KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Senior Nick Mayo had 23 points and nine rebounds, but the Eastern Kentucky University men’s basketball team fell at No. 6 Tennessee, 95-67, on Wednesday night at Thompson-Boling Arena.
Mayo was 10-of-10 from the free throw line in the game. He added three assists and two steals to his impressive stat line.
Freshman Jomaru Brown came off the bench to finish with 14 points, six rebounds, three assists and a career-high six steals. His six steals are the second most by any OVC player in a game this season.
As a team, EKU (3-4) recorded a season-best 13 steals against the No. 6 Vols.
The Colonels, however, were out-rebounded on the night, 50-32.
Eastern stifled Tennessee (5-1) to 25 percent shooting from deep (7-of-28), but the Vols were 68 percent from inside the arch (28-of-41).
Grant Williams paced four Vols in double figures with 21 points and 11 boards.
EKU took an early lead when junior Dujuanta Weaver drained a three-pointer to make it 5-3 less than three minutes into the game.
Mayo tied it up, 11-11, with a trifecta at the 12:56 mark of the first half; however, Tennessee then went on a 21-3 run and grabbed a 32-14 advantage when Lamonte Turner buried a jumper with 6:53 to play in the first half.
UT went in to the break up by 21, 49-28. The Vols led by double digits the rest of the way.
EKU will head back out on the road this weekend to face High Point on Saturday, Dec. 1, at 2:00 p.m. ET.
