University of Tennessee Athletics
University of Tennessee
14-18, 6-12
Auburn
11-20, 5-13
Vols Cruise to 97-59 Win Against Auburn
March 09, 2016 | Men's Basketball
March 9, 2016
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NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- The Tennessee Volunteers rolled to victory over the Auburn Tigers, 97-59, in the first round of the SEC Men's Tournament Wednesday night at Bridgestone Arena.
UT (14-18, 6-12 SEC) never trailed the Tigers (11-20, 5-13 SEC), leading by as much as 41 points in the final minute of the game. Tennessee now improves to 9-3 all time against Auburn during the SEC Tournament.
Senior Armani Moore led the Vols, scoring a game-high 22 points on 10-of-13 shooting and adding four rebounds, five assists and a block in 29 minutes of play.
After struggling to find consistent offense during a four-game losing streak, UT caught fire from the floor, shooting a season-high 59 percent. Tennessee's previous high was 53 percent against Army West Point in November.
Sophomore Detrick Mostella was the Vols' second leading scorer with 17 points. Mostella broke out of a slump after only scoring in double digits once in his last seven games. It was the 10th time this season that he scored at least 10 when coming off the bench.
T.J. Dunans, who finished with 17 points and four rebounds, led Auburn. Tyler Harris, the brother of VFL Tobias Harris, scored 14 points while grabbing nine boards for the Tigers.
Tennessee will face the 5th-seeded Vanderbilt Commodores in the second round of the SEC Tournament Thursday at 3:30 p.m. ET at Bridgestone Arena on the SEC Network.
Up Next for the Vols: Tennessee will play Vanderbilt in the second round of the SEC Men's Tournament Thursday. The Commodores swept the Vols during the regular season. UT is 8-1 against Vandy in the tournament, including last year's 13-point comeback victory in the second round.
Mostella Breaks Slump: After being held to single digits in six of his last seven games, Mostella was the second leading scorer for the Volunteers with 17 points. It was also the 10th time this season he scored double digits after coming off the bench.
Vols' Offense Catches Fire: After struggling to find consistent offense during a four-game losing streak, UT caught fire from the floor, shooting a season-high 59 percent. Tennessee also had four different players score in double figures in the game.
Miscellaneous: Tennessee's 38-point win was its largest margin of victory ever in SEC Tournament play. Tennessee has now won its opening game in four straight SEC Tournaments, as well as eight of the last nine. Lucas Campbell scored his first points as a Vol with a 3-pointer in the final minute of the game.
