GREENSBORO, N.C. — Tennessee got a rude awakening from its dream season Saturday.

Wichita State eliminated the Vols with an 80-73 victory in the second round of the NCAA men's basketball tournament at the Greensboro Coliseum.

The No. 7-seed Shockers (26-8) advance to play the winner of today's North Carolina-George Mason game on Friday in Washington, D.C.

Tennessee (22-8) returns to Knoxville trying to deal with a harsh dose of reality.

After a season of overachieving — the Vols were picked to finish fifth in the SEC East and won the division — UT folded when playing the role of a No. 2 seeded favorite.

"We just buckled under pressure," said Major Wingate, who had 15 points, seven rebounds and a Vols' NCAA tournament record five blocked shots. He held Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year Paul Miller to one field goal.

Chris Lofton and C.J. Watson scored 20 points apiece to pace the Vols, but neither had a marquee performance.

Lofton missed numerous open shots and forced others en route to a 7-for-21 shooting performance that included 6-of-18 from 3-point range.

Watson was 7-of-10 from the floor, but he managed just one assist and didn't get a rebound. Only two of Watson's 20 points came in the first half, as the Shockers took a 30-25 lead at halftime.

Wichita State stayed ahead until the 12:46 mark when Lofton hit a 3-pointer to put UT up 48-47.

Wichita State rallied to go back up, 58-54, when PJ Couisnard converted a pair of free throws with 9:19 left for two of his team-high 20 points.

But back came the Vols, making one of the trademark runs that led them to their surprising season.

Wingate hit a free throw with 8:46 left to cut the lead to 58-55, and when he missed the second attempt, Lofton rebounded, giving UT another possession. With time winding down on the shot clock, Lofton drilled an NBA-range 3-pointer to tie the game at 58-58 with 8:09 left.

Wichita State's Sean Ogirri missed a 3-pointer at the other end, and JaJuan Smith popped a 3-pointer from the top of the key to give the Vols a 61-58 lead with 7:37 remaining.

A pair of Watson free throws at the 5:42 mark gave UT its largest lead, 63-58.

"I thought our two (3-pointers) were daggers," Lofton said. "But they fought hard and kept coming back."

Karon Bradley hit a jumper to pull Wichita State back within three, and the Vols' meltdown began.

Lofton missed a 3-pointer, Dane Bradshaw missed the front end of a 1-and-1 free throw situation and Watson charged, picking up his fourth foul.

Ogirri took advantage, drilling a 3-pointer to tie the game at 63-63 with 4:13 left.

The Vols went back up 65-63 when Lofton lobbed a pass to Wingate, who laid it in at the 3:26 mark.

The rest of the game belonged to the Shockers.

Couisnard drove for a bucket to tie the game at 65-65 with 3:01 left, and when Bradley hit a runner over Bradshaw to make it 67-65 with 2:09 left, the Vols couldn't draw even again.

Bradshaw missed a potential go-ahead 3-pointer at one end of the court, and Couisnard made his 3-pointer at the other, giving Wichita State a 70-65 lead with 1:02 left.

UT's comeback hopes took another dive when Smith missed a pair of free throws with 57.2 seconds remaining, and things looked downright hopeless when Ogirri made two free throws with 50.5 seconds left, making it 72-65.

Lofton hit a 3-pointer to keep the Vols within range, 72-68, with 39.9 left. The Shockers missed two of their next four free throw attempts, and when Watson hit a 3-pointer, the Wichita State lead was down to 74-71 with 22 seconds remaining.

UT's defense, however, couldn't come up with a stop.

The Shockers closed the game with four consecutive free throws and a breakaway dunk in the final seconds.

Bradshaw, like his teammates and athletic director Mike Hamilton, red-eyed from an emotional post-game, hung his head in the locker room.

"We had opportunities for playmakers to make plays, and we didn't make them," Bradshaw said. "It's tough to look back on the good things you did and take anything positive out of this right now.

"We'll keep re-playing those final minutes in our minds. We were within two or three minutes of closing it out and going to the Sweet 16."

Not even UT first-year coach Bruce Pearl, whose charismatic talks lifted his players and charmed fans through the season, could put a happy ending on this one.

"There were lots of tears in the locker room," Pearl said. "I thought we could have taken one more step to the Sweet 16."

Bradshaw Surgery: Bradshaw expects to have surgery to reattach torn ligaments in his right wrist by the end of the week. He said the wrist will be in a cast 6 to 8 weeks.

Orange Slices: Smith pulled down a career-high 10 rebounds ... Wingate's five blocks broke the UT NCAA tournament record of three held by Reggie Johnson and Torrey Harris. ... The Vols' seven blocks matched their NCAA tournament team record set in 1998 against Illinois State. ... Lofton and Watson's 20 points apiece marks the first time the Vols have had two players score 20 points in the same game since Lofton and Watson did so against East Tennessee State in the season-opening 106-83 win. ... Lofton's six 3-pointers and 18 attempts were UT NCAA tournament records. Brandon Wharton had made four against Illinois State in 1998 and Tony Harris attempted 10 against Southwest Missouri State in 1999. The 18 attempts also surpassed the school record held by Greg Bell (17 in 1989) ... The Vols failed to score 80 points in any of their final eight games.