It is back, and Tennessee basketball is in the win column.
College basketball returned on Monday as the Vols hosted Mercer to tip off the 2025-26 season, with the home team running away with a 76-61 win at the Food City Center.
Nate Ament led the way with 18 points on 6-for-11 shooting for the Vols (1-0). He was part of a 49% shooting effort for the team, joined closely behind by J.P. Estrella with a career-high 12 points.
Tennessee’s defense held Mercer (0-1) in check, limiting the Bears to a 20-for-67 shooting night. That included an 21% mark from deep.
Sloppy opening half freightlined by turnovers
Tennessee’s defense appeared to be up to the standard it plays under Rick Barnes, but the offense was not quite where it needed to be.
A 33-21 lead came out of the first half for the home Vols, holding Mercer to a 21% clip from the field and a 6% stripe from deep. Tennessee pulled away over the latter portion of the half, shooting 9-for-13 from the field over the last 10 minutes.
The Vols struggled to get the ball in the hoop out of the gate, needing five shots before the sixth dropped on a make by Felix Okpara. That was due in part to turnovers that limited the offense.
Tennessee turned the ball over 11 times over the first 20 minutes. It included three by Jaylen Carey and two by Estrella, then one by Ament and DeWayne Brown II — leaving an issue of clumsiness from the Vols’ frontcourt members.
Facilitator Ja’Kobi Gillespie had a turnover of his own, but also dished out a lone assist in the half. He added five points on the scoreboard.
Tennessee did not quite clean it up in the second half, finishing the game with x turnovers.
Jaylen Carey cleans glass
Vanderbilt transfer and 6-foot-8, 267-pound behemoth, Jaylen Carey, showed his strength against a smaller Mercer team on Monday.
Carey had his way on the boards, recording 10 rebounds. He reeled in five on the offensive end.
It began in the first half, where Carey pulled in eight rebounds over the opening 20 minutes. He pulled down three offensive boards in the half, including two on the same possession, before he finally put down a layup to surmount the first basket of the season.
He took a backseat role in the scoring department in the first half, recording his only other basket with under a minute remaining.
Carey opened the second half with a rebound on Mercer’s first shot attempt out of the break.
He picked up his first foul until the 18:23 mark of the second half after logging his ninth minute. On the other end, during the ensuing possession, Carey drew an and-one opportunity, sinking the shot and free throw for a three-point play.
With 15:37 remaining, Carey hauled in his 10th rebound of the night on a 3-point shot by Mercer that missed everything.
He finished the night with eight points, 10 rebounds and one assist across 16 minutes in his Tennessee debut. His 10 rebounds tied for the second-most in his career, last achieved on March 1 against Missouri.
13-3 run opens up game
Tennessee used the early middle part of the second half to pull away, finally putting down more shots.
It was part of a 13-3 scoring run ignited by a Gillespie 3-pointer with 17:09 left in the half, followed by a Troy Henderson three.
Gillespie missed his next shot before the Vols rattled off three consecutive makes. Defensively, Tennessee held Mercer to one make on its last eight shots to accumulate a 52-30 lead, and a timeout was called with 12:59 left in the game.
Mercer pulled back within 13 with 5:40 remaining, making each of its three shots. An Okpara 3-pointer with 33 seconds remaining put Tennessee up by 18 points, hammering the nail into the coffin.
