Tennessee fends off South Carolina run for 1st SEC title since 2018
The Gamecocks (24-6, 12-5 SEC) cut a 14-point second-half deficit to 59-56 on Meechie Johnson‘s inside shot with 1:13 to go.
But the Volunteers (24-6, 14-3) hit seven foul shots the rest of the way to hold on and open a two-game cushion in the SEC with one to play.
Tennessee shared the regular-season title six years ago with Auburn. The last time the Vols had won it outright was 2008.
The game was billed as a showdown for the SEC lead and a full house turned out at the 18,000-seat arena for the chance to see South Carolina, picked last by the media in the SEC preseason poll, chase a title.
And the Gamecocks kept things close much of the first half, trailing 24-22 after Myles Stute‘s 3-pointer with less than four minutes left before the break.
That’s when Knecht took over. He had 3-pointers on three of four possessions as Tennessee went on an 11-2 run over the final 3:29 of the period to lead 35-24 at the break.
Knecht made the opening basket of the second half and kept pouring it on. Midway through the period, with Tennessee ahead 42-34, Knecht drained a 3-pointer, got fouled and hit the free throw to extend the lead back to double digits.
According to ESPN Stats & Information research, Knecht is the first Tennessee player to record 10 25-point games in a season over the last 25 seasons.
Johnson led South Carolina with 18 points.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this story.