Zakai Zeigler: 'Zero doubt' Tennessee basketball would make Sweet 16 for reunion in NYC hometown
NEW YORK — Zakai Zeigler started running around the house in Knoxville on Saturday afternoon.
Well, not exactly.
“I was crutching around,” Zeigler said Wednesday. “I couldn’t really run or jump or anything. But I was crutching around.”
Zeigler is crutching around Madison Square Garden and his hometown this week. The Tennessee basketball point guard is reunited with his teammates after missing the opening games of the NCAA Tournament while recovering from ACL surgery.
He’ll be around everything as the No. 4 seed Vols (25-10) face No. 9-seeded Florida Atlantic on Thursday (9 p.m. ET, TBS) in the Sweet 16. He never left his teammates' minds.
"We are taking Z to New York," forward Olivier Nkamhoua said of his first thought after Tennessee beat Duke on Sunday, sending Zeigler into an injury-limited frenzy from afar.
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Zakai Zeigler on watching Tennessee basketball beat Duke from afar
Zeigler always knew there was a possibility he would be separated from his teammates in order to have knee surgery. He underwent successful ACL surgery March 13 in Knoxville, meaning he couldn’t travel to Orlando for Tennessee’s first two games.
He always knew he would be in New York for the second weekend.
“Zero doubt in my mind, I knew we were going to be here from the jump,” Zeigler said.
Zeigler went through all the emotions watching from home with his mom, Charmane, and his nephew, Nori. He was nervous. He was excited — although not excited enough to run. He yelled at his teammates on the television, wanting to stop Nkamhoua from reaching and fouling against Duke.
Mostly, he was proud and felt like a kid again watching basketball with his mom.
“When I was little, I was a Duke fan,” Zeigler said. “Now that I got to see my boys go out there — I couldn’t be there but my boys were out there handling their business like that — it was a really good feeling.”
Tennessee held off No. 13 Louisiana 58-55 in its opening-round game. It bullied No. 5 Duke off the court to win 65-52 and clinch a spot in the East Regional.
“It was the confidence level,” Zeigler said. “It looked like it just went through the roof.”
When Zakai Zeigler expects to come back from ACL surgery
Zeigler told his mom after he tore the ACL in his left knee on Feb. 28 against Arkansas that he was going to stay with her. She told him he was going to insist he did so regardless.
“She has always been my rock,” Zeigler said. “In every situation I have been through, she has had my back.”
Zeigler’s mom moved to Knoxville in mid-2022 following an apartment fire at the family's Queens home in March 2022. Tennessee fans and college basketball fans flooded a GoFundMe to support the family, which led to the Zeiglers' move and now being together as he goes through injury rehab.
He went through initial rehab before undergoing surgery. The doctors told him it was successful and was an “easy repair.” His road to recovery began immediately. Zeigler hopes to return in August or September when Tennessee goes through preseason practices. He credited his teammates with keeping his spirits up following his injury in the penultimate regular-season game.
Zeigler has no fear that he will have lost his game-changing speed or abilities when he returns. He has been named to the SEC All-Defensive time in both seasons at UT. He earned All-SEC second-team honors after averaging 10.7 points and 5.4 assists as a sophomore. He had five double-doubles, turning into an elite point guard.
For the time being, Zeigler is an elite cheering force and motivator from the sideline — one that is happy to be back in New York.
“Now that I am back here and I have some pizza, I feel great,” Zeigler said.
Mike Wilson covers University of Tennessee athletics. Email him at michael.wilson@knoxnews.com and follow him on Twitter @ByMikeWilson. If you enjoy Mike’s coverage, consider a digital subscription that will allow you access to all of it.
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Tennessee basketball, Zakai Zeigler reunite in New York for Sweet 16
