LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) — Chaz Lanier scored 29 points on 11-of-22 shooting in his NCAA Tournament debut, and No. 2 seed Tennessee never trailed in a 77-62 victory over Wofford on Thursday night that sent the Volunteers to the second round for the fourth straight season.
Coach Rick Barnes’ Vols (28-7) will play No. 7 seed UCLA, a 72-47 winner over Utah State, on Saturday in the Midwest Region.
“These are the moments you dream of,” said Lanier, a Nashville native who transferred after four years at North Florida.
Barnes wasn’t too surprised at seeing how Lanier handled his first game on college basketball’s biggest stage.
“I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a guy, as good a player as him, ever being scared of the moment here,” Barnes said. “I think they embrace that kind of thing and they really love it. I think he was looking forward to it.”
Zakai Zeigler had 12 points and 12 assists. He became Tennessee’s career assist leader after setting the single-season record for assists at the Southeastern Conference Tournament.
No. 15 seed Wofford was making its sixth March Madness appearance as the Southern Conference Tournament champion but ended a run of reaching four straight second rounds. The Terriers’ last first-round loss was in 2010.
“Our goal is to be a Sweet 16 team,” Wofford coach Dwight Perry said. “And there’s people that probably will look at that and say, ‘You know, that’s a little bit delusional or that’s too unrealistic.’ But to be honest, like no one in that locker room — coaches, players — no one cares whether it’s unrealistic or not. We know it’s realistic.”
Jackson Sivills led the Terriers (19-16) with 15 points. Corey Tripp scored 14, Jeremy Lorenz 12 and Justin Bailey 10.
Lanier made a quick impression after Tennessee took the lead 13 seconds into the game on a 3-pointer by Jahmai Mashack. Lanier reeled off 13 points with a trio of 3s within his first 11 minutes of play.
That helped Tennessee jump out to a 22-8 lead, though the Terriers kept fighting even as the Vols beat them for the ninth time and first in this tournament. Tennessee led 36-27 at halftime. Wofford got within 48-40 with 13:33 left on a 3 by Lorenz.
Lanier scored seven of the next eight for Tennessee, which pushed its lead to 17 and closed it out with little stress.
Cold and hot
The Vols led 36-27 at halftime, a lead that would have been bigger if they hadn’t missed their final five shots. They didn’t make a field goal over the last 4:47 of the half. The Vols shot 50% (13 of 26) in the second half even as they missed seven of their final eight attempts.
Make them pay
Tennessee outscored Wofford 14-0 off 11 turnovers. The Vols turned it over only six times.
Up next
Tennessee is trying to get to the Sweet 16 for a third straight season under Barnes, who has already set a program record with a seventh straight tournament appearance.
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