by Camden Gober
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – No. 1 Tennessee improves to 14-0 on the season after the Vols defeat No. 23 Arkansas, 76-52, to begin SEC play.
Tennessee’s Chaz Lanier finished with a game-high 29 points, shooting 5 for 9 from three point range, and 50% shooting from the floor.
Igor Milicic Jr. finished with double-double on the day for the Vols, scoring 13 points and finishing with an absurd 18 rebounds.
Zakai Zeigler (12) and Felix Okpara (10) also finished in double figures scoring for Tennessee.
The Razorbacks got out to fast start in this one, but after an 11-0 Tennessee run midway through the first half, the Vols never looked back.
The Vols lead ballooned in the second half, and grew larger the later the game got. Tennessee’s largest lead of the game was 27 with less than a minute to play.
The glaring difference in the game was the rebounding differential. Tennessee outrebounded the Razorbacks, 51-29 for the game.
The Vols had 24 offensive rebounds alone, compared to just 9 for Arkansas.
The Razorbacks did not help themselves either, shooting just 46% from the freethrow line, compared to Tennessee who shot 80% from the charity stripe.
Tennessee held Arkansas to a season-low 52 points on the day.
Arkansas head coach John Calipari told reporters after the game, “They’re (Tennessee) the No. 1 team in the country for a reason… they manhandled us.”
The Vols 14-0 start matches the best start in school history, tying the 1922-1923 version of Tennessee.
No. 1 Tennessee (14-0, 1-0) will look to remain undefeated on Tuesday night as the Vols head to Gainsville to take on No. 6 Florida (13-1, 0-1) at 7 p.m. on ESPN 2.