DETROIT (AP) โ In a Midwest Region semifinal on Friday night, Tennessee defeated Creighton 82-75 behind 24 points, six rebounds, five assists, and two steals from Dalton Knecht. With this victory, Tennessee advanced to their first-ever Final Four appearance.
For the second-seeded Volunteers, Zakai Zeigler contributed 18 points and six assists. Knecht was at Northern Colorado, and Zeigler was out due to a torn knee ligament when Tennessee fell to Northern Colorado in the regional semifinals the previous year for the second consecutive year.
The Vols (27-8) under coach Rick Barnes have tied the school record for the longest run in the NCAA Tournament and are hoping to advance past the 2010 squad that fell short of Michigan State in the Elite Eight by a single point.
Top-seeded Purdue, who defeated Gonzaga earlier on Friday, will play Tennessee.
night, on Sunday, for the Midwest Region championship and the elusive Final Four berth for both institutions.
The third-seeded Bluejays (25-10) made it to the Sweet 16 for the third time in four years, but they were unable to match their historic first-ever trip to the regional final from the previous season.
A long and athletic club that plays defense from the logo to the rim tested some of Baylor Scheierman’s teammates, who finished with 25 points and made the third team of the All-America wing.
The Bluejays, who showed a lot of fight, were led by Steven Ashworth, who finished with 16 points, and Ryan Kalkbrenner, who had 14.
Taking a 55-39 lead early in the second half, Tennessee embarked on an incredible 18-0 run that prompted Creighton coach Greg McDermott to call two timeouts rather than wait for a TV interruption to halt the momentum.
With 6:04 remaining, Scheierman completed a three-point play during a 9-0 run that brought the Bluejays within three points. Scheierman had earlier ended the drought with a three-pointer.
With 1:39 remaining, Zeigler set up Tobe Awaka for a three-point play that gave the Vols a 71-64 lead. Knecht then made a pair of three-pointers to extend six-point leads.
Tennessee made it through the tournament’s opening weekend.
overcoming Texas by four points after defeating Saint Peter’s in their first game, during which Knecht scored a combined 41 points. The Bluejays defeated Oregon in double overtime and thrashed Akron to progress to the second weekend of the tournament.
In the Sweet 16, Scheierman scored 15 points in the opening round, and Kalkbrenner hammered a lob pass from Scheierman to put the Bluejays up 35โ34.
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