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03/28 01:25 CDT Ament scores 18 as Tennessee beats Iowa State 76-62 to advance
to third straight Elite Eight
Ament scores 18 as Tennessee beats Iowa State 76-62 to advance to third
straight Elite Eight
By ANDREW SELIGMAN
AP Sports Writer
CHICAGO (AP) --- Getting to the Elite Eight is becoming an annual event for
Tennessee. This time, the Volunteers hope to go another round or two.
Nate Ament scored 18 points, Ja'Kobi Gillespie finished with 16 and Tennessee
beat Iowa State 76-62 on Friday night to advance to the regional finals for the
third straight year.
Tennessee used a dominant effort on the glass and a strong second half to put
away Iowa State (29-8) to advance to its third regional final in coach Rick
Barnes' 11 seasons. The Volunteers lost to Houston last year and to Purdue in
2024. Tennessee's only other Elite Eight was under Bruce Pearl in 2010.
"We do have a standard on a lot of things, not just what we do on the
basketball court," Barnes said. "We're pretty much a no-nonsense program. We
talk about that through the recruiting process. We tell everyone it's going to
be tough. We want them to come. We want them to come, and really help them live
their dreams. We'd like them to have a chance to play for a national
championship."
Barnes led Texas to a Final Four in 2003. But Tennessee has never been there.
The sixth-seeded Volunteers (25-11) have another big obstacle in their way,
with top-seeded Michigan in the Midwest Region final on Sunday. The Wolverines
beat Alabama 90-77 behind a dominant all-around performance by Yaxel Lendeborg.
Ament made three 3-pointers. Felix Okpara chipped in with 12 points and 10
rebounds. Jaylen Carey added 11 points and 10 boards, and the Volunteers
outrebounded the Cyclones 43-22.
"I'm just enjoying the process, being able to do it with these guys," Okpara
said. "We put in so much work in the summer. We love to see it pay off."
Missing Jefferson Nate Heise and Tamin Lipsey each scored 18 points for Iowa State, but the Cyclones clearly struggled without injured star Joshua Jefferson. The All-America forward was hurt minutes into the Cyclones' March Madness opener against Tennessee State and did not play in their lopsided win over Kentucky. He averaged 16.4 points, 7.4 rebounds and 4.8 assists. "Just a really tough circumstance to deal with," coach T.J. Otzelberger said. "We just wanted to make sure that Joshua felt supported and we did everything in our power to get him ready to be out there playing. It just wasn't enough. He did all he could. He's a fierce competitor. He couldn't have done more treatments."
Vols take control Tennessee led 34-33 at halftime after Okpara hit two free throws in the closing seconds and Lipsey missed a driving layup at the buzzer. The Volunteers were up 44-39 when they went on a 13-4 run that Carey punctuated with a three-point play off a tip-in. The 6-foot-8, 267-pound forward turned toward the roaring Vols fans and flexed before hitting the free throw to make it 57-43 with 11:47 remaining. ___ AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness
Missing Jefferson Nate Heise and Tamin Lipsey each scored 18 points for Iowa State, but the Cyclones clearly struggled without injured star Joshua Jefferson. The All-America forward was hurt minutes into the Cyclones' March Madness opener against Tennessee State and did not play in their lopsided win over Kentucky. He averaged 16.4 points, 7.4 rebounds and 4.8 assists. "Just a really tough circumstance to deal with," coach T.J. Otzelberger said. "We just wanted to make sure that Joshua felt supported and we did everything in our power to get him ready to be out there playing. It just wasn't enough. He did all he could. He's a fierce competitor. He couldn't have done more treatments."
Vols take control Tennessee led 34-33 at halftime after Okpara hit two free throws in the closing seconds and Lipsey missed a driving layup at the buzzer. The Volunteers were up 44-39 when they went on a 13-4 run that Carey punctuated with a three-point play off a tip-in. The 6-foot-8, 267-pound forward turned toward the roaring Vols fans and flexed before hitting the free throw to make it 57-43 with 11:47 remaining. ___ AP March Madness bracket: https://apnews.com/hub/ncaa-mens-bracket and coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/march-madness
