The Southeastern Conference may have staged its men’s basketball tournament in Florida for a final time.
Might as well drape it in orange.
Tennessee took its late-season surge up another notch Sunday afternoon during a 65-50 dismantling of Texas A&M in the SEC championship game inside Tampa’s Amalie Arena. Santiago Vescovi scored 17 points, while Josiah-Jordan James added 16 and Kennedy Chandler 14 as the ninth-ranked, second-seeded Volunteers shot 42.9% from 3-point range and held the eighth-seeded Aggies to their lowest point total of the season.
The Vols improved to 26-7, having won 15 of their past 16 league games.
“I’m very proud of our team,” Vols coach Rick Barnes said afterward in a news conference. “These guys have worked hard and deserve what they’ve been able to achieve here.”