NEW YORK – Scotty Hopson had 18 points when nobody else seemed able to score, and No. 24 Tennessee rallied behind embattled coach Bruce Pearl to beat Virginia Commonwealth 77-72 Wednesday night in the semifinals of the NIT Season Tip-Off.
Tobias Harris added 15 points for Tennessee (4-0), which was playing its first game since Pearl was punished by SEC commissioner Mike Slive last week for violating NCAA rules and misleading investigators.
The Volunteers will play No. 7 Villanova or UCLA for the championship Friday night.
Brandon Rozzell hit six 3-pointers in the second half, after missing all four attempts in the first half, and finished with 23 points to lead VCU (3-1). Ed Nixon added 16 points and Jamie Skeen finished with 12 points and 14 rebounds.
Leading scorer Joey Rodriguez, who came in averaging 18.3 points for the Rams, was held to five on 1-for-10 shooting before fouling out with 47.2 seconds remaining.