NASHVILLE – Nate Ament led No. 25 Tennessee in points (27), rebounds (eight), assists (four) and blocks (three) in his return to action as the Volunteers’ late 20-0 run earned them a 72-62 win over Auburn in the second round of the Southeastern Conference tournament on Thursday.
Ja’Kobi Gillespie added 15 points and a team-leading three steals for No. 5 seed Tennessee (22-10), which got Ament back after he missed the prior two games with a leg injury.
Tahaad Pettiford scored 28 points but also committed five turnovers for the 12th-seeded Tigers (17-16).
Tennessee trailed most of the game but put on a defensive clinic late, with the Vols’ full-court man making it tough for the Tigers to muster a decent shot.
The one good look that the Tigers got during the 20-0 run was the front end of a one-and-one, which Keyshawn Hall missed with 4:27 left. Auburn was held scoreless for 7:36, missing seven straight shots and committing four turnovers during the drought.
The blitz started when the Volunteers got eight straight points from Ament and tied the game for the first time since the 16:24 mark of the first half when Gillespie hit a fastbreak layup off an Ament assist on a possession that originated with a Felix Okpara block.
After an Auburn time out, Amari Evans hit a free throw with 6:30 left to give Tennessee the lead.
Auburn then turned it over and Jaylen Carey put back his own miss to extend the lead to three.
A Gillespie steal and fastbreak layup forced another Auburn time out with 5:31 left. The Tigers never got closer than that again.
Auburn, not known for its defense, took a 32-25 halftime lead by holding Gillespie to three points and Tennessee to 37% shooting. The Tigers also outrebounded the Volunteers 21-15 in the first period.
Pettiford (16 first-half points) hit a turnaround jumper with 3:12 remaining in the first half to give Auburn its biggest lead at 29-18.
Tennessee advances to play No. 4 seed Vanderbilt (24-7) in Friday’s quarterfinals in a rematch of last Saturday’s regular-season finale, which the Commodores won.
The Tigers will await their NCAA Tournament fate. ESPN’s bracketology had Auburn had the first team in its latest update prior to this loss.
This loss drops the Tigers to 4-13 in Quad 1 games. A team with 16 losses, like Auburn has this season, has never earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament.
– Chris Lee, Field Level Media
