Ja'Kobi Gillespie and Nate Ament combined for 52 points and 10 3-pointers as No. 17 Tennessee walloped Rutgers 85-60 to tip off the Players Era men's tournament on Monday in Las Vegas.

A Maryland transfer, Gillespie had a career day with personal bests of 32 points and six 3-pointers on 10 attempts. Freshman Ament added 17 of his 20 points in the first half for the Volunteers (6-0).

Felix Okpara and J.P. Estrella scored 10 points apiece and Okpara had a game-high-tying seven rebounds as Tennessee dominated 43-28 on the boards, including 15 offensive rebounds and 21 second-chance points. The Vols shot 59.4% in the first half on their way to 50.8% for the game.

Harun Zrno scored 14 points, Darren Buchanan Jr. had 13 and Dylan Grant put up 10 for Rutgers (4-2), which lost its second straig

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