No. 8 Tennessee Downs No. 3 Auburn 70-65 To Reach Sec Tournament Championship Game

Zakai Zeigler scored 20 points as No. 8 Tennessee held off regular-season champion and third-ranked Auburn 70-65 on Saturday to reach the Southeastern Conference Tournament championship for the first time since 2022.

The fourth-seeded Volunteers 27-6 got revenge both for their Jan. 25 loss at Auburn and their 2019 loss to the Tigers in this tournament's title game.

Tennessee will play fourth-ranked Florida, a 104-82 winner over No. 5 Alabama, on Sunday for the tournament title . The Vols and the winner of that semifinal likely wind up with No. 1 seeds in the NCAA Tournament - only fitting for the nation's best league.

Jordan Gainey added 15 points for the Vols, and Chaz Lanier had 12.

The Tigers 28-5 go home losers of three of their last four games.