Tennessee Advances – Holds Off Virginia for Second Round Victory

#6 Tennessee Volunteers Upsets the 3rd Seeded Virginia Cavaliers – Moves to Midwest Regional Sweet 16

PHILADELPHIA, PA 3/22/2026 –

Most of the games in the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament have been down to the wire thrillers. This was no exception. The Tennessee Volunteers move on winning 79 – 72 over the Virginia Cavaliers.

Vols guard Ja’Kobi Gillespie lead the way with a team-high 21 points. His last six points were the most crucial, and they came from the foul line. Thijs De Ridder had a game-high 22 points for UVA.

Down to the Wire

The last two minutes of the game moved towards the Vols who did it with defense and the foul line. While Tennessee dd not have a field goal over the last three and a half minutes, they were good on 9 of 10 free throws to provide the winning points over the last two minutes.

They depended on defense. Virginia missed their last six shots, committed 5 fouls, and forced a crucial turnover.

The Last Two Minutes

Virginia took the lead at the 2:03 mark at 71 – 70 off a three-pointer by De Ridder. The edge went back to the Vols on two from the line by Nate Ament and a pair by Bishop Boswell. Then came the critical possession. Virginia had the ball and got it to Jacari White on the right wing. He pumped faked and got to the basket. But he missed his reverse layup. The rebound went out of bounds, and the ruling was Tennessee ball. That call was challenged by Virginia, but the ruling was upheld. For the last half minute Tennessee finished the game at the charity stripe,

What the Numbers Say

UT had five players get double digits in scoring Ament scored 16, Boswell had 13, and J.P. Estrella and Jaylen Carey contributed 10. Felix Okpara pulled down a game-best 8 rebounds. The Vols shot 47.3%, made 8 of 19 from beyond the arc, and were good on 19 of 25 very important free throws.

The Wahoos saw Malik Thomas score 12 points and both Chance Mallory and White contribute 10 points each. Dallin Hall headed the team with rebounds getting 7 and assisted 7 times. Virginia shot 39.1% and made 12 of 35 from distance. The Cavaliers were better off the offensive glass 16 – 11, but each squad scored 9 second chance points.

Up Next

For Tennessee it is the Midwest Regional Sweet 16 and a matchup with #2 Iowa State.

Written By: Glenn Papazian

Contact: Glenn@PhillyCollegeSports.com