No. 6 Tennessee men’s basketball team bludgeoned by shorthanded Florida in blowout loss

The No. 6 Volunteers were hammered by the shorthanded Gators in a 75-49 loss at the O’Connell Center in Gainesville, Florida. 

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Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports

Editor’s note: This article was originally published by the Knoxville News Sentinel and has been republished in its entirety below. 

Yves Pons and Omar Payne simultaneously reached the opening tipoff between Tennessee basketball and Florida on Tuesday night.

The duo locked hands at the ball, sending Pons staggering and tumbling to the court.

Tennessee never got up.

The No. 6 Volunteers were hammered by the shorthanded Gators in a 75-49 loss at the O’Connell Center in Gainesville, Florida.

John Fulkerson had 15 points to lead Tennessee (10-2, 4-2 SEC). He was the lone Vol in double-digits against UF (7-4, 4-3), which scored the most points against UT this season.

Victor Bailey Jr., Tennessee’s leading scorer, had four points on 1-for-12 shooting, as the Vols had a season-low 49 points.

NEXT: Tennessee basketball owned inside