The five-seed Tennessee Volunteers basketball team is officially moving on to the quarterfinals of the SEC Tournament in Nashville, TN.
The Vols defeated 13-seed Ole Miss, 70-55, on Thursday afternoon in the second round of the SEC Tournament in Bridgestone Arena.
Tennessee was led by its veterans against the Rebels as Josiah-Jordan James scored 20 points, Santiago Vescovi added 15, and nine points came from Olivier Nkamhoua.
After both teams ran out of the gates on fire from three-point range, Tennessee’s defense closed the door on the Rebels after the first 15 minutes of the game. Ole Miss scored 11 fewer points in the second half thanks to a strong defensive effort from the Vols.
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Following the conclusion of the contest, head coach Rick Barnes met with the media to give his reactions to the game. Barnes spoke about his confidence in the offense, his thoughts on the defensive efforts, and much more.
Next to Barnes at the desk were James and Vescovi, who also gave their reactions to the win over Ole Miss and their thoughts on Tennessee’s next opponent, Missouri.
The Vols will take on four-seed Missouri on Friday afternoon in the quarterfinals after the Tigers defeated the Vols on a buzzer-beating half-court shot in Knoxville this past February. That game will take place at 3:00/3:30 p.m. ET on Friday.
Check out the full video featuring Rick Barnes, Santiago Vescovi, and Josiah-Jordan James below.
