COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — Admiral Schofield ran around the court in sheer joy, waving a March Madness towel after Tennessee made it back to the Sweet 16 for the first time since 2014.
The rest of the Volunteers? Just trying to breathe normally again.
Tennessee avoided one of the biggest meltdowns in NCAA Tournament history Sunday, letting a 25-point lead slip away before SEC player of the year Grant Williams asserted himself in overtime for an 83-77 victory over Iowa.
None of the Volunteers (31-5) saw that coming, not after they’d raced ahead 44-19 in a sizzling first half they dominated every which way.
“The way we started the game, that’s the team we win (with),” said Schofield, who had 17 of his 19 points in the opening half. “The way we finished the game, we can’t have that.”
Tenth-seeded Iowa (23-12) nearly pulled off another historic comeback , sending it overtime tied at 71 — the first overtime game in this year’s tournament. The last time the teams played also was in the NCAA Tournament, with Tennessee rallying from a 12-point deficit to a 78-65 overtime victory in the First Four at Dayton in 2014.
