Tennessee Beats Auburn 77-69 Behind Ament and Carey’s Performances.

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Nate Ament scored 22 points, and Jaylen Carey contributed 13 off the bench as Tennessee defeated Auburn 77-69 on Saturday night. Although Ament made only four of 16 field-goal attempts, including two 3-pointers, he went 12-for-15 from the free-throw line and added eight rebounds for the Volunteers (15-6, 5-3 Southeastern Conference). Carey shot 5-for-9 from the field, 3-for-4 from the free-throw line, and also recorded eight rebounds. Ja’Kobi Gillespie added 11 points and five assists, while DeWayne Brown II contributed 10 points and seven rebounds for Tennessee. Auburn (14-8, 5-4 SEC) was led by Keyshawn Hall with 21 points, ending its four-game winning streak. Tahaad Pettiford had 11 points and seven assists. Tennessee jumped out to a 13-4 lead, with both Ament and Carey scoring 11 points, and carried a 41-31 advantage into halftime. Auburn responded early in the second half, as Sebastian Williams-Adams and Kevin Overton each recorded a three-point play within the first 1:46 to cut the deficit to 43-37. Hall hit a 3-pointer, followed by a dunk from Elyjjah Freeman, narrowing the gap to 53-49 with 11:19 remaining. Tennessee pushed its lead to 59-49 with baskets from Evans, J.P. Estrella, and Bishop Boswell. Auburn’s freshman Filip Jovic converted an offensive rebound into a three-point play, bringing the score to 59-56 with seven minutes remaining

. Gillespie scored the final four points for Tennessee, helping the Volunteers maintain a two-possession lead until the end. Next, Tennessee will host Mississippi on Tuesday, while Auburn will face No. 23 Alabama on Saturday.