The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
17-4,6-2Big 12
Tennessee
18-3,7-1SEC
No. 10/10 Men's Basketball falls 82-71 at No. 4/4 Tennessee
01.28.2023 | Men's Basketball
Rice posts a season-high 21 points to lead the Longhorns in an SEC/Big 12 Challenge contest.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Graduate guard Sir'Jabari Rice recorded a season-high 21 points, but No. 10/10 Texas (17-4, 6-2 Big 12) dropped an 81-71 decision at No. 4/4 Tennessee (18-3, 7-1 SEC) on Saturday night at Thompson-Boling Arena. The contest was part of the 10th annual SEC/Big 12 Challenge.
UT dropped to 10-3 under the leadership of Interim Head Coach Rodney Terry. The Longhorns registered a 44-3 advantage in bench scoring and a 16-2 margin in fast-break points, but the Volunteers recorded a plus-15 rebound margin (38-23) and a 40-28 edge in points in the paint.
Rice converted 8-of-16 field goals (3-of-9 threes) and 2-of-4 threes in 31 minutes. Graduate Marcus Carr tallied 11 points, four rebounds, three assists and two steals in 33 minutes, and graduate Brock Cunningham added 11 points while hitting 3-of-4 field goals (1-of-1 threes) and 4-of-5 free throws in 16 minutes.
The opening nine minutes featured five lead changes before an Arterio Morris three-pointer evened the score at 17-17 at the 10:44 mark. The Volunteers went on a 9-0 run over the next three minutes to build a 26-17 advantage following a Josiah-Jordan James jumper with 7:15 left.
A Christian Bishop free throw narrowed the margin to 33-24 at the 2:30 mark, but Tennessee scored five-straight points to increase its cushion to 38-24 after a pair of Zakai Zeigler free throws with 1:48 remaining. A Rice jumper with 45 seconds left cut the deficit to 40-28 at the break.
A Carr jumper trimmed the margin to 46-35 at the 17:01 mark, but the Volunteers went on a 15-4 run over the next three-plus minutes to build a 61-39 advantage following a Santiago Vescovi three-pointer with 13:50 remaining. Texas immediately answered with an 11-2 spurt over the next three-and-a-half minutes to cut the margin to 63-50 after a Rice three-pointer at the 10:07 mark.
An Olivier Nkamhoua dunk gave the Volunteers a 69-53 lead with 6:55 remaining, before the Longhorns scored five-straight points to climb to within 69-58 after a Carr jumper at the 6:06 mark. Texas was able to get as close as 10 points (81-71) following a pair of Rice free throws with 37 seconds left.
Texas is back in action on Monday, Jan. 30 when it hosts No. 17/17 Baylor. Tip is set for 8 p.m. Central at Moody Center, and the game will be televised nationally by ESPN.
Texas Basketball Postgame Notes
#4/4 Tennessee 82, #10/10 Texas 71
January 28, 2023
Thompson-Boling Arena (Knoxville, Tenn.)
Attendance: 21,678 (sellout)
Team Notes
- UT is 10-3 under the leadership of Interim Head Coach Rodney Terry.
- The Longhorns are 5-3 in games played away from Austin this season, including a 3-2 mark in true road games.
- Texas dropped to 4-5 in its nine Big 12/SEC Challenge appearances.
- The Longhorns registered a 44-3 advantage in bench scoring and a 16-2 margin in fast-break points.
- Texas recorded 17 assists against just nine turnovers on the night.
- The Longhorns posted a 43-42 scoring margin and converted 48.4-percent (15-31) from the floor in the second half.
- Reached double figures in scoring (11 points) for the 19th time this year (21 games) and 104th time in his career (147 games)
- Reached double figures in scoring (11 points) for the second-straight contest, the third time this year (21 games) and fourth time in his career (96 games)
- Set his season high in scoring (team-high 21 points), previous: 19 vs. UTRGV (Nov. 26)
- Topped the 20-point mark for the first time this year (21 games) and 13th time in his career (132 games)
- Reached double figures in scoring for the 11th time this season and 69th time in his career
