Why UT guard Zakai Zeigler will live forever in Tennessee Vols lore after win over Florida Gators
The Tennessee Vols are riding a three-game winning streak as they prepare to take on the Texas Longhorns in Austin on Saturday night. Tennessee beat the Florida Gators 78-71 earlier this week in front of a packed house at Thompson-Boling Arena. After the win, there were some fireworks between the Vols and the Gators. Tennessee […]
The Tennessee Vols are riding a three-game winning streak as they prepare to take on the Texas Longhorns in Austin on Saturday night.
Tennessee beat the Florida Gators 78-71 earlier this week in front of a packed house at Thompson-Boling Arena.
After the win, there were some fireworks between the Vols and the Gators.
Tennessee head coach Rick Barnes said on Thursday, during "The Rick Barnes Show", that the altercation started after a joke was made about UT guard Zakai Zeigler's height.
"There is a lot of chirping that goes on and a lot of things can happen going through the game," said Barnes. "I think someone made a comment about Zakai being too small. It can be a lot of different things."
Zeigler, who is listed as 5-foot-9, is usually one of the smallest players on the floor. But that doesn't limit his effectiveness. The true freshman from New York played 26 key minutes against Florida, scoring 11 points to go along with four assists and two steals (he also had a block!).
The vitriol from Florida players toward Zeigler after the game wasn't from out of nowhere. It was likely because Zeigler was frustrating Gators players all night long.
This clip of Zeigler closely guarding a Florida player near midcourt and then lightly tickling his nose is one of the best things I've ever seen.
Zeigler is a tenacious player who can get in the heads of other players. His defensive play frustrated Florida players to the point that they had to resort to making jokes about Zeigler's height.
At that point, Zeigler knew he had won the battle.
I think we're going to see Zeigler develop into a huge fan favorite in Knoxville over the next couple of years.
Featured image via Calvin Mattheis/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK
