Philadelphia, PA – The sixth-seeded University of Tennessee men’s basketball team opened its program-best eighth straight NCAA Tournament appearance with a commanding 78-56 victory over No. 11-seeded Miami (OH) at Xfinity Mobile Arena.
No. 23/25 Tennessee (23-11, 11-7) advanced to the Round of 32 for the fifth year in a row, tying a program record, and doubled the RedHawks’ loss total on the year in a game it led by as many as 26. Senior guard Ja’Kobi Gillespie dropped a game-high 29 points, tied for the third-best total ever by a Volunteer in the NCAA Tournament, in the dominant win.
Miami (OH) (32-2, 18-0 MAC) hit a 3-pointer on each of its first two possessions to take an early four-point lead and, after its third long-range make on its fourth attempt, a 13-10 tally at the 16:18 mark. The Volunteers then countered with a 21-4 run over 7:55 to claim a 31-17 edge with 7:55 on the first-half timer, plus held the RedHawks without a point for 4:32.
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During a span of 6:22 in which it did not allow a made field goal, forcing five misses in a row, Tennessee pushed its margin to 16 points, 37-21, with 5:03 left in the frame. It upped the cushion all the way to 20, 43-23, with 2:41 on the timer, making it a 33-10 extended run over 12:51 of action.
The Volunteers ultimately took a 19-point advantage, 51-32, into the locker room. Gillespie scored 22 points on 8-of-12 shooting, including a 5-of-6 clip from deep. As a team, Tennessee went 8-of-13 (61.5 percent) beyond the arc, while the RedHawks made just one of their final 10 tries of the half to finish it 4-of-14 (28.6 percent).
Tennessee continued its onslaught early in the second session and used a 7-0 run over 2:45 to go up by a game-best 26 points, 62-36, with 11:45 remaining. That came during a 4:21 stretch in which it did not allow a point and forced five straight misses.
Miami (OH) cut the margin down to 17, 64-47, with 8:12 to go, but the Volunteers scored the next four points to go back ahead by 21 just 73 ticks later. The 32-win RedHawks never got closer than 18 the rest of the way and Tennessee earned a 22-point decision.
Gillespie finished 11-of-21 from the field, including 6-of-11 from deep to tie his career-best mark in long-range makes. He added a game-best nine assists, tied for the third-most of his career and for the seventh-most by a Volunteer in the NCAA Tournament. Gillespie, a First Team All-SEC honoree, also paced all players with three steals.
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The Greeneville, Tenn., native is just the ninth player in history to tally 29 points, nine assists and three steals in an NCAA Tournament game, including the first in the SEC and the second in the last 30 seasons (1996-97 to 2025-26).
Redshirt sophomore forward J.P. Estrella recorded 14 points and a game-best 10 rebounds for his fifth collegiate double-double, plus notched a career-high two steals. Senior forward Felix Okpara totaled 12 points, making all five of his field goals and both his free throws.
Senior guard Peter Suder finished as the only RedHawk in double figures, as he accumulated 27 points in the setback. The MAC Player of the Year went 7-of-12 from the field, 4-of-7 on 3-pointers and 9-of-10 at the stripe.
The rest of the players on the Miami (OH) roster combined for 29 points on a 12-of-44 field-goal ledger, a 3-of-22 3-point tally and a 2-of-4 free-throw count.
The Volunteers registered a 42-25 edge in the rebounding column and a 40-16 cushion in paint points. They also shot 31-of-59 (52.2 percent) overall, including 9-of-20 (45.0 percent) from deep.
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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.
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Next Up For UT Men’s Basketball
The Tennessee men’s basketball team is an NCAA Tournament second-round matchup Sunday against third-seeded Virginia, ranked No. 9/8, at Xfinity Mobile Arena. The game time and television network are still to be determined.
