Chaz Lanier made five 3-pointers and scored 19 points as No. 8 Tennessee recorded a 64-44 victory over No. 5 Florida on Saturday afternoon in a Southeastern Conference showdown in Knoxville, Tenn.
Jordan Gainey added 16 points and three steals as the Volunteers (18-4, 5-4 SEC) controlled the second half while avenging a horrific 30-point road loss to the Gators on Jan. 7.
Tennessee prevailed despite star Zakai Zeigler (knee) and Igor Milicic Jr. (flu-like symptoms) missing the contest. Zeigler injured his right knee in the first half of Tuesday’s loss to Kentucky but returned to play in the second half.
Walter Clayton Jr. had 10 points but was just 3-of-13 shooting for Florida (18-3, 5-3), which had a three-game winning streak halted. The Gators scored their fewest points of the season.
Florida made just 24.5 percent (13 of 53) of its field goal attempts and was a measly 14.8 percent (4 of 27) from behind the arc. Thomas Haugh collected 10 rebounds for the Gators.
Felix Okpara had 10 points and eight rebounds for the Volunteers, who shot 40.0 percent from the field, including 6 of 22 from 3-point range.
Tennessee outscored Florida 40-23 in the second half to turn the game into a one-sided contest.
The Volunteers used just seven players with Zeigler and Milicic out but quickly took over in the second half.
Tennessee’s three-point halftime lead soon stretched to 40-28 with 14:41 left in the game. Okpara scored four straight points to make it a 12-point margin.
Gainey and Lanier each hit a 3-pointer in a span of just over two minutes as the Volunteers led 46-33 with 10:52 remaining.
Lanier added two free throws, Cade Phillips threw down a fast-break dunk and Jahmai Mashack scored on a tip-in to make it 52-33 with 6:45 left.
Lanier’s 3-pointer pushed the lead to 20 at 55-35 with 6:14 remaining.
The lead topped out at 21.
Both teams shot poorly in a first half that ended with Tennessee holding a 24-21 lead. The Volunteers shot 29 percent (9 of 31) and the Gators made 25.9 percent (7 of 27).
Florida led 19-16 after a basket by Rueben Chinyelu with 2:44 left in the half. Tennessee finished with an 8-2 burst with Phillips scoring the last three for the three-point lead before the Vols started the second half strong.
–Field Level Media
