CHARLOTTE, NC- The Saint Peter's University Men's Basketball team fell to Tennessee, 83-49, in the first round of the 2024 NCAA March Madness Tournament Thursday night at the Spectrum Center.
"Ton of respect for Tennessee and how hard they played, how detailed they were, taking away our strengths, how physical they were. The amount of respect they showed for us in terms of how hard they played and how detailed they were, just a ton of respect for that program. Can't say enough about them," said Saint Peter's Head Coach Bashir Mason.
The Volunteers shot 27/53 (50.7%) from the field. Tennessee's Dalton Knecht led the Vols in scoring and rebounding with 23 points, a team-high eight rebounds, and one assist. Jonas Aido scored 13 first-half points and finished with 15, six rebounds, and three blocks. Zakai Zeigler recorded a double-double on 11 points and 10 assists.
Saint Peter's trailed 10-5 before Tennessee went on a 17-2 run in the first half and jumped out to a 27-7 advantage. The Volunteers shot 64% from the field in the first half. Roy Clarke hit a three-pointer at the buzzer and SPU trailed 46-20 at halftime. Tennessee outscored Saint Peter's 37-29 in the second half. The Vols finished the game 11-24 (45.8%) from three-point range. Latrell Reid scored a team-high 17 points, with three rebounds and one assist.
The 2023-24 season was a breakthrough year for Saint Peter's, as it won its fifth MAAC Tournament Championship in program history and made its second appearance in the NCAA Tournament in three years. The Peacocks finished the season with a 19-14 record, a six-win improvement from last season. Saint Peter's is 3-5 all-time in the NCAA Tournament.
"I'm confident in my guys and the season that we had. I feel great about us being back here soon," said Mason.
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