ST. LOUIS (AP) — No. 13 Tennessee came into the Southeastern Conference Tournament as one of the conference’s top defensive teams.

It was the team’s defense that bailed out a struggling offense in the Volunteers’ 62-59 victory over Mississippi State in the quarterfinals of the Southeastern Conference Tournament on Friday night.

The second-seeded Volunteers (24-7) led nearly the entire game, but the Bulldogs (22-11) had an opportunity to take the lead in the final 10 seconds. Down 61-59, Xavian Stapleton missed a 3-pointer that would have put the Bulldogs ahead.

Tennessee struggled to put away Mississippi State at the end, missing a slew of free throws. The Volunteers finished 17-for-28 from the free throw line, but outrebounded the Bulldogs 50-33, limited them to just one assist and hauled in 22 offensive boards.

“To give up 22 offensive rebounds and one assist and you have a chance to win, that would be pretty amazing, to be honest with you,” Mississippi State coach Ben Howland said.

Admiral Schofield scored 13 points and grabbed eight rebounds. Grant Williams finished with a double-double, notching 10 points and 11 boards. Williams alone earned six offensive rebounds.

“We had 22 offensive rebounds, and that was the difference,” Tennessee coach Rick Barnes said. “We know that our biggest Achilles heel all year has been rebounding. We talked about it a lot, not so much offensively where we want to go get it, but trying to do it on the defensive end.”

Lamar Peters led the Bulldogs with 22 points and Quinndary Weatherspoon scored 17.
Weatherspoon’s brother, Nick, left the contest after Tennessee’s Kyle Alexander’s foot collided with his face as Alexander was contesting a fast break.

Weatherspoon was lying on the court and grabbing his hip underneath the Tennessee basket when he was stepped on by Alexander.

“I didn’t think the injury was that bad until we came back down the floor. I think with them stepping on his head, or neck or something like that, it probably made the injury worse than it was,” Quinndary Weatherspoon said. “I think, if he would have never got stepped on, he would have been able to get up probably with a concussion or something like that. I don’t think it was that bad at first until he got stepped on. Then I was concerned.”

Play resumed after a 10-minute stoppage.

As Weatherspoon was loaded onto a stretcher, players from both Mississippi State and Tennessee came over to wish him well. He left the court to a standing ovation in the Scottrade Center.

Howland said postgame that athletic director Bo Hemphill told the team that Weatherspoon was moving and conscious, and was to undergo a CAT scan. Quinndary Weatherspoon said Nick asked about the score.

“At that point, I was just trying to play for him, try to play with a lot of energy like he plays with,” Quinndary Weatherspoon said. “Basically, I did what he wanted me to do to try to play as hard as I can and try to come out with the win.”

The loss likely ended Mississippi State’s slim chances of making the NCAA Tournament. Howland was hopeful the Bulldogs could earn a high seed in the NIT and make a championship run in that tournament.

“You guys know we’ve had a couple of chances to have a couple more wins in the conference that got away from us. But I’m excited for our team about getting a chance to play in the postseason. I hope we get some home games in the NIT and have a chance to battle to get toward Madison Square Garden. That would be a great experience for these youngsters. We’re so young,” Howland said. “So we’ll take the next two days off after playing two days in a row and figure out Sunday night who we’re playing and come back and ready to go Monday during spring break. Hopefully, we’ll get a good crowd to come support us if we’re blessed and fortunate enough to get a home game.”