Zeigler Leads #6 Vols to 74-56 Victory over #23 Georgia
Courtesy / UT Athletics

Zeigler Leads #6 Vols to 74-56 Victory over #23 Georgia

Game Recap: Men’s Basketball | January 15, 2025

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – The University of Tennessee men’s basketball team turned a one-point halftime deficit into an 18-point victory, 74-56, Wednesday night against No. 23 Georgia.

In the first-ever AP top-25 matchup between the two long-time conference foes, sixth-ranked Tennessee (16-1, 3-1 SEC) dominated the second half to remain undefeated this season at Food City Center. In a contest during which he broke the program’s career steals record, Zakai Zeigler had 16 points, a game-leading seven assists and a career-best six steals, while fellow senior guard Jordan Gainey scored a game-high 19 points.

The entire first half was played within a one-possession window either way for all but 17 seconds, as both teams struggled to find a rhythm on the offensive end. Georgia (14-2, 2-1 SEC) took the largest lead of the stanza when it went ahead by five, 26-21, with 1:12 on the timer.

On the next possession, the Volunteers snapped a drought of 7:02 without a field goal and then tacked on another basket on their next trip down the floor, making it a one-point margin, 26-25, at the break. Tennessee shot 27.3 percent (9-of-33) in the first frame, but grabbed 12 of its misses—all in the first 14 minutes—and conceded half as many offensive boards at the other end, plus forced nine turnovers and committed only five.

The Volunteers scored the first seven points after the intermission, making it an 11-0 run over 4:07 dating to the final minute of the first half, to go in front by six, 32-26, with 16:48 to play. The onslaught continued from there, as Tennessee pushed its margin all the way to 21, 51-30, at the 12:30 mark.

The burst featured another 11-0 surge, this one in just 70 seconds and capped with back-to-back 3-pointers by Zeigler, to conclude a 30-4 extended run over just 7:25 of action. The Volunteers made six consecutive field goals to end the stretch, during which Zeigler also tied, broke and extended the school’s all-time steals record.

The Bulldogs responded with nine straight points in just 1:12, cutting their deficit to a dozen, 51-39, with 10:52 to go. The margin remained 12 with under six minutes to play, but Tennessee once again went on a commanding run to regain full control. It made six consecutive shots, the latter four of which created a 9-0 run in 100 seconds to push the lead back up to 21, 72-51, with 3:48 on the ticker.

The Volunteers took their largest advantage of the evening, 74-52, with 1:32 to go. Georgia scored the last four points to make it an 18-point final margin.

Zeigler became just the sixth SEC player in the last 15 seasons (2010-25) to record his 16-point, seven-assist, six-steal line, including the first since Feb. 22, 2022. The Long Island, N.Y., native, who upped his career steals mark to 215 to exceed Santiago Vescovi’s record by three, also became the first Volunteer since Nov. 30, 2021, to log at least a half-dozen steals in a single contest. In the second half alone, Zeigler compiled 11 points, five assists and four steals, while shooting 3-of-4 from beyond the arc with all three makes in the span of just 71 seconds.

Gainey’s 19 points, his second-most as a Volunteer and four shy of his season best, came on a 6-of-12 clip from the floor and a perfect 6-of-6 ledger at the stripe. He scored 14 points in the final 16 minutes alone and he added a co-career-high seven rebounds to his line.

Senior guard Jahmai Mashack posted a season-best 11 points and made all five of his field goals, becoming the first Tennessee player since Feb. 25, 2023, to make five-plus shots from the floor without a miss. Sophomore forward Cade Phillips added 10 points on 5-of-6 shooting and a co-career-high three assists, while senior forward Igor Miličić Jr., stuffed the stat sheet with nine points, a game-best eight rebounds, three assists and a career-high-tying three steals.

Freshman forward Asa Newell led Georgia with 13 points and five rebounds, while sophomore guard Silas Demery Jr., scored 12 points on a 4-of-7 long-range clip. No other Bulldog eclipsed eight points in the affair.

Tennessee shot 57.6 percent (19-of-33) from the field, including 41.7 percent (5-of-12) beyond the arc, in the second half. It went a perfect 10-of-10 from the line in the win, its first unblemished mark on free throws since the 2023-24 season opener against Tennessee Tech on Nov. 6, 2023.

The Volunteers had a 19-9 edge in points off turnovers and a 13-7 cushion in fast-break points, buoyed by forcing 19 giveaways and committing only 10. They had 11 steals in the triumph, one shy of their season best.

Up next for Tennessee is an in-state road trip to Nashville, Tenn., where it meets Vanderbilt at Memorial Gymnasium, with action slated for Saturday at 3:30 p.m. ET, live on SEC Network.

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.

TENNESSEE VOLUNTEERS POSTGAME NOTES
• Wednesday’s crowd of 19,239 marked the fifth time this season, all in Tennessee’s the last six outings, over 19,000 fans have been in attendance.
• The Volunteers improved to 100-62 all-time against Georgia, with the Bulldogs the second team Tennessee has defeated triple-digit times, alongside Vanderbilt (131).
• Tennessee improved to 7-1 in its last eight matchups versus Georgia after going 2-9 in the prior 11 series meetings.
• Tuesday marked the first time in 162 all-time meetings—31 were before the 1948-49 advent of the AP Poll—the Volunteers and Bulldogs were both in the AP top 25, as well as the first time since Feb. 8, 2003, Tennessee faced a ranked Georgia squad.
• The Volunteers are now 11-2 all-time against Georgia head coach Mike White, with the 13 matchups their sixth-most versus any active head coach.
• This is the fifth time in the last seven years, with 2021-22 and 2019-20 the exceptions, Tennessee has won at least three of its first four SEC games, with this its third straight campaign doing so.
• The Volunteers are at least 2-0 to begin SEC home play for the fifth time in the past seven seasons, including the third in a row, with 2020-21 and 2019-20 the outliers.
• Tennessee upped its record to 31-23 (.574) in AP top-25 matchups during head coach Rick Barnes‘ Barnes tenure.
• The Volunteers improved to 19-7 (.731) at home against AP top-25 opponents in under Barnes, including 14-1 (.933) since Jan. 30, 2021.
• Neither side made a field goal during a stretch of 5:10 late in the first half, from the 7:17 to the 2:07 mark.
• Wednesday marked just the third time in 2024-25 the Volunteers have trailed at halftime, joining a one-point deficit (31-30) Dec. 14, 2024, at Illinois and a 19-point margin (34-15) Jan. 7 at Florida.
• Tennessee has conceded 35 or fewer first-half points in 16 of its 17 outings thus far, including 29 or fewer on 10 occasions and 21 or fewer four times.
• The Volunteers have held a lead of 18-plus points in 14 of their 17 contests this season, including a margin of 26 in 10 of 16.
• Fourteen of Tennessee’s 16 wins are by 13-plus points, with eight by at least 22, four by at least 35 and two by 40-plus.
• Wednesday marked the 11th time—all in Barnes’ tenure—in the last 20 seasons (2005-25) the Volunteers registered a perfect free-throw percentage, including the fourth with 10-plus attempts.
• The three prior times Tennessee made 10-plus free throws without a miss—all of which were in non-conference play—in the last 20 years came on Nov. 6, 2023, against Tennessee Tech (10-of-10); Nov. 26, 2021, versus Tennessee Tech (10-of-10); and Dec. 18, 2019, at Cincinnati (17-of-17).
• The only game this season in which Tennessee had more steals was Nov. 9, 2024, at Louisville when it amassed 12.
• Before Mashack, the last Volunteer to make at least five field goals in a game without a miss was Uroš Plavšić on Feb. 25, 2023, against South Carolina, while the last Tennessee guard to do so was Santiago Vescovi on Dec. 4, 2021, at Colorado.
• Mashack is the 13th Tennessee player—17th occurrence—in the last 20 seasons (2005-25) to make five-plus shots in a single game without a miss, including just the fifth guard, alongside the aforementioned Vescovi, Jordan Bone (Feb. 2, 2019, at Texas A&M), Jordan Bowden (Dec. 23, 2017, at Wake Forest) and J.P. Prince (March 28, 2010, against Michigan State in the NCAA Tournament Elite Eight in St. Louis).
• The five made field goals by Mashack set a season best, matched the second-highest tally of his career and marked the fifth time he posted five-plus.
• Mashack blocked two shots in the win, marking the seventh time in his career he hit that figure and the first since Nov. 21, 2024, against Virginia in Nassau, Bahamas.
• Miličić has thrice previously notched three steals in a game, all during his tenure at Charlotte: Dec. 5, 2023, versus Stetson; Jan. 19, 2023, at Middle Tennessee State; and Jan. 14, 2023, against UTSA.
• Gainey has grabbed seven rebounds in a contest six times previously, including one before as a Volunteer, as he did so Nov. 21, 2024, against Virginia in Nassau, Bahamas.
• Phillips scored double-digit points for the fifth time in his career, with all five occurrences coming in the last 14 games.
• Phillips’ five made field goals put him one shy of his career best and marked the third time he hit five-plus in a contest, including the first since a 6-of-8 outing on Dec. 3, 2024, against Syracuse.
• Zeigler notched his third steal of the night and his 212th as a Volunteer with 16:54 remaining in the game, passing Vincent Yarbrough (1998-2002) and tying Santiago Vescovi (2019-24) for the all-time program record.
• Zeigler recorded his fourth steal of the game just 63 seconds later, with 15:51 on the second-half timer, to break the Tennessee record.
• At the 13:16 mark of the second half, Zeigler set a season high and tied his career best by posting his fifth steal, the fifth time he has reached that figure as a collegian, and he then exceeded that mark by logging his sixth steal with 7:21 to play.
• Zeigler is third player in Barnes’ 10-year tenure to record at least six steals in a game, joining Kennedy Chandler (seven on Nov. 30, 2021, versus Presbyterian) and Jordan Bowden (six on Feb. 4, 2020, at Alabama).
• Zeigler hit the 600-assist mark in his career by posting his seventh of the night with exactly 8:00 remaining.
 • Over at least the last 20 seasons (2005-25), Zeigler is one of just two SEC-only players to total 1,000 points, 600 assists and 200 steals, joining Texas A&M’s Alex Caruso (2012-16), while one other player, Kyle Lofton (2018-23) did it as a fifth-year SEC transfer, as he spent four years at St. Bonavenure and one at Florida.
• In the last 15 seasons (2010-25), only five other SEC players besides Zeigler have notched at least 16 points, seven assists and six steals in a game: Vanderbilt’s Scotty Pippen Jr. (Feb. 22, 2022, against Alabama), Missouri’s Dru Smith (March 3, 2021, at Florida), LSU’s Tremont Waters (Nov. 9, 2018, versus UNC Greensboro), Kentucky’s Tyler Ulis (Jan. 2, 2016, against Ole Miss) and Ole Miss’ Stefan Moody in an overtime game (Dec. 22, 2015, versus Troy).
• Zeigler’s four made 3-pointers in the win put him one shy of his career best and matched the season high he recorded Nov. 9, 2024, in a 4-of-7 showing at Louisville.

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Zeigler Leads #6 Vols to 74-56 Victory over #23 Georgia
Courtesy / UT Athletics

Zeigler Leads #6 Vols to 74-56 Victory over #23 Georgia

Game Recap: Men’s Basketball | January 15, 2025

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – The University of Tennessee men’s basketball team turned a one-point halftime deficit into an 18-point victory, 74-56, Wednesday night against No. 23 Georgia.

In the first-ever AP top-25 matchup between the two long-time conference foes, sixth-ranked Tennessee (16-1, 3-1 SEC) dominated the second half to remain undefeated this season at Food City Center. In a contest during which he broke the program’s career steals record, Zakai Zeigler had 16 points, a game-leading seven assists and a career-best six steals, while fellow senior guard Jordan Gainey scored a game-high 19 points.

The entire first half was played within a one-possession window either way for all but 17 seconds, as both teams struggled to find a rhythm on the offensive end. Georgia (14-2, 2-1 SEC) took the largest lead of the stanza when it went ahead by five, 26-21, with 1:12 on the timer.

On the next possession, the Volunteers snapped a drought of 7:02 without a field goal and then tacked on another basket on their next trip down the floor, making it a one-point margin, 26-25, at the break. Tennessee shot 27.3 percent (9-of-33) in the first frame, but grabbed 12 of its misses—all in the first 14 minutes—and conceded half as many offensive boards at the other end, plus forced nine turnovers and committed only five.

The Volunteers scored the first seven points after the intermission, making it an 11-0 run over 4:07 dating to the final minute of the first half, to go in front by six, 32-26, with 16:48 to play. The onslaught continued from there, as Tennessee pushed its margin all the way to 21, 51-30, at the 12:30 mark.

The burst featured another 11-0 surge, this one in just 70 seconds and capped with back-to-back 3-pointers by Zeigler, to conclude a 30-4 extended run over just 7:25 of action. The Volunteers made six consecutive field goals to end the stretch, during which Zeigler also tied, broke and extended the school’s all-time steals record.

The Bulldogs responded with nine straight points in just 1:12, cutting their deficit to a dozen, 51-39, with 10:52 to go. The margin remained 12 with under six minutes to play, but Tennessee once again went on a commanding run to regain full control. It made six consecutive shots, the latter four of which created a 9-0 run in 100 seconds to push the lead back up to 21, 72-51, with 3:48 on the ticker.

The Volunteers took their largest advantage of the evening, 74-52, with 1:32 to go. Georgia scored the last four points to make it an 18-point final margin.

Zeigler became just the sixth SEC player in the last 15 seasons (2010-25) to record his 16-point, seven-assist, six-steal line, including the first since Feb. 22, 2022. The Long Island, N.Y., native, who upped his career steals mark to 215 to exceed Santiago Vescovi’s record by three, also became the first Volunteer since Nov. 30, 2021, to log at least a half-dozen steals in a single contest. In the second half alone, Zeigler compiled 11 points, five assists and four steals, while shooting 3-of-4 from beyond the arc with all three makes in the span of just 71 seconds.

Gainey’s 19 points, his second-most as a Volunteer and four shy of his season best, came on a 6-of-12 clip from the floor and a perfect 6-of-6 ledger at the stripe. He scored 14 points in the final 16 minutes alone and he added a co-career-high seven rebounds to his line.

Senior guard Jahmai Mashack posted a season-best 11 points and made all five of his field goals, becoming the first Tennessee player since Feb. 25, 2023, to make five-plus shots from the floor without a miss. Sophomore forward Cade Phillips added 10 points on 5-of-6 shooting and a co-career-high three assists, while senior forward Igor Miličić Jr., stuffed the stat sheet with nine points, a game-best eight rebounds, three assists and a career-high-tying three steals.

Freshman forward Asa Newell led Georgia with 13 points and five rebounds, while sophomore guard Silas Demery Jr., scored 12 points on a 4-of-7 long-range clip. No other Bulldog eclipsed eight points in the affair.

Tennessee shot 57.6 percent (19-of-33) from the field, including 41.7 percent (5-of-12) beyond the arc, in the second half. It went a perfect 10-of-10 from the line in the win, its first unblemished mark on free throws since the 2023-24 season opener against Tennessee Tech on Nov. 6, 2023.

The Volunteers had a 19-9 edge in points off turnovers and a 13-7 cushion in fast-break points, buoyed by forcing 19 giveaways and committing only 10. They had 11 steals in the triumph, one shy of their season best.

Up next for Tennessee is an in-state road trip to Nashville, Tenn., where it meets Vanderbilt at Memorial Gymnasium, with action slated for Saturday at 3:30 p.m. ET, live on SEC Network.

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.

TENNESSEE VOLUNTEERS POSTGAME NOTES
• Wednesday’s crowd of 19,239 marked the fifth time this season, all in Tennessee’s the last six outings, over 19,000 fans have been in attendance.
• The Volunteers improved to 100-62 all-time against Georgia, with the Bulldogs the second team Tennessee has defeated triple-digit times, alongside Vanderbilt (131).
• Tennessee improved to 7-1 in its last eight matchups versus Georgia after going 2-9 in the prior 11 series meetings.
• Tuesday marked the first time in 162 all-time meetings—31 were before the 1948-49 advent of the AP Poll—the Volunteers and Bulldogs were both in the AP top 25, as well as the first time since Feb. 8, 2003, Tennessee faced a ranked Georgia squad.
• The Volunteers are now 11-2 all-time against Georgia head coach Mike White, with the 13 matchups their sixth-most versus any active head coach.
• This is the fifth time in the last seven years, with 2021-22 and 2019-20 the exceptions, Tennessee has won at least three of its first four SEC games, with this its third straight campaign doing so.
• The Volunteers are at least 2-0 to begin SEC home play for the fifth time in the past seven seasons, including the third in a row, with 2020-21 and 2019-20 the outliers.
• Tennessee upped its record to 31-23 (.574) in AP top-25 matchups during head coach Rick Barnes‘ Barnes tenure.
• The Volunteers improved to 19-7 (.731) at home against AP top-25 opponents in under Barnes, including 14-1 (.933) since Jan. 30, 2021.
• Neither side made a field goal during a stretch of 5:10 late in the first half, from the 7:17 to the 2:07 mark.
• Wednesday marked just the third time in 2024-25 the Volunteers have trailed at halftime, joining a one-point deficit (31-30) Dec. 14, 2024, at Illinois and a 19-point margin (34-15) Jan. 7 at Florida.
• Tennessee has conceded 35 or fewer first-half points in 16 of its 17 outings thus far, including 29 or fewer on 10 occasions and 21 or fewer four times.
• The Volunteers have held a lead of 18-plus points in 14 of their 17 contests this season, including a margin of 26 in 10 of 16.
• Fourteen of Tennessee’s 16 wins are by 13-plus points, with eight by at least 22, four by at least 35 and two by 40-plus.
• Wednesday marked the 11th time—all in Barnes’ tenure—in the last 20 seasons (2005-25) the Volunteers registered a perfect free-throw percentage, including the fourth with 10-plus attempts.
• The three prior times Tennessee made 10-plus free throws without a miss—all of which were in non-conference play—in the last 20 years came on Nov. 6, 2023, against Tennessee Tech (10-of-10); Nov. 26, 2021, versus Tennessee Tech (10-of-10); and Dec. 18, 2019, at Cincinnati (17-of-17).
• The only game this season in which Tennessee had more steals was Nov. 9, 2024, at Louisville when it amassed 12.
• Before Mashack, the last Volunteer to make at least five field goals in a game without a miss was Uroš Plavšić on Feb. 25, 2023, against South Carolina, while the last Tennessee guard to do so was Santiago Vescovi on Dec. 4, 2021, at Colorado.
• Mashack is the 13th Tennessee player—17th occurrence—in the last 20 seasons (2005-25) to make five-plus shots in a single game without a miss, including just the fifth guard, alongside the aforementioned Vescovi, Jordan Bone (Feb. 2, 2019, at Texas A&M), Jordan Bowden (Dec. 23, 2017, at Wake Forest) and J.P. Prince (March 28, 2010, against Michigan State in the NCAA Tournament Elite Eight in St. Louis).
• The five made field goals by Mashack set a season best, matched the second-highest tally of his career and marked the fifth time he posted five-plus.
• Mashack blocked two shots in the win, marking the seventh time in his career he hit that figure and the first since Nov. 21, 2024, against Virginia in Nassau, Bahamas.
• Miličić has thrice previously notched three steals in a game, all during his tenure at Charlotte: Dec. 5, 2023, versus Stetson; Jan. 19, 2023, at Middle Tennessee State; and Jan. 14, 2023, against UTSA.
• Gainey has grabbed seven rebounds in a contest six times previously, including one before as a Volunteer, as he did so Nov. 21, 2024, against Virginia in Nassau, Bahamas.
• Phillips scored double-digit points for the fifth time in his career, with all five occurrences coming in the last 14 games.
• Phillips’ five made field goals put him one shy of his career best and marked the third time he hit five-plus in a contest, including the first since a 6-of-8 outing on Dec. 3, 2024, against Syracuse.
• Zeigler notched his third steal of the night and his 212th as a Volunteer with 16:54 remaining in the game, passing Vincent Yarbrough (1998-2002) and tying Santiago Vescovi (2019-24) for the all-time program record.
• Zeigler recorded his fourth steal of the game just 63 seconds later, with 15:51 on the second-half timer, to break the Tennessee record.
• At the 13:16 mark of the second half, Zeigler set a season high and tied his career best by posting his fifth steal, the fifth time he has reached that figure as a collegian, and he then exceeded that mark by logging his sixth steal with 7:21 to play.
• Zeigler is third player in Barnes’ 10-year tenure to record at least six steals in a game, joining Kennedy Chandler (seven on Nov. 30, 2021, versus Presbyterian) and Jordan Bowden (six on Feb. 4, 2020, at Alabama).
• Zeigler hit the 600-assist mark in his career by posting his seventh of the night with exactly 8:00 remaining.
 • Over at least the last 20 seasons (2005-25), Zeigler is one of just two SEC-only players to total 1,000 points, 600 assists and 200 steals, joining Texas A&M’s Alex Caruso (2012-16), while one other player, Kyle Lofton (2018-23) did it as a fifth-year SEC transfer, as he spent four years at St. Bonavenure and one at Florida.
• In the last 15 seasons (2010-25), only five other SEC players besides Zeigler have notched at least 16 points, seven assists and six steals in a game: Vanderbilt’s Scotty Pippen Jr. (Feb. 22, 2022, against Alabama), Missouri’s Dru Smith (March 3, 2021, at Florida), LSU’s Tremont Waters (Nov. 9, 2018, versus UNC Greensboro), Kentucky’s Tyler Ulis (Jan. 2, 2016, against Ole Miss) and Ole Miss’ Stefan Moody in an overtime game (Dec. 22, 2015, versus Troy).
• Zeigler’s four made 3-pointers in the win put him one shy of his career best and matched the season high he recorded Nov. 9, 2024, in a 4-of-7 showing at Louisville.