Media picks Lady Vols to win SEC

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Originally published 10:24 a.m., October 24, 2007
Updated 10:48 p.m., October 24, 2007

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — Tennessee is the overwhelming pick of the media to repeat as SEC women’s basketball champion this season.

In a poll released Wednesday in conjunction with the start of SEC Basketball Media Days, the Lady Vols received 358 points. Despite returning all five starters, LSU was a distant second with 252 points.

Like her team, Lady Vols star Candace Parker was the clear choice to repeat as conference player of the year. She received 28 of the 30 votes. LSU’s Sylvia Fowles and Georgia’s Tasha Humphrey divided the other two votes.

Each conference school selected two media members and six additional writers from across the nation were selected by the conference office to comprise a 30-member voting panel.

Tennessee won the conference regular-season championship with a 14-0 record last season, breaking LSU’s two-season hold on the title to win the Lady Vols’ first regular-season championship in three seasons.

“It does mean a lot,’’ UT senior guard Alexis Hornbuckle said about being picked to repeat. “Last season was about working so hard to get the end result, the championship, and gain the respect. At the same time now that you have that respect, you have to work that much harder to keep it.”

Hornbuckle, an All-SEC first-team selection by the coaches last season, joined Parker on the media’s preseason team, along with Humphrey, Fowles and Auburn’s DeWanna Bonner.

Division Play Coming: The conference also announced that the women’s schedule will expand to 16 games for the 2009-2010 season and the teams will be divided into East and West Divisions.

The schedule will follow the men’s format with home and away games against division opponents and single games against teams from the other division.

The league coaches discussed the change at the spring meetings and the conference athletic directors signed off on it in August. The announcement was delayed by indecision about seeding for the conference tournament, which is yet to be determined.

Dan Fleser covers Tennessee Lady Vols basketball. He may be reached at 865-342-6288.