An easy afternoon.
No. 12 Tennessee arrived at Louisville as a three-point underdog, and proceeded to win by 22 points. Rick Barnes had his team ready to roll for an early tip-off, as they passed their first road test of the season.
Tennessee’s defense and shooting was on display early on. Zakai Zeigler sparked the defensive effort, as he usually does. The undersized senior point guard was everywhere, applying pressure on the Louisville offense. Zeigler came up with a block and two steals, which led to a big Tennessee lead in the first half.
In that first half, Chaz Lanier scored 11 points, shooting 4-7 from the floor. Cade Phillips gave Rick Barnes some big early minutes after Igor Milicic was forced to the bench after two quick fouls.
Tennessee beat up Louisville in the paint as Pat Kelsey’s team opted for a long-range approach. The Vols outscored Louisville 24-4 in the paint in the first half, while the Cardinals shot just 5-23 from three-point range.
The Volunteers took a 40-26 lead into the halftime break — a number that could have been much worse if Louisville didn’t go on a quick 10-0 run to close out the half.
Lanier picked up where he left off to open the second half, drilling a three to get things going. Milicic followed with a three of his own, and the Tennessee lead quickly pushed out to 18 points.
Louisville would battle back to get things back to under ten points, but that didn’t last long. Zeigler and Lanier kept pouring it on, hitting shot after shot to extend the lead. Tennessee was dominating the boards, winning the rebounding battle by nearly 20. Combine that with the points in the paint and Louisville’s poor shooting — you get a blowout.
Tennessee went on to win 77-55.
Chaz Lanier and Zakai Zeigler both finished with 19 points. They combined to go 7-13 from three-point range. Cade Phillips ended with six points and six rebounds. Felix Okpara added ten points and six boards.
Tennessee held Kesean Pryor to just six points, while keeping Chucky Hepburn to only eight.
Darlinstone Dubar once again did not play.
Tennessee will be back in action on Wednesday night to face Montana in Knoxville.