the rested team seemed to have more drive and enthusiasm from the very start against the Aggies.
The Volunteers shot 61.5 percent from deep in the first half, going 8-of-13, but missed their first eight in the second until Lanier’s game-tying 3-pointer with 7:56 left, triggering a 5-of-6 stretch from thereon.
Tennessee’s 13 3-pointers set a new season best, surpassing the 12 made against Baylor on Nov. 22, 2024, at Nassau, Bahamas.
Wade Taylor IV led Texas A&M with 18 points (10-of-12 from the free-throw line) and nine assists. Tennessee limited him to a 4-of-15 shooting overall, including 0-of-9 from outside the arc.
Senior guard Zhuric Phelps scored 15 points despite Tennessee holding him to 6-of-17 shooting from the field, including 1-of-7 from long range. Phelps led all players with 11 rebounds, and senior forward Andersson Garcia added 14 points and six rebounds.
Both teams made 90% of their free throws, each converting 18 of 20.
Takeaway #1: Chaz Lanier surged for the Volunteers
Chaz Lanier’s first half was reminiscent of his opening half versus Baylor in the Baha Mar Championship in The Bahamas.
In the opening 15 minutes of the game, the North Florida transfer made six consecutive field goals, including all five of his three-point attempts. He scored 22 in the first half alone.
The fifth-year guard would make a career-high eight three-pointers, becoming only the fourth Volunteer to do so in a single game.
Texas A&M lost him a few times early on, allowing him to establish a rhythm. After that, he hit difficult shots from the perimeter and mid-range.
Lanier scored a season-high 30 points, shooting 8-of-13 from beyond the arc and 10-of-18 overall in a game that included 11 lead changes and eight ties.
“We changed some of our coverages in the second half because of Lanier’s performance,” A&M coach Buzz Williams told reporters following the loss. “13 threes [are] difficult to overcome from any team, but when one player makes eight of them, you’re going to be upside down.”
Takeaway #2: Tennessee’s defense limited Texas A&M’s strengths
Tennessee found success suppressing Texas A&M.
Texas A&M had the highest offensive rebounding percentage heading into the game, collecting 41.9% of its missed shots. The Aggies had a lot of success on the offensive boards against the Vols, with 14 offensive rebounds accounting for 39% of their missed baskets.
However, Tennessee did an excellent job of preventing Texas A&M from scoring on second-chance opportunities. The Aggies scored only 10 second-chance points. The Volunteers did not rebound as effectively as they would have liked, but they played excellent defense after giving up the boards.
Additionally, A&M entered the game as the SEC’s second-lowest scoring team, averaging 73.7 points, and the league’s worst 3-point shooting program, converting 31.3% of their tries.
The Vols forced the Aggies to attempt difficult shots and held them below both marks. Buzz Williams’ team scored only 69 points and shot 16.7% (5-of-30) from beyond the arc.
“It is our game plan,” Tennessee head coach Rick Barnes stated postgame. “To be quite honest with you, we try to do that every night.
Takeaway #3: Veteran guards step up late for the Vols
Tennessee veterans Zakai Zeigler, Jordan Gainey, and Jahmai Mashack secured Saturday’s victory.
Zakai Zeigler
“It seems like the bigger the moment, he thrives on that,” Barnes said to reporters about veteran guard Zakai Zeigler. “But you know, he’s such a special player, the things that he does for his teammates.
The senior controlled the game for the final 20 minutes, scoring 13 with five assists and one turnover. He equaled Taylor IV on a 10-of-12 clip from the free-throw line in the final 12:37, good for his second-most makes as co-most attempts as a collegiate athlete.
The 5-foot-9 guard made two key plays for the Vols in the last minute of play.
The reigning SEC Defensive Player of the Year blocked a 3-point attempt out of a timeout from Texas A&M’s Wade Taylor IV with 1:02 to play at Reed Arena. Forty-one seconds later, the Tennessee guard came out of a timeout and decisively knocked down the game-sealing 3-pointer to put the final touch on his marvelous second half and ensure the Vols would get arguably their best road win of the season.
“Simple as that,” Zeigler said. “I knew it was going in from the jump.”
Zeigler totaled 16 points, a team-high seven assists, and two steals.
Jordan Gainey
Senior guard Jordan Gainey made two timely threes for Tennessee.
Gainey had missed his first three 3-pointers until Zeigler found him with less than four minutes remaining.
He did not miss again.
Gainey scored a 3-pointer with 3:33 remaining for a 63-59 advantage, Tennessee’s first two-possession lead since the 18:50 mark in the second half.
Gainey, who went 2-for-5 from distance and 4-for-4 from the line, had 14 points, including 10 in the final 6:12, and a game-high three steals.
Jahmai Mashack
Senior Jahmai Mashack scored four important points on Saturday with two underrated plays.
Earlier in the second half, Mashack dashed from the 3-point line following a Jordan Gainey miss from deep. A&M’s Phelps bumped him, but he still jumped for the rebound, which he tipped in.
With less than seven minutes remaining after Chaz Lanier’s three-point goal that knotted the game at 51, Mashack made a crucial play.
Lanier missed a floater, and Mashack was sandwiched between Texas A&M’s Phelps and Garcia. Mashack tipped the ball off the backboard and rose again for another tip-in attempt, which he converted with 6:56 remaining.
“They were huge and which a lot of people wouldn’t notice that, but maybe the two biggest plays of the game,” Vols coach Rick Barnes said.
Tennessee basketball returns to action Tuesday in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, against LSU at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center.
Next up for Tennessee basketball (22-5, 9-5): at LSU (14-13, 3-11) – Feb. 25 at 9 p.m. EST
Next up for Texas A&M basketball (20-7, 9-5): vs. Vanderbilt (18-9, 6-8) – Feb. 26 at 7 p.m. EST
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