Tennessee guard Ja’Kobi Gillespie was a one-man wrecking crew on the defensive end of the court against the Oklahoma Sooners on Wednesday night in Knoxville. His 16 points on the offensive end were good, but his quick hands on defense helped him etch his name into the Vols’ all-time record book. Gillespie had eight steals on the night, which is a new Tennessee Basketball all-time single-game record.
“I was really gambling a lot,” Gillespie said with a grin when asked about his steals after the game. “My teammates have my back, but I would say if they’re looking straight at the rim, not even worried about who’s in the gap, just going and getting it instead of staying on my own man. So kind of helping my teammates.”
Gillespie’s ball theft was balanced, too. He tallied four steals in the first half and four steals in the second half. It wasn’t that it all happened in a particular run throughout the game; Gillespie was a menace throughout the night.
Tennessee forced Oklahoma’s offense into 15 turnovers on the night, with more than half of those coming from a Gillespie steal. The Greeneville, TN, native has been a massive scoring threat for the Vols this season, but now he’s got his name in the record book for his work on the defensive side of the court.
“It’s definitely special just to be in the history books here,” Gillespie said after the game. “Hopefully it lasts long. But yeah, it’s definitely special, especially because I’m from here.”
serious PG stuff
16 PTS / 8 AST / 8 STL*
*Tennessee single-game record pic.twitter.com/DWdUcaRgky
— Tennessee Basketball (@Vol_Hoops) February 19, 2026
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“I think he’s seeing the game the way that he needs to see it,” Tennessee HC Rick Barnes said after the game. “And defensively, he does have great instincts. He’s quick. You guys see it. If he’s that quick on offense, he should be that quick on defense. And he’s getting himself in the right position, which is obviously important. But what he did was, I think it was eight assists, one turnover, eight steals.”
Gillespie began his career by spending his first two years of college basketball at Belmont. He then transferred to Maryland for the 2024-2025 season before returning home to the Volunteer State to play for the Volunteers. Gillespie has been an instrumental part of Tennessee’s team this year as the top point guard and the Vols’ leading scorer. He’s averaging 18.2 points, 5.4 assists, and 2.8 rebounds per game for Tennessee this season.
Gillespie finished with 16 points, eight assists, three rebounds, eight steals, and just one turnover in Tennessee’s 89-66 win over Oklahoma on Wednesday night in Knoxville.
The Vols will return to action on Saturday afternoon with a 2:00 p.m. ET road game at Vanderbilt in an in-state rivalry clash.
