5-Star PF Nate Ament Commits to Tennessee Over Duke, Arkansas, More
Paul Kasabian
Apr 20, 2025
Nate Ament, a 5-star class of 2025 power forward, revealed that he has chosen to play college basketball at the University of Tennessee.
Ament made his decision official via an announcement on his Instagram page Sunday.
"After a lot of thought and prayer, I’m blessed to announce my commitment to the University of Tennessee!" Ament wrote.
"I’m incredibly grateful to all the coaches and programs who took the time to recruit me.
"Huge thanks to everyone who’s helped me get to this point — my family, coaches, teammates, and most importantly, my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ."
The 6'9", 185-pound Ament ranks fourth overall on the latest 247Sports Composite list of class of 2025 players. Per 247Sports, Ament received 29 offers and had seven visits to Tennessee, Duke, Arkansas, Kentucky, Notre Dame, Louisville and Texas.
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Ament now joins a team led by Tennessee head coach Rick Barnes, who was at Texas before his time with the Vols. Barnes notably coached NBA superstar Kevin Durant when he was one-and-done with Texas during the 2006-07 season.
Ament notably told ESPN's Jonathan Givony that Barnes sees him as a similar one-and-done talent.
NEWS: Nate Ament, a projected top-5 pick in the 2026 NBA draft, has committed to Tennessee, he told ESPN.
"Coach Barnes sees me as a one-and-done type player," Ament said. "He has done it before with Kevin Durant. He sees me as that kind of guy." pic.twitter.com/uDmrnER1pT
It's very possible that could be the case given how much scouts recognize his potential already. Ament is held in high regard, sitting fourth on the On3, ESPN and Rivals class of 2025 rankings.
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NBA scouts apparently love his "upside and talent," per ESPN's Jonathan Givony,
NBA scouts are enamored with the upside and talent Nate Ament possesses at 6'10, with guard skills and the ability to defend all over the floor.
Tennessee now has six players in its class of 2025: 4-star shooting guard Amari Evans, 4-star center DeWayne Brown, 3-star point guard Troy Henderson, Vanderbilt transfer center Jaylen Carey and Maryland point guard Ja'Kobi Gillespie.
Chaz Lanier, No. 1 Tennessee Trolled By CBB Fans for Blowout Loss vs. No. 8 Florida
Jan 8, 2025
GAINESVILLE, FLORIDA - JANUARY 07: Rueben Chinyelu #9 of the Florida Gators reacts after blocking a shot by Chaz Lanier #2 of the Tennessee Volunteers during the first half of a game at Stephen C. O'Connell Center on January 07, 2025 in Gainesville, Florida. (Photo by James Gilbert/Getty Images)
The No. 1 team and final unbeaten squad in college basketball has fallen.
Top-ranked Tennessee lost to No. 8 Florida in blowout fashion, 73-43 on Tuesday in Gainesville. The Vols came into the game 14-0 riding the momentum of a big win over No. 23 Arkansas on Saturday.
It was an uncharacteristically poor shooting night from Tennessee as the Vols shot 21.4 percent from the field and a dreadful 13.8 percent from deep. Tennessee also made just 62.5 percent of its free throws.
The offensive struggles were most noticeable for star guard Chaz Lanier, who came into the game putting up 20.3 points per game. The North Florida transfer had just 10 points on 3-of-16 from the field and 1-of-9 from deep.
After the embarrassing loss, fans called out the Vols for failing to show up in Gainesville.
Florida is eviscerating No. 1 Tennessee; only question now is what the final margin is.
If you're wondering about the largest loss by a No. 1 ever, here's the NCAA record book. No. 2 Kentucky beating No. 1 St. John's by 41 back in '51 is the long-standing record. pic.twitter.com/mmqfLmFhcv
The good news for Tennessee is that it will get a fairly manageable three-game stretch to forget about Tuesday night's dud. The Vols will face Texas, Georgia and Vanderbilt before a gauntlet at the end of January when they'll play Mississippi State, Auburn, Kentucky and Florida again.
Florida faced its first loss of the season on Saturday against Kentucky, but the Gators quickly bounced back with arguably the best win in all of college basketball this season. They'll look to keep their momentum going when they face Arkansas on Saturday.
Dalton Knecht, Tennessee Impress CBB Fans with Win vs. Creighton to Reach Elite Eight
Mar 30, 2024
DETROIT, MICHIGAN - MARCH 29: Dalton Knecht #3 of the Tennessee Volunteers shoots the ball during the first half against Baylor Scheierman #55 of the Creighton Bluejays in the Sweet 16 round of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Little Caesars Arena on March 29, 2024 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
Dalton Knecht's game-high 24 points helped lead the No. 2 seed Tennessee Volunteers to a 82-75 win over the No. 3 seed Creighton Bluejays in the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament on Friday evening.
Tennessee used an 18-0 second half run to turn a 39-37 deficit into a 55-39 lead in a 4:48 span. Knecht posted six points and four assists during that run.
Creighton certainly had its chances down the stretch but came up empty on three straight positions with the score 68-64 in the Vols' favor.
However, the first of those possessions ended when a Steven Ashworth pass appeared to go off Knecht's fingertips before going out-of-bounds. The refs called it out on Creighton, though, and the Vols got the ball back.
Tennessee eventually broke through with a Tobe Awaka three-point play before icing the game with free throws down the stretch.
Zakai Zeigler complemented Knecht's night with 18 points, six assists and four rebounds, while Josiah-Jordan James added 15 points. Baylor Scheierman's 25 points paced the Bluejays.
But Knecht's hot shooting late and his efforts during the 18-0 run ultimately made the difference here. Fans and analysts were impressed with his work and that of his teammates as well.
Credit to Tennessee. Great defense. Knecht is a beast. Barnes seems like a genuinely good dude.
Tobe Awaka was a physical beast inside. Dalton Knecht hit clutch shot. Zakai Zeigler was in complete control. Josiah-Jordan James made huge play after huge play on both ends.
Tennessee’s team delivered against Creighton’s stars. Three quick takeaways.https://t.co/OcoemOJuUO
Tennessee will now play No. 1 seed Purdue in the Elite Eight on Sunday, with the winner headed to the Final Four to face either No. 4 seed Duke or No. 11 seed North Carolina State.
This marks the Vols' second-ever Elite Eight appearance, with the last one occurring in 2010. A win against Purdue will mark its first-ever Final Four berth.
Tennessee's Dalton Knecht Excites Fans with Clutch FTs in March Madness Win vs. Texas
Mar 24, 2024
CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA - MARCH 23: Dalton Knecht #3 of the Tennessee Volunteers fights for position against Chendall Weaver #2 of the Texas Longhorns during the second half in the second round of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at Spectrum Center on March 23, 2024 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Jacob Kupferman/Getty Images)
It took until the very end, but the Tennessee Volunteers survived a major test.
The second-seeded Vols outlasted the seventh-seeded Texas Longhorns 62-58 in the second round of the NCAA Division I Men's Basketball Tournament.
The Volunteers held off a late push from the Longhorns and avoided the upset at the hands of a future conference rival. Jonas Aidoo had 11 points, four rebounds and three assists for Tennessee, and Tobe Awaka had 10 points and five rebounds.
However, the story for Tennessee, as it has for much of the season, was the play of first-team All-American Dalton Knecht. He had 18 points, nine rebounds and an assist, but was not super efficient as he shot 5-of-18 and went 1-of-8 from three-point range.
Sounds like Dalton is having trouble being able to ... Knecht 😎
However, he really showed up at the free-throw line, going 7-of-8. This included two clutch makes at the end of the game that put Tennessee up by four, essentially putting the game away.
Fans took to social media to express appreciation for his clutch play despite some struggles early.
Knecht had a terrible night but he still made the shots (specifically free throws) when it mattered. Also, HUGE shoutout to Aidoo on his clutch free throws. Big time performances.
Knecht and Jo big time shots. Knecht and Aidoo knocking down clutch free throws. Texas made a run, we answered. Fought through worst shooting night of season. Final Four characteristics. 2 down, 4 to go. 1-0 4 times. 🍊
Knecht has the opportunity here to do one of the funniest things in pulling a Boston #0 and be an average player throughout but make the clutch play late to save face.
We shot the ball terribly tonight but played great defense and rebounded. Like the saying goes, good teams find a way to win! Aidoo and Knecht were clutch at the line.
The win advances Tennessee to the Sweet 16 round. This is the farthest the program has gone since 2018-19, when it reached the same round. The Volunteers have not reached the Elite Eight since 2009-10.
Tennessee will await the winner of Creighton and Oregon.
Dalton Knecht, No. 2 Tennessee Thrill March Madness Fans with Rout vs. Saint Peter's
Mar 22, 2024
CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA - MARCH 21: Dalton Knecht #3 of the Tennessee Volunteers reacts in the first half during the first round of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament against the Saint Peter's Peacocks at Spectrum Center on March 21, 2024 in Charlotte, North Carolina. (Photo by Grant Halverson/NCAA Photos via Getty Images)
Tennessee basketball came into Thursday's NCAA tournament matchup against St. Peter's eager to avoid an upset against a team that made a miraculous Elite Eight run in 2022.
The No. 2 Vols had no trouble against the No. 15 Peacocks, picking up a dominant 83-49 win behind a big night from star guard Dalton Knecht. Tennessee will now take on No. 7 Texas in the Round of 32 on Saturday.
The All-American and SEC Player of the Year Knecht was locked in during his first NCAA tournament. The Northern Colorado transfer had 23 points and eight rebounds on an efficient 8-of-15 from the floor.
Vols' big man Jonas Aidoo added 15 points and guard Zakai Zeigler had a double-double with 11 points and 10 assists.
Knecht, who had seven games where he scored 30+ points this season, is looking to lead the Vols to their first Final Four appearance in program history this season. A strong start to the tournament has fans convinced he can do it.
Beating a No. 15 seed is to be expected, but the Vols' dominance has fans ready for what could be a deep run. Tennessee still has a long road ahead, but with an elite scorer like Knecht and a solid group of veterans, it seems this could be the team that finally gets the Vols to the Final Four.
Tennessee Makes CBB Fans Sweat in Narrow Win vs. Louisiana in 2023 NCAA Tournament
Mar 17, 2023
ORLANDO, FLORIDA - MARCH 16: Jahmai Mashack #15 of the Tennessee Volunteers reacts during the second half in the first round of the NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament against the Louisiana Lafayette Ragin Cajuns at Amway Center on March 16, 2023 in Orlando, Florida. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)
Tennessee is headed to the second round of the men's NCAA tournament. But the Volunteers sure didn't make it easy on themselves.
The fourth-seeded Vols survived a furious Louisiana comeback attempt and held on for a 58-55 win. Tennessee led by 11 points at the half and by as many as 18 points in the second half, but Louisiana fought to make it just a three-point deficit by the end.
Watch March Madness Live to stream every tournament game through the Final Four.
Tennessee was the definition of balanced in this game, with nobody on the Volunteers scoring more than Tyreke Key's 12 points off the bench. Five Tennessee players had at least eight points in the win.
Louisiana was led by Jordan Brown's 16 points and seven boards.
This was a standard Tennessee performance. The Vols played excellent defense, held Louisiana to 6-of-18 shooting from three and forced 15 turnovers. But the offense also wasn't pretty, and college basketball fans weren't exactly singing the school's praises after the nervy win:
If Tennessee was merely mediocre offensively they’d have already blown Louisiana out
Tennessee likely isn't going to go on a deep run based on its offense, but on Thursday turnovers (18) and horrendous perimeter shooting (4-of-16 from three) sure didn't help the cause.
And things aren't going to get any easier, with a red-hot Duke waiting. The Blue Devils won the ACC tournament, have won 10 straight games in total and 13 of their past 15. Kyle Filipowski (15.4 PPG, 9.0 RPG) and Jeremy Roach (13.3 PPG) will give Tennessee all it can handle.
The Volunteers don't need to be excellent on offense to win, given how good their defense is. They just need to be competent and reduce the turnovers. If they can't do that, however, Duke will roll them.
No. 2 Tennessee Ripped for Shooting by CBB Twitter in Loss vs. Unranked Florida
Feb 2, 2023
GAINESVILLE, FLORIDA - FEBRUARY 01: Colin Castleton #12 of the Florida Gators shoots the ball against Olivier Nkamhoua #13 of the Tennessee Volunteers during the first half of a game at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center on February 01, 2023 in Gainesville, Florida. (Photo by James Gilbert/Getty Images)
Colin Castleton scored 16 of his game-high 20 points in the second half to lead the unranked Florida Gators men's basketball team to a 67-54 home win over the No. 2 Tennessee Volunteers on Wednesday.
Tennessee took a 46-42 lead after a Zakai Zeigler jumper with 9:01 remaining, but it was all Florida from there. The Gators went on a 13-0 run buoyed by Castleton, who had five points and a pair of assists on two three-pointers during that stretch.
This Castleton three-point play put Florida up 50-46.
Zeigler's three-pointer with 4:22 remaining in regulation stopped the run and sliced the lead to 55-49. The two teams then traded empty possessions before Castleton's three-point play put Florida up nine with 3:25 left.
He then added a putback layup off his own miss on Florida's next offensive chance to put the Gators back up double digits. Florida never led by fewer than nine points for the remainder of the game.
Castleton's performance sunk the Vols, but Tennessee ultimately lost because of a game-long shooting drought.
Tennessee made just 27.9 percent of its field goals and five of 25 three-pointers. Zeigler led the Vols with 15 points but shot just 6-of-19. Olivier Nkamhoua (4-of-13), Santiago Vescovi (2-of-12) and Josiah-Jordan James (2-of-11) also had tough outings.
The Vols have excelled this season largely because of a defense that ranks first in adjusted efficiency, per KenPom.com. Their offense doesn't rank as well (No. 40 in efficiency), but that hasn't held the Vols back despite the team entering Wednesday shooting just 44.65 percent (No. 177 out of 363 D-I teams).
Tennessee hit its offensive low point Wednesday, however, and Twitter took note.
Tennessee didn't deserve to win tonight with the way it showed up ready to play. Disappointing from a veteran team.
Despite the loss, the 18-4 Vols are still tied for second with Auburn and Texas A&M for second in the SEC at 7-2. Those three teams all look up at Alabama (9-0, 19-3).
Florida moved into a fourth-place tie with Kentucky at 6-3. The Gators improved to 13-9 overall as well.
Record-Setting Defense Making Tennessee Volunteers a March Madness Favorite
Kerry Miller
Jan 13, 2023
Tennessee's Zakai Zeigler
If it's true that defense wins championships, say hello to the top candidate to win the 2023 men's NCAA tournament: the Tennessee Volunteers.
They've never won it all before.
Heck, they've never even come close.
The Vols have gone to 24 NCAA tournaments with nary a Final Four appearance and only one trip to the Elite Eight (2010). And head coach Rick Barnes isn't exactly renowned for his March Madness masterpieces, holding a career record of 25-26 in the dance.
However, Barnes has fine-tuned a defense that currently rates as the most efficient in more than two decades of KenPom.com data.
The record-holder in adjusted defensive efficiency—which calculates how many points a team would be expected to allow in 100 possessions against an average opponent—is 2008-09 Memphis at 84.2. In John Calipari's final season with the Tigers, they allowed 58.8 points per game (56.9 heading into the NCAA tournament) and ranked top 12 in the nation in both steal percentage and block percentage. They were undeniably elite on that end of the floor.
But Tennessee has been even stingier, forcing turnovers, blocking shots and contesting everything en route to a rating of 81.8.
To be sure, there is some dumb luck baked into that record-setting pace.
Opponents are shooting 20.9 percent from three-point range, which is just impossibly bad. Per KenPom, the only team in the past 21 years to hold its D-I opponents below 26.4 percent from distance was 2004-05 Norfolk State. And that was a sub-.500 team that wasn't even good on defense; a total oddity that those Spartans hold that record.
As Pomeroy tweeted on Tuesday afternoon, "Either (Tennessee's defensive three-point percentage) will regress substantially, or Rick Barnes will be selling his 3-point defense magic beans for millions after the season."
Simply chalking up that three-point defense to dumb luck would also be quite dumb, though.
Tennessee—and Houston, for what it's worth, which is holding opponents to 25.1 percent on triples and is on a would-be-record-setting-if-not-for-Tennessee defensive pace of its own—isn't just sitting back in a 2-3 zone and praying for bricks.
Rather, you have to work your hind end off to get an open look against the ridiculously active hands of Tennessee's perimeter defense.
Zakai Zeigler (2.3 steals per game), Santiago Vescovi (2.2) and Jahmai Mashack (1.8) each rank top-55 in the nation in steal percentage. And when Josiah-Jordan James and his 114 career steals are able to play—he has been limited by injury to eight games thus far—that's another set of long arms clogging up passing lanes.
Santiago Vescovi defends Arizona's Courtney Ramey
To get a sense of how hard it is to get three-point looks against Tennessee, here's what it took for Vanderbilt to make its six three-pointers (in 27 attempts) against the Vols on Tuesday night:
Tennessee's 7'1" center Uros Plavsic got switched onto 6'6" Jordan Wright, who made a deep triple from the top of the key.
Vandy needed seven passes off a baseline out-of-bounds play to find Noah Shelby in the corner, and he still just barely got it off over the outstretched arms of a closing-out Tyreke Key.
Shelby ran through what really should have been called an illegal elevator screen and made a deep one with his heels hanging over the sideline.
A Myles Stute three-point attempt was blocked by Key, but Colin Smith got the offensive rebound and kicked it out to Shelby for a triple.
Stute created separation with a jab-step/step-back against Olivier Nkamhoua, who is not a perimeter defender by trade. (Easily the most well-earned of Vanderbilt's six triples.)
Trey Thomas got open as the shot clock expired when Zeigler gambled with a double on Quentin Millora-Brown in the post.
If anything, the dumb luck is that the Commodores actually made those six three-pointers against the Volunteers.
Now for the kicker: That game was, without question, Tennessee's worst defensive effort of the season. The Vols forced an average of 16.8 turnovers in their first 15 games, but Vanderbilt—not exactly a top-tier offense—only had eight giveaways and scored more first-half points than any other team has against the Volunteers.
And yet, it was impeccable defense that won them the game.
After trailing 39-37 at the intermission, Tennessee outscored Vanderbilt 23-7 over the first 11 minutes and 20 seconds of the second half, turning a potential upset into a "Feel free to change the channel" situation. (Three of those seven points came on the aforementioned shot-clock buzzer-beater.)
The Volunteers only blocked one shot and tallied just two steals during that sequence, but watching Vanderbilt try to score was like watching someone try to successfully pull a Jenga block in the middle of a swarm of bees.
Aside from Thomas' buzzer-beating three-pointer, the only made field goal during that 23-7 run was Wright's driving floater, on which he finished amid four Volunteers, two of whom collided in mid-air while trying to block the shot.
After a while, the Commodores just gave up on even trying to penetrate and started chucking up threes any time they got a millimeter of space.
And, again, this was a poor 40-minute effort by Tennessee's standards.
Vanderbilt scored 68 points. Tennessee's previous 15 opponents—two of whom were title contenders Kansas and Arizona—were held to 51.2 points per game, while the Volunteers averaged slightly better than 10 steals and four blocks.
The 64-50 victory over Kansas in the Battle 4 Atlantis championship game was their most impressive performance. Kansas' National Player of the Year candidate Jalen Wilson shot 3-of-15 from the field. Gradey Dick was unable to create any separation, scoring a season-worst seven points. Kansas darn near finished that one with more turnovers (16) than made field goals (17), and Tennessee would've won by 30 if it hadn't committed 24 turnovers of its own.
Let's present that information another way: On a neutral court against a reigning national champion that otherwise has not lost a game this season, the Volunteers gave the ball away on 35.8 percent of possessions...and still won by 14.
There was also a game in Brooklyn against Maryland in which the Vols shot 28.8 percent from the field, missed 10 of their 21 free-throw attempts and still managed to win the game because of their defense. (And because of their offensive rebounding, which ranks as the best in the nation.)
It's a double-edged sword, of course.
Defending well enough to win while committing 24 turnovers or while shooting 28.8 percent from the field is swell. But between those two games and shooting 25.4 percent in the early loss to Colorado, the thought of betting on this offense to win a national championship is more than a little terrifying. We could have another UMBC-over-Virginia situation on our hands if that offense shows up while three-point defense regression rears its ugly head.
The thought of picking Tennessee to win it all is getting less terrifying by the day, though.
Those miserable offensive showings all came over a month ago. Tennessee has averaged 79.6 points over its last five games, including an eye-opening 87-point outburst against a Mississippi State defense that has otherwise held opponents below 55 points per game.
Best of luck to Kentucky trying to stop its bleeding if that offense shows up on Saturday alongside a usual dose of Tennessee's top-notch defense.
And if that offense shows up in March, the "Just Like Virginia" story we might be telling in a few months won't be that of a No. 1 seed losing the first round, but of a team that defended its way to the first national championship in program history.
Kerry Miller covers men's college basketball and Major League Baseball for Bleacher Report. You can follow him on Twitter: @KerranceJames.
Tennessee WCBB Center Tamari Key Out for Season Because of Blood Clots in Lungs
Dec 8, 2022
KNOXVILLE, TN - MARCH 21: Tamari Key #20 of the Tennessee Lady Vols shoots the ball against the Belmont Bruins during the second round of the 2022 NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament held at Thompson-Boling Arena on March 21, 2022 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by Donald Page/NCAA Photos via Getty Images)
Tennessee Volunteers starting center Tamari Key had her senior season cut short after some unfortunate news on Thursday.
According to ESPN's Alexa Philippou, Tennessee announced that Key will miss the remainder of the season after blood clots were discovered in her lungs.
The school announced that Key is expected to make a full recovery. Per Philippou, she "will receive care under the guidance of the University of Tennessee Medical Center and Tennessee athletics team physicians."
A four-year starter for the Lady Vols, Key entered the 2022-23 season as a preseason All-SEC first-team selection and a member of the Naismith Trophy watch list. She averaged 10.5 points and 8.1 rebounds as a junior and was named a semifinalist for defensive player of the year as well as a finalist for the Lisa Leslie Award, which is given to the nation's best center.
Tennessee head coach Kellie Harper expressed her thoughts in a statement:
"My sole concern right now is that Tamari continues to get the medical care and guidance she needs and begins the gradual process of healing and returning to full strength. This is much bigger than basketball. We are so grateful that this medical condition was caught. Our entire program will be right beside Tamari during this process and welcomes prayers and positive thoughts from Lady Vol Nation and beyond."
Key's absence is another blow to a Tennessee team that entered the year with high aspirations. The Lady Vols entered the year ranked in the Top Five but has since fallen out of the poll after starting out with a 5-5 record. Leading scorer Rickea Jackson is also out indefinitely because of what Harper called a "coach's decision."
The Lady Vols have two games at home against unranked teams before a crucial nonconference showdown at No. 2 Stanford on Dec. 18.
