INDIANAPOLIS — Those two regular-season losses to Kentucky don’t mean anything to Tennessee now.
The Volunteers avenged them in convincing fashion on the big stage of the NCAA Tournament on Friday night, posting a no-doubt 78-65 victory that sent them to a second consecutive Elite Eight.
Zakai Zeigler had 18 points and 10 assists, and Tennessee outhustled and outplayed Kentucky on both ends of the court.
The second-seeded Vols (30-7) beat their border rival in the first all-SEC Sweet 16 matchup since 1986 and will play Sunday against Houston or Purdue in the Midwest Region final.
“We really wanted to set the tone and show them who we were,” Zeigler said. “The first two times we played them at their place and our place. We knew regardless of what happened, we were going to go out and play Tennessee basketball on the offensive and defensive end, and I feel like we did that great tonight.”
No one enjoyed the show at Lucas Oil Stadium more than Peyton Manning, who was back in the town where he spent 13 years and won a Super Bowl with the Indianapolis Colts.
The Vols’ most famous sports alum was in a bright orange ballcap seated behind the bench as Tennessee ran off with the win in the “House Peyton Built.”
Lamont Butler scored 18 points to lead first-year coach Mark Pope’s third-seeded Wildcats (24-12), who were held 20 points under their season scoring average.
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Their 65 points matched their fewest in a game this season.
Volunteers react during the second half. Getty Images
“It’s hard to talk about basketball right now,” Pope said. “Congratulations to Tennessee. They played really hard and really well. I have a ton of respect for coach [Rick] Barnes. Mostly, we’re just sad that this is over.”
