Maine Native J.P. Estrella Leads Tennessee to Sweet 16

The Tennessee forward from southern Maine led the Volunteers in field goal percentage in their win over Virginia on Sunday evening.

Another Maine native is making noise in March Madness, as Scarborough’s J.P. Estrella looks to help the Tennessee Volunteers make a deep tournament run. Estrella’s journey—from playing junior varsity as a freshman at Scarborough to starring at South Portland, where he averaged 20.2 points, 11.8 rebounds, and 4.1 blocks while leading the Red Riots to a Class AA state title—shows just how far he’s come.

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Following their 78–56 win over Miami (OH) on Friday, March 20th in the Round of 64, #6 Tennessee faced #3 Virginia on Sunday, March 22nd.

In that matchup, Estrella delivered a strong performance, finishing with 10 points, 5 rebounds, and an assist while shooting a perfect 4-for-4 in 20 minutes during the win.

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With this performance, combined with his 14 points, 10 rebounds, and 2 steals against Miami (OH), Estrella and Tennessee are carrying serious momentum into the next round.

The Volunteers will face #2 seed Iowa State in the Sweet 16 on Friday, March 27th at the United Center in Chicago at 10:10 p.m. EST, with the game airing on TBS and TruTV.

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And there you have it! Estrella, along with his Tennessee Volunteers teammates, will be playing Friday night with a spot in the Elite Eight on the line.

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