The Tennessee Volunteers picked a lousy time to produce their fewest 3-pointers of the season.
After making 12 shots from long range against Texas A&M in last Sunday’s Southeastern Conference championship game and 14 more during Thursday’s rout of Longwood University in an NCAA tournament South Regional first-round mismatch, third-seeded Tennessee shot just 2-of-18 from behind the arc Saturday and stunningly fell 76-68 to 11th-seeded Michigan inside Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis.
“We shot the shots that we practice,” Vols junior guard Josiah-Jordan James said after a 13-point performance that included an 0-of-6 showing from 3-point range. “For 40 minutes, they didn’t go in. Credit Michigan, because they played good defense, but today just wasn’t our day shooting the ball.”
Hunter Dickinson scored 27 points and Eli Brooks added 23 as the Wolverines won consecutive games for the first time in more than a month and will advance to the Sweet 16 with a 19-14 record. Tennessee, one of the hottest and most consistent teams in the sport the past several weeks, had its season conclude at 27-8.
Kennedy Chandler led the Vols with 19 points and added nine assists, while Uros Plavsic tallied nine points and nine rebounds.