KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - The University of Tennessee men's basketball team earned an 80-42 wire-to-wire victory over Tennessee Tech to begin the 2023-24 season Monday night at the Food City Center.

No. 9/10 Tennessee (1-0) led for all but the first 27 seconds in a dominant performance on both ends of the floor. Fifth-year guard Dalton Knecht, in his official team debut, scored a game-high 17 points in the victory.

The Volunteers held Tennessee Tech (0-1) without a point for the opening four-and-a-half minutes, forcing misses on the visitors' first five shots. Tennessee's stingy defense continued, as it allowed just a 1-of-11 clip through eight-and-a-half minutes and built a 9-2 lead.

Aided by seven straight points from Knecht, Tennessee went on a 14-0 run in just 4:07 to take a 23-6 edge with 5:52 on the clock. Following a jump-shot by the Golden Eagles, Tennessee scored 10 points in a row, making it a 24-2 extended surge in 7:24, to go up 33-8 with 2:35 left in the session.

In total, the Volunteers scored 32 of the final 38 points of the frame and took a 41-12 advantage into the locker room. They shot 51.6 percent (16-of-31) overall, including 46.7 percent (7-of-15) beyond the arc, while holding the Golden Eagles to 16.0 percent (4-of-25) and 20.0 percent (1-of-5) marks, respectively. The 12 points by Tennessee Tech marked the fewest by a Tennessee foe in a half since the 2018-19 season opener.

The Golden Eagles scored the first five points of the second half to trim the deficit to 26, but never got any closer the rest of the way. Tennessee even pushed its margin as high as a game-best 40 points in the closing minute of the contest.

The Volunteers went on to win by 38, their largest margin of victory since Feb. 25, 2023, versus South Carolina (40). It also marked their second straight season-opening triumph by exactly 38 points, as they earned a 90-62 win over UT Martin on Nov. 9, 2022, to begin last year's campaign.

Knecht, who scored 14 of his 17 points in the first half, shot 6-of-11 from the field and 3-of-3 from the line in the win. Fellow transfer guard Jordan Gainey, a junior, tallied 14 points in the win.

Fifth-year guard Josiah-Jordan James posted 12 points, shooting 4-of-5 from 3-point range to tie a career high in makes. The Charleston, S.C., native added seven rebounds and a game-best three steals for the Volunteers.

Additionally, Zakai Zeigler led all players with five assists in just 12 minutes in his return to action. The junior guard last played on Feb. 28, 2023, against Arkansas in last season's home finale before suffering a torn left ACL just three minutes into the contest, an injury that kept him out for the final six-plus contests of the season, as well as Tennessee's summer tour to Italy and its two recent exhibition contests.

Just one Golden Eagle reached double digits in the scoring column, as sophomore guard Josiah Davis paced the team with 13 points.

Tennessee ended the night a perfect 10-of-10 at the stripe, its first time making double-digit free throws without a miss since Nov. 26, 2021, also against the Golden Eagles. The Volunteers, who had a 21-5 edge in assists and a 36-3 margin in bench points, also shot 40.0 percent (12-of-30) from beyond the arc.

Defensively, Tennessee limited Tennessee Tech to a 27.5 percent (14-of-51) clip from the field and a 16.7 percent (2-of-12) ledger beyond the arc. It also posted eight blocks while the Golden Eagles had none.

The Volunteers begin their 2023-24 road slate Friday at 9 p.m. ET in Madison, Wis., where they take on Wisconsin at the Kohl Center, live on Peacock.

TENNESSEE VOLUNTEERS POSTGAME NOTES

• Tennessee head coach Rick Barnes now owns 780 victories in his career, passing Lou Henson for sole possession of No. 17 on the all-time wins list (min. five years at a Division I school).
• Tuesday marked the first regular season game for the Volunteers on a new floor at their home venue and their first official contest in the arena since it was renamed the Food City Center.
• The Volunteers extended their non-conference home winning streak to 22, as it dates back to Nov. 8, 2020, a season-opening victory over Colorado. • Tennessee improved to 34-3 in home openers at the Food City Center, including 8-1 under Barnes, with victories in the last seven such games.
• The Vols are now a superb 28-1 all-time versus Tennessee Tech, including 6-0 under Barnes, with 12 straight victories in the series.
• Barnes improved to 29-6 versus in-state competition in his nine-year tenure at UT, including 12-1 in the past 13 such matchups.
• Knecht tallied the Vols' first point of the season on a free throw just 27 seconds into the contest, while fellow fifth-year guard Santiago Vescovi notched the team's first field goal on a layup after 82 seconds of action and Gainey made their first 3-pointer with 9:15 left on the first-half clock.
• Including its two exhibition games, Tennessee has led for 118:01 of a possible 120 minutes this season without trailing for even a single season.
• The last time Tennessee allowed 12 or fewer points in a half was Nov. 6, 2018, when Lenoir-Rhyne notched 11 in the second half.
• This is the first time since the turn of the century (2000-01 season) the Volunteers conceded 12 or fewer points in a half against a Division I team and/or before halftime.
• The last time Tennessee made all of its free throws in a game was Jan. 3, 2023, versus Mississippi State (3-of-3), while its last time shooting 100 percent on 10-plus attempts was the aforementioned Nov. 26, 2021, matchup with Tennessee Tech (10-of-10).
• Three of the four most recent times the Vols have posted a perfect free-throw clip have come against the Golden Eagles, as the only one between the two above contests was Nov. 7, 2022, versus Tennessee Tech (9-of-9), making Tennessee 29-of-29 from the line in the series over the last three seasons.
• Tennessee's last victory by 35-plus points was an 85-45 decision over South Carolina on Feb. 25, 2023.
• James connected on four 3-pointers for the ninth time in his career, matching a career high he most recently logged on March 9, 2023, versus Ole Miss in the SEC Tournament in Nashville, Tenn.
• The following nine players all made their official debuts as Vols: Knecht, Gainey, freshman guard Cameron Carr, redshirt freshman guard Freddie Dilione V, freshman forward J.P. Estrella, redshirt sophomore guard Grant Hurt, redshirt freshman guard D.J. Jefferson, sophomore guard Kaylan Makan and freshman forward Cade Phillips.