Auburn, AL – The Tennessee men’s basketball team fell just shy of knocking off the No. 1 team in the nation Saturday night, falling at top-ranked Auburn, 53-51, at a sold-out Neville Arena.
In the fifth AP top-six showdown in program history, No. 6/7 Tennessee (17-3, 4-3 SEC) led by four with under two minutes left, but the Tigers earned the win in a back-and-forth defensive affair. Senior guard Zakai Zeigler paced the Volunteers with 14 points.
Both teams got off to sluggish shooting starts, but Auburn (18-1, 6-0 SEC) took 10 more shots than Tennessee in the first 8:11, as it forced five turnovers, committed only one and posted a 5-0 margin on the offensive glass. In the next two-plus minutes, though, the Volunteers forced a pair of turnovers and grabbed a trio of offensive boards to level the score at 10-10 with 9:01 on the timer.
The Tigers then held the visitors scoreless for 3:36 and tallied the next six points—half on a 3-pointer and the other three via free throws from a foul on a 3-point attempt—but Tennessee answered back. It held Auburn scoreless for 4:27, during which it posted a 6-0 run in 1:18 to even the game at 16 with 4:07 left in the frame.
Auburn took a 22-20 edge into the locker room after a half that included a combined 1-of-21 ledger from 3-point range. The Tigers shot 1-of-10 beyond the arc, while the Volunteers notched a 0-of-11 clip. Both sides made seven field goals, Auburn on 32 shots (21.9 percent) and Tennessee on 25 shots (28.0 percent)
The Volunteers used a 6-0 run in 1:47 early in the second half, during a span of 3:52 in which it did not allow a point, to take a 28-26 lead at the 16:04 mark. Auburn went back ahead, 33-30, with 12:46 to go, but Tennessee, after a 0-of-14 start, made its first 3-pointer 36 seconds later to tie the game. After an Auburn basket, the Volunteers regained the lead, 36-35 with 9:41 to go, on a second straight long-range make.
The Tigers, following a 1-of-16 start, hit their second 3-pointer with 6:09 remaining and then made a pair of free throws 26 seconds later to match their largest lead, 45-40. Tennessee once again countered, scoring five points in 26 seconds, capped with a game-tying 3-pointer by senior guard Jordan Gainey with 4:43 on the clock.
Tennessee went back in front, 48-47, on a transition 3-pointer by fifth-year guard Chaz Lanier with 3:10 left. The Volunteers then took their then-biggest lead, 50-47, on a pair of free throws by Zeigler with 2:23 to play. Senior guard Jahmai Mashack added a free throw 16 seconds later to extend the margin to four.
The Tigers cut the deficit in half with 1:46 left and then went back ahead, 52-51, with 28 seconds on the ticker on a second-chance corner 3-pointer by senior guard Miles Kelly. Auburn was 2-of-19 from long range before the go-ahead shot. Freshman guard Tahaad Pettiford then split a pair from the line with 12.7 seconds to play, putting Auburn up by two. Tennessee missed a 3-pointer in the closing seconds and the Tigers held on for the victory.
In addition to his team-best point total, Zeigler had six rebounds, a game-leading five assists and a co-team-high two steals. The Long Island, NY, native also went a perfect 6-of-6 at the stripe.
Lanier finished with 10 points, while senior guard Jordan Gainey had eight, Mashack notched seven along with six boards and junior forward Felix Okpara scored six to complement his team-high nine rebounds.
Auburn senior forward/center Johni Broome, who returned to action after suffering a left ankle injury 14 days ago, totaled 16 points, 13 rebounds and four blocks to pace all players in each category. Tennessee did hold him to 7-of-19 shooting, as well as to just three points in the final 15 minutes after he scored half of the Tigers’ first 26.
Tennessee limited Auburn, by far the top team in the nation in KenPom adjusted offensive efficiency, to season lows in points, field-goal percentage (31.0; 18-of-58), 3-point percentage (15.0; 3-of-20), made field goals and made 3-pointers. The 53 points were the Tigers’ fewest since a 46-43 loss at Tennessee on February 4th, 2023.
Next Up For UT Men’s Basketball
The Tennessee men’s basketball team now return to Knoxville, Tennessee, where they begin a three-game homestand Tuesday at 7:00pm against ninth-ranked Kentucky, live on ESPN from Food City Center.
To keep up with the University of Tennessee men’s basketball team on social media, follow @Vol_Hoops on Instagram and X/Twitter, as well as /tennesseebasketball on Facebook.
Tennessee Volunteers Postgame Notes
Saturday marked the fifth time in the last nine meetings both Tennessee and Auburn were ranked, with the Volunteers now 3-2, while prior to March 17th, 2019, both sides were ranked in just two of the first 85 clashes of the AP Poll era (since 1948-49), each claiming one.
Additionally, this was the 11th straight series matchup with at least one team ranked, while just 27 of 83 in the AP Poll era before January 2nd, 2019, featured a ranked team.
The Volunteers have now faced Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl, who led Tennessee from 2005-11, a total of 16 times, tied with Andy Kennedy for its fourth-most against any active coach.
Saturday marked the fifth AP top-six showdown in Tennessee history, with all five away from home and four in head coach Rick Barnes‘ tenure.
Tennessee fell to 32-24 (.571) in AP top-25 matchups under Barnes, including 4-2 (.667) in 2024-25, 20-11 (.645) since February 26th, 2022, and 11-4 (.733) since December 9th, 2023.
The Volunteers are now 7-8 (.467) in AP top-10 clashes in Barnes’ tenure, including 6-6 (.500) since March 2nd, 2019.
Tennessee fell to 38-39 (.494) against AP top-25 foes in the Barnes era, including 22-12 (.647) since January 22nd, 2022.
The Volunteers moved to 9-9 (.500) versus AP top-five opponents under Barnes, including 5-4 (.556) since February 15th, 2022.
Tennessee’s record against AP top-five SEC teams in Barnes’ tenure is now 7-2 (.778), with this snapping a six-game winning streak.
Saturday was the 22nd time Tennessee has faced the AP No. 1 team, with its record falling to 6-16, including 6-7 since March 5th, 1966, as well as 4-5 since February 23rd, 2008, and 5-5 against all programs other than Kentucky.
The Volunteers are now 2-2 in Barnes’ tenure against AP No. 1 teams, including 1-2 away from home and 1-1 in SEC play.
Across its 71-week active streak featured in the AP Poll, dating to the 2021-22 preseason rankings, Saturday marked just the 14th time in 117 outings Tennessee has faced a higher-ranked team, with its record now 8-6 in those contests, including 6-2 versus SEC foes, 5-2 at campus sites and a 7-4 mark since January 22nd, 2022.
The Tigers were called for their seventh foul of the first half after just 9:28, putting the Volunteers in the bonus with 10:32 on the timer, but committed just one more the rest of the frame and Tennessee never attempted any bonus, non-shooting free throws.
Tennessee, which missed its first five field-goal attempts, shot 1-of-9 from the field through the first 8:40, while Auburn went 5-of-18 at the other end.
The Volunteers did not make a 3-point attempt in the first half for the second time in their last six games, as they went 0-of-14 before the break January 7th at Florida.
Through the first 27:49 of action, Tennessee went 0-of-14 from 3-point range and Auburn shot 1-of-13 at the other end.
In the first half, Tennessee held Baker-Mazara (0-of-4), Kelly (0-of-5), Pettiford (0-of-5) and senior guard Denver Jones (0-of-5) to a combined 0-of-19 field-goal clip, en route to the group finishing the night 5-of-30.
Auburn’s prior season low was 66 points at Georgia on January 18th, while it last scored under 53 or fewer nearly two years ago in, as aforementioned, a 46-43 loss at Tennessee on February 4th, 2023.
The Tigers’ previous season low in field-goal percentage was 39.3 (24-of-61) at Georgia on January 18th, while the last time it was at 31.0 percent or below was when it tallied a 30.9 clip (17-of-55) versus Kentucky on February 17th, 2024.
Auburn’s prior low mark in 3-point clip this year a 25.0 percent (6-of-24) ledger versus Kent State on November 13th, 2024, while it last was at 15.0 or lower when it logged an 11.1 percent (3-of-27) clip at Appalachian State on December 3rd, 2023.
The Tigers’ prior season low in made field goals was 24 at Georgia on January 18th, while its most recent time with 18 or fewer was when it made 17 against Kentucky on February 17th, 2024.
Auburn’s previous low in made 3-pointers this year was six versus Kent State on November 13th, 2024, while it last made three at Florida on February 10th, 2024.
Baker-Mazara’s 7-of-7 free-throw ledger marked the most makes without a miss by a Tennessee foe this year, eclipsing the 4-of-4 tally by five others.
Saturday’s contest was just the 28th all season, per KenPom, played entirely within a 10-point window, as the Volunteers’ largest lead was four and the Tigers’ was six.
The Volunteers’ 46-game winning streak when leading with 2:00 left in regulation came to an end Saturday night.
Zeigler scored in double figures for the ninth time in the last 10 games, with the lone outlier a nine-point performance.
Zeigler also went 6-of-6 at the free-throw line for the second time in the last three games, with the middle game a 2-of-2 performance.
