NASHVILLE, Tenn. — No. 5 Tennessee took down in-state rival Vanderbilt with a dominant second-half performance, specifically from none other than Dalton Knecht.
The last time these two teams met, Tennessee lost at the buzzer when Tyrin Lawrence made the game-winning three-pointer for the Commodores to upset the Vos, 66-65.
Tennessee's starting five included Dalton Knecht, Jonas Aidoo, Zakai Zeigler, Santiago Vescovi, and Josiah-Jordan James. For Vescovi, it was his 129th career start, a new Tennessee program record.
Early on, Jordan Gainey hit a wide-open corner three to give Tennessee its first lead of the day, 8-6. Zeigler fired one himself two possessions later, but Vanderbilt's Ezra Manjon continued to drive to the hoop, putting up points in the paint for the Commodores and keeping the score close, 11-10.
With 12 minutes left in the first half, Tennessee had turned the ball over three out of their last four possessions. Vescovi broke a three-minute scoring drought with a second-chance layup, and J.P. Estrella grabbed another offensive board on Tennessee's next possession. Knecht finished that sequence with a layup making the score 15-12.
On an inbound play, Zeigler found Knecht for an electric dunk. Tennessee was winning the rebounding game at that point. The Vols had ten second-chance points off five offensive boards with 6:22 remaining in the half. The ten points all came under five minutes of play.
However, Vanderbilt went on a 9-0 run to take the lead, 26-23. The Commodores were finding rhythm from the three-point line, and a technical foul on Rick Barnes took part in an 18-3 Vanderbilt run late in the first half. Tennessee trailed by five, 35-30 at halftime.
Vanderbilt only had two turnovers in the first half compared to Tennessee's five. Manjon and Tyrin Lawrence combined for 22 of Vandy's 35 points in the first half. Although the Commodores did a nice job containing Knecht, he still led with eleven points.
Zeigler hit a three to open up scoring in the second half. Soon after, Vescovi sank one in himself to put Tennessee down by two, 38-40. Knecht didn't take long to start cooking in the second half. He scored twelve straight for the Vols to put Tennessee back in the lead, 51-48.
The Vols were up by double digits with eight minutes remaining. Tennessee took control of the game from then on and finished leading by seven, 75-62.
Knecht led in points for the fifth game in a row with 32 and has had three 30-point performances in Tennessee's last five games. He also notched six rebounds, three blocks, and three assists.
Zeigler, Vescovi, and Gainey all had double-digit nights as well. Jonas Aidoo led in rebounds with ten.
Tennessee has won 11 of their last 12 games and advanced to 5-1 in SEC play. The team will play South Carolina on January 30, and tip-off for that game starts at 6:30 p.m.
