Tennessee
Tennessee handles its 2nd half business on a weird day for the program
Top-ranked Tennessee had an unexpected scare thrown into them tonight in the first half against MTSU before the Vols regrouped and controlled the second half in an 82-64 win.
After the first 10 minutes of play it felt like Tennessee was putting together a little pre-Christmas blowout, leading 25-14 and cruising.
Suddenly without warning, MTSU put together the best offensive stretch that any opponent has slapped on Tennessee this year, outscoring the Vols 26-9 in the final 9:31 of the first half to lead 40-34 at the break.
It was a wake-up call for the Vols who watched the Blue Raiders’ Camryn Weston put up 17 first half points on 7-of-9 shooting.
“At the start of the game, they did what I thought they would do,” Barnes said of MTSU, who he clearly had some respect for.
“I think we’re up eight, missed a couple of layups that we need to make, and then we turned it over four or five times in a row. Changed the whole momentum of the game in the first half.
MTSU didn’t wilt in the second half, but Tennessee took control of the game the way you’d expect to see from the No. 1 team in the nation.
The Vols didn’t look like the top team in the country for the first 30 minutes of the game, but they did for the last 10.
It was still a tie game at 51-51 with 12:21 left in the game when the Vols hit the turbo button.
Tennessee outscored MTSU 31-13 from there on out and when the smoke had cleared on the second half the visitors had been outscored 48-24 and held to 29% shooting.
The Vols also got a helping hand from the crowd, which turned out in force two days before Christmas for this non-conference affair.
With the Vols down six at the half the crowd cranked it up significantly in the second half, almost creating a big SEC-game like environment.
The energy in the building translated onto the court and Tennessee just completely dominated the final 10 minutes of the game.
“I thought at halftime we were locked in and came out and obviously played a lot better,” Barnes said of his team’s second half. “But I told them, this won’t be the last time we would be behind at halftime. (It’s) Good for us, and let’s see if we can handle it. I thought they did a good job coming out and doing that.”
Chaz Lanier—who led the Vols with 23 points—got that final spurt going with a three pointer that put Tennessee up 55-51.
Zakai Zeigler—who had a double-double with 17 points and 15 assists, found Cade Phillips for back-to-back dunks to make it 59-54 with 10:43 left on the clock.
MTSU would make three more shots the rest of the way and get out-scored 25-10.
It was a master class from Tennessee on locking down on defense and finding your groove on the offensive end.
Zeigler had six of his career high 15 assists in the final 11:55 tonight, and just orchestrated the offense at a crazy high level in the final quarter of the game.
He’s playing the point guard position at a high, high level right now, to say the least.
“He’s starting to really understand his teammates. I think the more that he’s out there, he and Chaz are starting to get a little bit more of a connection to it,” Barnes said of Ziegler’s play.
Thanks to the way they regrouped and just throttled MTSU in the second half, barring an absolute stunner next week against Norfolk State Tennessee will start SEC play as the No. 1 team in the country.
But they’ll also start it with (as of now) nine available scholarship players thanks to a strange development on Monday.
The Vols learned today that sophomore Cam Carr plans to redshirt to maintain a year of eligibility and enter the transfer portal. He is no longer with the team.
Carr has been sidelined since suffering a broken thumb against Austin Peay on Nov. 17. He was expected to be out 4-6 weeks, so would have been returning at or near the start of SEC play in a couple of weeks.
That is obviously no longer the case and the already thin Vols are even more short-handed.
Tennessee began the year with 11 scholarship players and have lost JP Estrella (foot) for the year in addition to Carr.
It was even more extreme tonight against MTSU with freshman point guard Bishop Boswell sidelined with a shoulder injury (he’s day-to-day).
Playing with what will apparently be a nine-man bench is hardly ideal, but Barnes wasn’t playing ‘poor me’ over the Vols’ roster situation.
“We have pretty much played eight or nine guys all year, right? Pretty much,” Barnes said of the situation. “I tell everybody, back when I first got into coaching, you ask questions trying to learn all I could about this game and talking to some of the old legendary guys. They always told me, ‘you want to play six, maybe seven, eight only if you have to.’
Barnes was taking the fact that his roster had shrunk to nine guys with equanimity. But he had some thoughts on Carr’s decision to leave the program, which happens to be ranked No. 1 in the nation, during the middle of the season.
Transfers are very much a part of the game in college athletics. But a midseason basketball transfer from a player who was almost certainly going to be in the rotation on a final four contender checking out?
That’s some next level stuff.
“It’s like Jahmai Mashack and Zakai Zeigler said a year ago when we lost some guys,” Barnes said of Carr’s departure.
“They said plain and clear, ‘if they don’t want to be here then we don’t want them here.’ We want guys that want to be here and guys that really care about being part of the team. They said that. That’s how I think we all feel.”
Tennessee is off now for several days for Christmas. They’ll return to the court on Dec. 31, hosting Norfolk State in the final non-conference game of the year. Make a note, that Tuesday game tips off at 3:00 p.m.
Tennessee
Tennessee AMC theater worker, 85, receives $146K from strangers for retirement after viral video
A viral Tennessee movie theater worker, 85, was surprised with $146K as strangers rallied together to help her “enjoy retirement.”
Mary Ellen Eron was seen hauling a heavy black garbage bag and pushing a cleaning cart during her shift at the theater in Maryville, Tenn., which has since been viewed more than 13 million times.
“Let’s secretly help retire this beautiful woman. No one deserves to work at this age,” movie customer Brooklyn Green, who filmed the video, captioned the post.
Green launched a fundraiser last weekend after watching Mary, who has been a movie theater staffer for 45 years, hard at work – even though she’s a stranger.
“I knew nothing about her. I didn’t even know her name when I went to the theater,” Green told WATE reported. “I just decided that she was working so hard, and I aspired to be like her one day.
“Her physical appearance didn’t look too comfortable, especially since the way she was working so hard.”
Green set a target of $200,000 – and she raised $146,317 before pausing donations. More than 7,500 people donated to the charitable cause.
On Wednesday, Green posted the moment that she presented Eron, who helps the homeless and her local church, with the total figures from the crowdfunding page.
“Oh my goodness. That’s a lot of money,” Eron said as she realized the number on the piece of paper.
“That’s a lot of money and you deserve every bit of it,” Green said.
The clip also featured a message from Eron, who addressed the people who had contributed.
“Thank you so very much to all the wonderful people that have donated money to the GoFundMe,” she said.
“I’m overwhelmed and certainly blessed by the Lord and you wonderful people. Thank you once more.”
The theater’s manager revealed it will be Eron’s decision when she retires.
The Tennessee Volunteers have had their fair share of bad news as of late when it comes to the college baseball transfer portal, but luckily, they have received some great news.
The great news that they have received is that they will be returning one of their breakout stars from this past college baseball season, as he has no intentions of entering the college baseball transfer portal.
Trent Grindlinger Will Return to Tennessee
The player who is set to return to Tennessee is Trent Grindlinger, who was electric this season and is expected to be a future top 10 MLB draft pick. This is expected for the first draft that he is eligible for, which is the 2027 MLB Draft rather than this upcoming draft that will feature multiple Vols, including Tennessee ACE, Tegan Kuhns.
Grindlinger finished last season with a batting average of .345, while hitting eight home runs and only striking out 28 times. This would be an electric season for the talented Volunteers’ batter, and he is set for a season that could and should be even better than that, which would be good enough to consider for some major college baseball end-of-the-season awards. He is just one of the few players who opted to stay and return rather than enter their name into the college baseball transfer portal, but if they were going to return anyone, he is the player they would want to return in the field.
Had he entered the transfer portal, there wouldn’t be a single college in the nation that wouldn’t want to add him, as every college would want to add the elite prospect. Not only that, but he would become the nation’s No. 1 player on the portal more than likely.
Luckily for the Vols, though, they don’t have to worry about that.
Follow Our Social Media Accounts
• Follow Vols on SI on X (Click HERE)
• Follow Vols on SI on Facebook (Click HERE)
• Follow Vols on SI on Instagram (Click HERE)
• Subscribe to Vols on SI on YouTube (Click HERE)
Follow Our Staff on X
• Follow Caleb Sisk on X (Click HERE)
• Follow Dale Dowden on X (Click HERE)
Follow Our Staff on Instagram
• Follow Caleb Sisk on Instagram (Click HERE)
• Follow Dale Dowden on Instagram (Click HERE)
Follow Our Staff on Facebook
• Follow Caleb Sisk on Facebook (Click HERE)
• Follow Dale Dowden on Facebook (Click HERE)
Subscribe to Our Newsletter
• You can join our newsletter (HERE)
Add us as a preferred source on GoogleFollow
Tennessee
Franklin police ticket 13-year-old after e-bike crash, and a new Tennessee law brings more changes July 1
WILLIAMSON COUNTY, Tenn. (WTVF) — Franklin police cited a 13-year-old following a crash involving a motorized bike, and a new Tennessee law taking effect July 1 will bring additional restrictions for young riders.
On April 21, Franklin officers responded to a fender bender at the Interstate 65 off-ramp at the Goose Creek Bypass involving a 13-year-old on a motorized bike and a vehicle. Both the teen and the adult driver were waiting for officers when they arrived. The woman behind the wheel was visibly shaken and told officers the bike came out of nowhere while she was attempting to turn right on red.
The bike turned out to be more powerful than a standard e-bicycle. Under the law, it is not considered a bicycle at all — it is classified as a motor scooter, which falls under different laws than Class 1, 2, and 3 e-bikes.
“Downside is kids are about to get a bunch of tickets. He can’t ride that e-bike because it’s not just an e-bike — too much voltage, it’s a motor scooter,” Officer Spry with the Franklin Traffic Unit said.
“He can’t be on a sidewalk, he has to be in a bike lane, and it can’t be more than 28 miles an hour,” Spry said.
The driver of the car was cited for failure to exercise due care. The 13-year-old was cited for several violations, including not having a driver’s license, insurance, or registration. Franklin police say the citations issued to the teen are all appropriate under current law. Officers told the teen’s parent the citations would need to be answered in juvenile court. The family promised to trade the bike in for something safer.
Spry made clear this is not an isolated case.
“You’re not the only one that I’ve written this ticket to,” Spry said.
“This is probably one of the greatest opportunities for us to provide safety and save a life that we’ll ever see,” Franklin Alderman Greg Caesar said.
Starting July 1, only those 16 years and older will be legally allowed to ride Class 3 e-bikes, which can reach speeds of 28 miles per hour. The new law changes the age of those allowed to operate Class 3 e-bikes and does not affect the motor scooter classification that applied in this case.
Franklin city leaders are debating changes to local e-bike laws. Alderman Greg Caesar described it as a nuanced problem but said educating parents should start now.
“It needs to be considered, as some of these e-bikes and riders can do real and significant damage,” Caesar said.
Do you have more information about this story? You can email me at Amanda.Roberts@NewsChannel5.com
This story was reported on-air by Amanda Roberts and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
Students help relaunch donation drive for Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt
Young or old, we all love to play board and card games! Those games become even more important when you are indoors and don’t have the ability to get outside, like patients in a hospital. Austin Pollack shares the story of students in a Nashville family who have helped re-launch the Red Wagon project to collect games for patients at the Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt.
– Lelan Statom
-
World35 seconds agoPete Hegseth warns narco-terrorists as U.S. backs Bolivia’s government amid coup warnings
-
Politics6 minutes agoDemocrats split over Tlaib’s Lebanon measure as Republicans seize on Hezbollah omission
-
Health13 minutes agoPopular weight-loss diet shows surprising impact on serious mental health condition
-
Sports16 minutes agoNBA bans two fans for life after court invasion during Knicks-Spurs Game 1
-
Technology21 minutes agoCharter breach warning: What customers should know
-
Business28 minutes agoTrump announces new coal export terminal in Oakland
-
Entertainment31 minutes agoKathy Hilton won’t be WeHo Pride’s grand marshal after backlash from community
-
Lifestyle36 minutes agoOTB Takes Full Control of Viktor & Rolf
