Ja’Kobi Gillespie scored 21 points, Nate Ament and Bishop Boswell made critical free throws down the stretch and sixth-seeded Tennessee advanced to its fourth straight Sweet 16, beating Virginia 79-72 in the NCAA Tournament on Sunday.
The Vols (24-11) will face No. 2 seed Iowa State in a Midwest Region semifinal in Chicago on Friday night.
A year after he helped Maryland reach the Sweet 16, Gillespie led the way for the Vols. Tennessee has been a consistent first-weekend winner under coach Rick Barnes, who has yet to lead the school to the Final Four.