#23/25 [6] Vols Take Down #6 [2] Iowa State, 76-62, to Clinch Third Elite Eight Bid in a Row

Friday, March 27

Chicago, IL

10:10 PM ET

University of Tennessee

25-11,11-7SEC

Iowa State

29-8,12-6Big 12

Tennessee

Iowa St.

#23/25 [6] Vols Take Down #6 [2] Iowa State, 76-62, to Clinch Third Elite Eight Bid in a Row

March 28, 2026 | Men's Basketball

Box Score Box score (PDF)Season stats Highlights VIDEO: Rick Barnes, Jaylen Carey, Ja'Kobi Gillespie & Felix Okpara Postgame Photo Gallery

CHICAGO – The sixth-seeded University of Tennessee men's basketball team advanced to the Midwest Regional Final for the third straight year by defeating second-seeded Iowa State, 76-62, Friday night at the United Center.

No. 23/25 Tennessee (25-11, 11-7 SEC) knocked off a third consecutive foe with 29-plus wins, including a second in a row ranked in the top 10, to earn the fourth Elite Eight appearance in program history. Freshman forward Nate Ament paced the victors with a co-game-high 18 points.

The Volunteers missed seven of their first eight field goals, as Iowa State (29-8, 12-6 B12) took an early four-point lead, but Tennessee then made four of its next seven to go up, 11-10, on a 3-pointer by Ament with 13:05 on the clock. Head coach Rick Barnes' team later used an 11-4 burst—it featured another 3-pointer by a freshman, guard Amari Evans—in 3:43 to claim a 24-19 edge with 6:29 left in the frame.

Buoyed by a 7-of-9 field-goal stretch that included six consecutive makes, Tennessee maintained a four-point advantage with under two minutes to go in the stanza. However, Iowa State scored five points in a row to go back in front, 33-32, with 1:16 remaining.

Senior forward Felix Okpara concluded the first-half scoring with a pair of free throws to give the Volunteers a 34-33 lead at the break, with his 10 points, eight rebounds and three blocks all pacing the team. His team, which notched a 22-10 margin on the glass with a 10-2 differential on the offensive side, scored all six second-chance points in the opening 20 minutes, plus had an 11-2 tally in bench scoring.

Tennessee opened the second session on a 10-4 run to take a seven-point cushion, 44-37, with 17:04 to go. The Volunteers continued the half-opening onslaught and soon thereafter tallied seven unanswered points to increase the lead to a 54-41 with 12:57 left. Following an Iowa State basket, junior forward Jaylen Carey gave the Volunteers a game-best 14-point edge, 57-43, just 70 seconds later.

Aided by a scoreless drought of 2:30 by Tennessee, the Cyclones trimmed the margin down to nine, 61-52, with 6:32 on the timer. They got it down to eight with 4:30 remaining, but senior guard Ja'Kobi Gillespie answered with a 3-pointer at the other end just 20 seconds later.

Another 3-pointer, this one by Ament, with 1:58 to go iced the victory by putting the Volunteers back in front by 14, 73-59, tying their largest lead of the night. Iowa State, which trailed by double digits for all but 81 seconds of the final 13:51, never got any closer than 11 after Ament's dagger.

The Manassas, Va., native scored 11 of his 18 points during a second half in which he went 3-of-3 from the field, 2-of-2 beyond the arc and 3-of-4 at the stripe. He added four rebounds, three assists, two blocks and one steal in the victory.

Gillespie, who went 5-of-6 on 2-pointers, finished with 16 points for Tennessee. Okpara posted a 12-point, 10-rebound double-double, shooting 5-of-6 from the floor and making both his free throws. Carey also had a double-double, notching 11 points and 10 rebounds, alongside a co-career-high four assists.

Redshirt senior guard Nate Heise and senior guard Tamin Lipsey tallied 18 points apiece for Iowa State, but Tennessee held them to a combined 2-of-10 clip from beyond the arc. The Volunteers also limited the nation's 3-point percentage leader, junior forward Milan Momcilovic, to six points on a 2-of-7 tally from long range.

Overall, Tennessee held the Cyclones to 38.9 percent (21-of-54) shooting from the floor, including a 23.8 percent (5-of-21) mark on 3-pointers. Meanwhile, the final SEC team left standing in the NCAA Tournament shot 50.8 percent (30-of-59) on the offensive end.

The Volunteers dominated the rebounding column, grabbing 43 and allowing just 22. That featured a 16-8 margin on the offensive glass, leading to 14-7 mark in second-chance points. They also had a 20-3 tally in bench points and a 42-30 figure in paint points.

Up next for Tennessee is an Elite Eight matchup with top-seeded, third-ranked Michigan for a spot in the Final Four. Action is slated for Sunday at 2:15 p.m. ET, live on CBS from the United Center.

To keep up with the University of Tennessee men's basketball team on social media, follow @Vol_Hoops on Instagram and X/Twitter, as well as /tennesseebasketball on Facebook.

TENNESSEE VOLUNTEERS POSTGAME NOTES
• Barnes now owns 861 victories in his career, still good for second place among all active Division I head coaches and for No. 10 all-time (min. 10 years in Division I).
• The Volunteers are now 34-28 all-time in the NCAA Tournament, including 30-25 in regulation, 4-8 in the Sweet 16, 15-7 under Barnes, 1-2 in Illinois, 1-0 in Chicago and 1-0 against Iowa State.
• Tennessee improved to 6-1 as a No. 6 seed in the NCAA Tournament, as well as to 2-2 against No. 2 seeds, 16-20 versus single-digit seeds and 6-13 against higher seeds.
• Second-seeded Iowa State became the co-highest-seeded team Tennessee has ever defeated in the NCAA Tournament, alongside Ohio State in the 2010 Sweet 16.
• The Volunteers have now reached the Elite Eight in each of their NCAA Tournament berths as a No. 6 seed, as they also did so in 2010 when they faced a Michigan-based Big Ten school.
• Friday marked the fourth consecutive NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 appearance for the Volunteers, doubling the prior program record set in 2006-07 and 2007-08.
• Per CBS Sports, Tennessee logged just the sixth instance in history of an SEC team playing the Sweet 16 at least four consecutive years, dating to the round's introduction in 1975.
• The Volunteers reached 25 wins for the fifth year in a row, joining Duke, Gonzaga, Houston and Saint Mary's as the only five schools with an active streak of five-plus seasons in a row.
• Tennessee is one of just two schools in the Elite Eight for the third year in a row, alongside Duke, and is the only one with four consecutive Sweet 16 trips and three straight Elite Eight bids.
• Barnes' 15 NCAA Tournament wins at Tennessee are seven more than any other coach in program history, while his eight appearances are two more.
• This is the sixth time Barnes has led his team to the Elite Eight, including the third in eight NCAA Tournament appearances at Tennessee.
• Barnes improved to 36-29 all-time in NCAA Tournament play as a head coach, still good for the sixth-most victories of any active Division I head coach and the second-most in the SEC.
• The Volunteers are now 2-3 all-time in Illinois, including 1-2 at neutral sites and 1-2 in postseason competition, with all three neutral-site, postseason games coming in the NCAA Tournament.
• Tennessee now has 10 seasons with 25-plus wins in school history, seven of which are in the last nine years (2017-26) under Barnes.
• Barnes now owns 14 campaigns with at least 25 wins as a head coach, breaking a tie with Matt Painter and Kelvin Sampson for sole possession of seventh-most among active coaches.
• Friday marked just the fourth all-time meeting between the Volunteers and Cyclones, with Tennessee now owning a 3-1 record, including a 2-0 mark on a neutral court and a 2-0 ledger under Barnes.
• Additionally, Tennessee improved to 3-0 away from home against Iowa State, as it also owns a series road victory.
• The Volunteers have now won three games in a row over Iowa State, after dropping the first matchup between the two sides.
• Barnes, who went 15-9 versus Iowa State during his 17 years as the head coach at Texas (1998-2015), moved to 17-9 all-time against the Cyclones.
• Tennessee is now 34-33 all-time versus the current Big 12 membership, with a 1-3 record in NCAA Tournament action.
• The Volunteers have now played a Big 12 school in the NCAA Tournament in three straight years (2-1), as they defeated Texas—the Longhorns are now in the SEC and not included in the above note—in the 2024 Round of 32 and fell to Houston in the 2025 Elite Eight.
• Barnes improved to 170-101 as a head coach against the current Big 12 schools, including to 12-10 at Tennessee and 2-1 this season.
• Tennessee reached 25 wins for the fifth year in a row, joining Duke, Gonzaga, Houston and Saint Mary's as the only five schools with an active streak of five-plus seasons in a row.
• The Volunteers are now 4-0 versus AP top-11 teams this season, owning prior wins over third-ranked Houston (Nov. 25 in Las Vegas), No. 11 Louisville (Dec. 16 at home) and No. 9 Virginia (March 22 in Philadelphia).
• The last time Tennessee beat an AP top-15 team in back-to-back games was Feb. 1 and Feb. 5, 2025, when it defeated fifth-ranked Florida, 64-44, and No. 15 Missouri, 85-81, respectively, at Food City Center.
• Tennessee now possesses 36 AP top-25 victories over the last five seasons (2021-26), good for two greater than any other school in the country.
• The Volunteers now sport 32 AP top-20 wins across the past five years (2021-26), good for four greater than any other team nationally.
• Tennessee compiled its 26th AP top-15 triumph of the last five years (2021-26), passing Kansas for sole possession of the most in the country in that span.
• Additionally, Tennessee now owns 15 AP top-10 wins in the last five seasons (2021-26), tying Arizona, Iowa State and Kansas for the most in Division I over that time.
• Tennessee is now 42-33 (.560) in AP top-25 showdowns in the Barnes era, including 21-13 (.618) in its last 34 such outings, extending to Dec. 9, 2023.
• The Volunteers improved to 50-48 (.510) against AP top-25 foes under Barnes, including to 34-21 (.618) in their past 55 such affairs, since Jan. 22, 2022.
• Tennessee moved to 44-38 (.537) versus AP top-20 opponents under Barnes' guidance, including to 30-15 (.667) in its last 45 such outings, dating to Jan. 22, 2022.
• The Volunteers are now 33-29 (.532) against AP top-15 teams in the Barnes era, including 26-12 (.684) in their last 38 such games, since Dec. 22, 2021.
• Tennessee improved to 20-17 (.541) versus AP top-10 competition with Barnes at the helm, including to 15-8 (.652) in its last 23 such games, extending to Dec. 22, 2021.
• Across the last six seasons (2020-26), the Volunteers have played just 29 games as a lower-ranked team and now own a 17-12 record, including an 8-5 ledger versus non-SEC teams.
• Tennessee has logged double-digit offensive rebounds in 35 of 36 games this year, with 15-plus in 22 outings, 17-plus 13 times and 20-plus on seven occasions, with a high of 26.
• The Volunteers have grabbed at least 35 total boards in 32 of 36 contests, with 40-plus in 22, 42-plus in 19, 45-plus in 15 and 50-plus in six, with a top tally of 60.
• Through 36 outings thus far, Tennessee has amassed 13-plus assists on 31 occasions, with 17-plus in 21 games, 20-plus in 10 and 23-plus in four.
• Across its 36 games this season, Tennessee has played just five (3-2) that did not feature a double-digit lead for either side.
• The two sides led for nearly the exact same amount of time in the first half, with Tennessee holding the edge for 8:32 and Iowa State for 8:27.
• Iowa State entered the second-half double-bonus with 8:59 remaining after Tennessee committed six fouls in 66 seconds, followed by a seventh just 52 ticks after that.
• The Volunteers' plus-21 rebounding margin was, per Stats Perform, their third-best ever in an NCAA Tournament affair, trailing only a plus-26 mark on March 21, 2024, versus Saint Peter's (47-21) and a plus-22 figure on March 23, 2014, against Mercer (41-19).
• Per Stats Perform, Tennessee's 8-0 record when leading at halftime in NCAA Tournament play over the last three seasons (2023-26) gives it the second-most such wins without a loss of any school in the country, trailing just Connecticut (9-0), while only two other teams—Arizona and Illinois—are even 7-0.
• Carey and Okpara logged, according to Stats Perform, the third instance of a Tennessee duo/trio recording double-doubles in the same NCAA Tournament contest.
• The other occurrences, per Stats Perform, were on March 13, 1977, in an overtime contest against Syracuse (Reggie Johnson, Ernie Grunfeld and Bernard King) and on March 21, 2014, versus Massachusetts (Jeronne Maymon and Jarnell Stokes).
• Ament and Gillespie, according to Stats Perform, scored 15-plus points apiece for the 18th time this season, good for co-third-most in Division I and tops in the SEC, as well as the most by a Tennessee pair in the last 30 seasons (1996-2026).
• Per Stats Perform, Gillespie is now the only Division I player in the last 30 seasons (1996-2026) with double-digit points in the first 24 neutral-site games of his career, breaking a tie with Wisconsin's Ethan Happ (23), while just three others—NC State's Julius Hodge (22), Butler's Shelvin Mack (22) and Drake/Illinois' Rayvonte Rice (21)—are even above 20 in that span.
• Gillespie's one steal Friday increased his count this this year to 73, tying him with JaJuan Smith (2006-07) for third on the program's single-season list.
• With his 36 minutes of court time Friday, Gillespie upped his 2025-26 total to 1,248 moving from seventh up to fourth on the program's single-season leaderboard.
• On his first blocked shot of the game, with 16:34 on the first-half timer, Okpara became the fourth player with two 50-block seasons at Tennessee, following Kyle Alexander (2017-18 and 2018-19), C.J. Black (1997-98 and 1999-2000) and Grant Williams (2016-17 and 2018-19).
• Okpara's three blocks increased his career total in the NCAA Tournament to 13, moving him past Jonas Aidoo (11) for the most ever by a Tennessee player.
• The 10 rebounds by Okpara upped his career count in the NCAA Tournament to 55, making him the fourth Volunteer with 50-plus and placing him third on Tennessee's all-time list.
• Okpara now owns six NCAA Tournament victories in his two years as a Volunteer, putting him in a four-way tie for fourth place on the program's all-time leaderboard, which includes only games played competed in.
• Okpara registered the fifth double-double of his career, including his third as a Volunteer and second this season.
• Carey's six offensive rebounds pushed his 2025-26 total to 103, placing him fourth on the program's single-season list.
• Carey is the fifth Volunteer—sixth occurrence—with 100-plus offensive rebounds in a campaign, joining Jarnell Stokes (twice), Jonas Aidoo (2023-24), Jeronne Maymon (2013-14) and Brian Williams (2010-11).
• Carey now owns eight double-doubles and 12 double-figure rebounding performances in his career, half of which in each category are this season as a Volunteer.
• The four assists for Carey tied the career high he has recorded three prior times, most recently Nov. 26, 2025, against Kansas in Las Vegas.
• Sophomore guard Bishop Boswell dished out eight assists, marking his second consecutive time reaching that number after doing so just once previously in his career.
• Boswell has now registered five-plus assists seven times as a collegian, including six-plus on four occasions.