The fifth-seeded University of Tennessee men's basketball team fell to fourth-seeded Vanderbilt, 75-68, Friday afternoon at Bridgestone Arena in the SEC Tournament quarterfinals.
Senior guard Ja'Kobi Gillespie paced No. 25/RV Tennessee (22-11, 11-7 SEC) with 21 points, but it was not enough against No. 22 Vanderbilt (25-7, 11-7 SEC) in the teams' third matchup in 20 days.
Gillespie shot 8-of-14 from the field, including 3-of-7 beyond the arc, in the setback. He also paced the team with four assists.
Freshman forward Nate Ament, who went 10-of-12 at the stripe, posted 12 points and a career-best 11 rebounds for his second collegiate double-double. Redshirt sophomore forward J.P. Estrella also scored 12 points, finishing 4-of-8 from the field and 4-of-4 at the line, plus grabbed six boards.
Junior forward Jayen Carey chipped in 10 points on 5-of-7 shooting for Tennessee, as well as pulled down five rebounds.
Duke Miles finished with a season-best 30 points, two shy of his career high, and went 11-of-14 from the floor. He notched a 4-of-5 clip from beyond the arc and hit all four of his free throws, adding six rebounds, a game-leading five assists and a game-best three steals.
Sophomore guard Tyler Tanner logged 19 points, six rebounds and four assists. He shot 9-of-10 from the free-throw line.Vanderbilt concluded the contest with a 22-of-26 (84.6 percent) at the line, while Tennessee had the same number of attempts at the other end, but tallied six fewer makes. The Volunteers had a 24-10 margin in second-chance points, but the Commodores had an 11-5 cushion in fast-break points.