Chaz Lanier scored 26 points as No. 3 Tennessee pummeled visiting Syracuse 96-70 on Tuesday in an SEC/ACC Challenge matchup from Knoxville, Tenn.
Zakai Zeigler pitched in 14 points, eight assists and four steals for the Volunteers (8-0), who shot a blistering 61.3 percent in the second half, including 8-of-14 from 3-point range. They shot 53.8 percent from the field overall and dominated the boards 40-26.
Cade Phillips and Jordan Gainey each added 12 points on 11-of-16 combined shooting, while Igor Milicic Jr. had 11 points and 10 rebounds.
Elijah Moore scored 24 points to pace the Orange (4-3), while Chris Bell added 12 points, five rebounds and three steals. Donnie Freeman chipped in 10 points for the visitors.
Syracuse leading scorer JJ Starling sat out after injuring his hand in practice on Monday.
Moore knocked down a 3-pointer midway through the first half to get Syracuse within 20-18, but Tennessee responded with 10 straight points. Lanier began the stretch with a jumper before Phillips converted a pair of buckets, and then Zeigler delivered a four-point play to make it 30-18.
Jaquan Carlos and Bell each knocked down a 3-pointer to help the Orange close the gap to 32-28, but the Volunteers scored the next seven points, capped by Zeigler’s 3-pointer.
The Volunteers led by as many as 12 late in the half before Carlos’ jumper at the halftime buzzer created a 45-35 margin at the break.
Early in the second half, the hosts used a 7-0 run to turn a 50-39 lead into an 18-point advantage. Shortly thereafter, Gainey knocked down two 3-pointers in just over a minute to extend the cushion to 65-43.
Milicic’s three-point play brought the lead to 25 for the first time. Lanier then hit back-to-back 3-pointers to inflate the advantage to 84-53.
Tennessee led by as many as 32 down the stretch.
–Field Level Media
