Prized recruit Nate Ament totaled 18 points and nine rebounds as No. 18 Tennessee opened the season with a 76-61 win over Mercer on Monday night in Knoxville, Tenn.

The Volunteers struggled out of the gate in front of their home crowd, but they got their feet under them to take a 12-point halftime lead.

The 6-foot-10 Ament, a McDonald’s All-American last season, made 6 of 11 shots from the floor, including 1 of 4 from 3-point range. Sophomore J.P. Estrella tallied a career-high 12 points, hitting 6 of 10 from the field, and added five rebounds. Jaylen Carey, a Vanderbilt transfer, had eight points and 10 rebounds in his Tennessee debut.

The Volunteers held a 44-22 edge in points in the paint but committed 19 turnovers. They made 30 of 61 shots (49.2%).

Baraka Okojie led Mercer with 15 points and had four rebounds. Armani Mighty contributed 14 points and five boards, and Zaire Williams had 10 points and four rebounds.

The Bears made 20 of 67 shots (29.9%).

After a 30-8 campaign last season that ended in the NCAA Tournament’s Elite Eight, Tennessee squad started out very slowly against the visitors from Macon, Ga.

Tennessee came alive behind the 6-foot-11 Estrella, who notched six points before the 12-minute mark as the home side led 12-8 after an 8-0 run. Estrella had a dunk and two layups in the surge.

Soon after, Mercer went seven minutes without a field goal before Brady Shoulders drained one from behind the arc to cut the deficit to 25-17.

However, Tennessee pushed the lead to 33-21 entering halftime by making 16 of 31 shots (51.6%). Meanwhile, the Bears sank just 7 of 33 (21.2%).

The Volunteers came out in the second half with better execution and more accuracy, stretching their lead to 44-27 on a trey by Troy Henderson and then Estrella’s tip-in with 15:54 to go. The lead grew to 58-35 on Ament’s 3-pointer with 9:03 remaining.

Mercer trimmed it to 62-49 on threes to Williams and Quinton Perkins II with just under six minutes to play, but the Bears go no closer.

–Field Level Media