In Lexington, Kentucky, Chaz Lanier made a remarkable entrance in the NCAA Tournament, scoring 29 points in an 11-of-22 shooting performance that propelled No. 2 seed Tennessee to a 77-62 triumph over Wofford on Thursday night. This victory paves the way for the Volunteers’ advancement to the second round for the fourth consecutive year.
Under the guidance of coach Rick Barnes, Tennessee (28-7) will face No. 7 seed UCLA, who defeated Utah State 72-47, in the Midwest Region on Saturday. Lanier, a Nashville local who transferred after spending four years at North Florida, expressed his enthusiasm, saying, “These are the moments you dream of.”
Coach Barnes was not taken aback by Lanier’s commanding performance in his debut on college basketball’s grand stage, commenting, “I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a better player who isn’t afraid of moments like these. They fully embrace and thrive in such situations, and I think he was anticipating it eagerly.”
Zakai Zeigler contributed significantly, amassing 12 points and 12 assists. Zeigler became Tennessee’s all-time career assist leader, further solidifying his legacy after setting the single-season assist record during the Southeastern Conference Tournament.
Wofford, a No. 15 seed, marked its sixth entry into March Madness as the Southern Conference Tournament champion. However, their stretch of reaching the second round in the previous four appearances came to an end. The Terriers’ last first-round defeat occurred in 2010.
“We aim for winning the Sweet 16,” asserted Wofford coach Dwight Perry. “Some might think that’s overly ambitious, but nobody in our locker room—coaches or players—thinks that. Our team believes it’s achievable.” Jackson Sivills led Wofford (19-16) with 15 points, while Corey Tripp contributed 14, Jeremy Lorenz added 12, and Justin Bailey netted 10 points.
Lanier quickly made an impact after Tennessee gained a lead just 13 seconds into the game with Jahmai Mashack’s 3-pointer. Lanier racked up 13 points, including a trio of 3-pointers, within the first 11 minutes, allowing Tennessee to establish a 22-8 advantage. Despite Wofford’s resistance, Tennessee defeated them for the ninth time, with this being the first encounter in the tournament. The halftime score was 36-27 in favor of Tennessee, and although Wofford narrowed the margin to 48-40 with 13:33 remaining, Lanier’s subsequent scoring burst helped extend Tennessee’s lead to 17 points.
Despite finishing the first half with a lead of 36-27, the Volunteers missed their last five shots, which could have further widened the margin. They struggled late in the half, failing to make a field goal in the final 4:47, but bounced back to shoot 50% from the field (13-of-26) in the second half, even with seven missed shots in their last eight attempts. Tennessee capitalized on Wofford’s mistakes, outscoring them 14-0 off 11 turnovers while committing only six turnovers themselves.
Tennessee now aims to reach the Sweet 16 for the third consecutive year under Barnes, who has led the program to a record seventh straight tournament appearance.