Knoxville, Tenn. – Western Carolina jumped out to an early lead thanks to sharp shooting from the perimeter, holding the advantage over the opening five minutes of regulation on Tuesday night at top-ranked Tennessee. However, the home-standing Volunteers turned up the intensity at both ends of the court to close the opening half strong to remain unbeaten on the season with an 84-36 victory at Thompson-Boling Arena.
 
The Catamounts hit three of their first five attempts from long-range including two by Cord Stansberry and the first of the night by Bernard Pelote to lead 6-0 and 9-3 on Tuesday. Tennessee, though, scored the game's next 15 points, taking its first lead at the 15:10 mark and led the remainder of the way in scoring its 11th straight victory to open the season.
 
Pelote led the Catamounts with 10 points and seven rebounds with Stansberry just missing double figures with eight points with four boards. Brandon Morgan and Chase McKey both chipped in six points apiece from the bench, while Vernon Collins matched Pelote with seven rebounds with a pair of blocked shots.
 
On the other side, Chaz Lanier led four Vols in double figures with 19 points, adding seven rebounds and four steals. Jordan Gainey finished with 17 with five steals, followed by Darlinstone Dubar and Zakai Zeigler with 13 and 10 points, respectively. Zeigler finished with a double-double, adding 10 rebounds – and just missed the illusive triple-double by dishing out nine assists.
 
After the Vols trailed by six twice, the nation's No. 1 squad outscored WCU 35-to-6 over the remainder of the first half. WCU was held scoreless over the final eight minutes heading into the locker room with the home squad carrying a 38-15 advantage into intermission. The Vols used a 20-to-3 run amidst the strong finish to the opening 20 minutes.
 
With a concerted effort from the direction of head coach Tim Craft to get more touches in the paint, the Catamounts put 14 points on the scoreboard in the low block after being shut out over the opening 20 minutes. WCU also matched the Vols with 14 offensive rebounds on the night.
 
Tennessee capitalized on 23 Catamount turnovers on Tuesday, cashing in the miscues for 32 points in the winning effort. WCU attempted 39 3-point field goals in Knoxville, tying for the ninth-most in a single game in program history – however, just six found the bottom of the cup for the upset-minded Catamounts.
 
The Volunteers represented the fourth WCU opponent that was either ranked or receiving votes in the national polls at the time of the game, joining Wake Forest, Florida State, and Marquette. Tuesday marked just the second time in program history that the Catamounts had faced the nation's No. 1 team – its first since meeting then No. 1 North Carolina back in 1957, the first time the Tar Heels had reached the top spot in the poll.
 
Western Carolina (3-7) returns home to wrap up a busy three-game, six-day swing with a mid-morning tip-off to close out nonconference play on Thursday, Dec. 19, with a special education day tip against NAIA foe Milligan from Ingles Court at the Ramsey Center. Tip-off is set for 11 a.m.

The game will be shown on ESPN+ (paid subscription required), with live audio coverage through the Catamount Sports Network available on 105.7 FM / 540 AM WRGC "The River" in Sylva and streaming LIVE through CatamountSports.com. Live stats are also available on CatamountSports.com.
 
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