Tennessee defeated Syracuse 96-70 while sporting its own Dark Mode uniforms to in front of an announced crowd of around 21,000 in Knoxville on Tuesday night. The Big Orange earned its first 8-0 start since 2001.
The Vols won the tip but started on a bad possession. But a steal by Lanier led to Okpara's dunk. Mashack had a dunk, along with Lanier thanks to a Zakai Zeigler ally-oop. Tennessee’s first eight points came from three Syracuse turnovers.
The teams traded buckets throughout the first half, with Syracuse’s Elijah Moore coming off the bench 3/3 from the floor with seven points.