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Contract for greatness

Lady Vols make good on goals

By Dan Fleser (Contact)
Originally published 09:11 p.m., April 9, 2008
Updated 09:11 p.m., April 9, 2008

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TAMPA, Fla. - The legacy of Tennessee's senior class will be written with some of the same hyperbole that introduced this group more than four years ago.

Candace Parker, Alexis Hornbuckle and Nicky Anosike were part of the most celebrated recruiting class in modern women's basketball history. They picked up junior college transfers Shannon Bobbitt and Alberta Auguste along the way. The rest is history - as in back-to-back national championships.

Yet the best record of this group and what it's truly all about might be handwritten in small letters on a scrap of Holiday Inn Select stationery.

This is Anosike's handiwork. Before Tennessee's NCAA tournament opener, she drew up a competitive contract and put a box in the upper right hand corner for her teammates to check if they agreed with the seven terms.

Anosike, who authored a similar contract last season, created a document that was heavy on effort and selflessness. Considering Tennessee's 64-48 demolition of Stanford in Tuesday night's national championship game at the St. Pete Times Forum, the final term turned out to be prophetic:

"Crush anyone who is brave enough to stand in the way of our championship."

Lady Vols assistant coach Dean Lockwood joined the staff four years ago, the first season for the first wave of seniors. He has watched their evolution from start to finish.

"There was a lot of hype but you know what, just because you have hype doesn't mean you'll be able to back it up on the floor and do it night in and night out, year in and year out,'' he said. "They've backed it up. They've put some substance into the flashy title."

From the outside looking in, the group's hierarchy begins with Parker, a three-time All-American who's won some sort of national player of the year honor for two consecutive seasons. She repeated as the Final Four's most outstanding player, scoring 17 points, grabbing nine rebounds and recording four steals against Stanford.

On the inside, players and coaches alike give the deepest bow of respect to Anosike, the resident locker room lawyer. This is unsolicited praise. It wasn't one of the terms of her contract.

"She is a warrior,'' Lockwood said. "I'm going to tell you right now, if you put me on a chopper, it's four in the morning and we have to drop in some zone somewhere, I want her on board."

Said Auguste: "I give all my respect to Nicky Anosike. She has heart like … Her positive attitude has helped us a whole lot."

Don't take their word for it. Look at Tennessee's play at the past two Final Fours. The Lady Vols didn't top 40 percent field-goal accuracy in any of the four games. They won their championships with defense, rebounding and effort.

Against Stanford, Tennessee allowed the fourth fewest points in a national championship game. Its 13 steals were the second highest total for a final.

Toward this end, fellow senior Alexis Hornbuckle, UT's all-time steals leader, also deserved some credit. As Lockwood said, "It's because of Nicky and Lex holding people accountable and leading by example. Those two kids absolutely put it out there. They put forth the effort. Because of that, they can now talk to people."

Still, Lockwood singled out Anosike for the scope of her stake in UT's defense.

"She takes defense personally," Lockwood said. "It's not something we do. It's not something (Coach) Pat Summitt has built the program on. She takes it personally.

"… If you score on her, she's angry."

As for her take, Anosike gave Summitt credit for keeping this meandering team on course through the season.

"I think coach did a great job of keeping us humble and not letting us think that we've arrived because we won last year," Anosike said. "I think a lot of different teams have won in the past. They can't repeat. They're overconfident. Coach has done a great job of keeping us humble. So we owe that to her."

And there you have it - the ideal competitive chain of command. The coach is a capable leader. The player serves as a tough-minded subordinate. And everyone else plays a part.

"You have to buy into a system that's already built; you just have to find your niche," Hornbuckle said. "Some of us are scorers. Some of it is defense. Some of it is rebounding. When you put it all together, we're a strong force. That's what's happened over the years."

Who would've thought it would happen this way for these basketball blue bloods?

"They've traded in their white collars," Lockwood said. "They've got the work boots at the door. They've got some dirt under their fingernails. This is a blue-collar basketball team defensively."

Write it down and remember it for all time.

***

Write it down

Never give up or let up on a play at any point in time throughout this tournament.

Speak up if at any time I witness a Lady Vol letting the rest of the team down.

Listen to advice that may potentially help the team win a championship.

Refrain from any selfishness or non-team-like behavior.

Put the success of the team before any personal agendas or goals I may have.

Do any and everything in my power to ensure that the Lady Vols become the 2008 national champions.

Crush anyone who is brave enough to stand in the way of our championship.

© 2008, Knoxville News Sentinel Co.

       38 Comments

Posted by Plasticman on April 9, 2008 at 9:59 p.m. (Suggest removal)

THis team epitomizes what a team is all about. Everyone has their role and playes with tenacity, heart and gives 110%. Leadership by Anosike and Parker was fabulous. THe expressions on their faces during last nights game showed me they were not going to be denied the Championship. Would be nice to see this same attitude rub off on some of the other programs on the Hill.

Posted by abnermc on April 9, 2008 at 10:08 p.m. (Suggest removal)

Who is the man in the picture W/ Pat?

Posted by smashmouth98 on April 9, 2008 at 10:31 p.m. (Suggest removal)

bill haslam, the mayor of knoxville

Posted by drakosben1 on April 9, 2008 at 11:10 p.m. (Suggest removal)

A couple of years ago, the woman's game was seeking parity with the announcers talking like someone new ought to win every year, in order to be fair. Even the refs picked up on it and called in order not to appear to be partial to teams like the lady vols. The refs also let aggessive teams mug other teams, like UConn, Duke, and a couple of others. It created an equal playing field. So what did little ole Miss Pat Summitt do?? Sopmething she hadn't done almost ever, went out and got her two best junior college players in the game. Other teams were doing everything imaginable to win, foreign players included. The rest of the leagues just couldn't get toit fast enough. Last night these two transfers won a championship for us and for Pat. I think it's funny, she couldn't have done that all along, but she was just fed up with the hypobole of it all.

Posted by bigsig on April 9, 2008 at 11:37 p.m. (Suggest removal)

Kara Lawson's name should be strickened from the records for not picking the Lady Vols. I don't care how impartial she was trying to be or whatever. You don't pick against the best there ever was or ever will be....

Posted by globadoc on April 10, 2008 at 12:30 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Before you trash Kara...

Kara Lawson is probably one of the toughest players that we have ever had. Started 130 of 136 games at UT, through stress fractures, back injuries, shoulder separations, etc. Lest you forget (from the USA Today archives), "As a freshman in 1999, before she had played a college game, she made the winning jumper as the Vols upset the U.S. national team that went on to win Olympic gold in Sydney." Her father wanted her to go to Stanford but she wanted to go to Tennessee instead. 100 community service projects and a 3.77 GPA while at UT.

She is a Lady Vol through and through. Her assessments of the LVs was based on logic and reason. Yes, I am sure she thought the LVs had a chance to win, but Stanford had been playing lights out and UT had not been playing particularly well. The lowest offensive output in years against LSU and a star with an injured wing. From a completely impartial standpoint, Stanford was SUPPOSED to win.

I'm darn glad that she was WRONG, WRONG, WRONG, but we have no right to attack Kara.

Posted by globadoc on April 10, 2008 at 12:38 a.m. (Suggest removal)

By the way, her analysis was actually pretty good.

"This game will be decided by Tennessee's ability to disrupt Stanford's offensive rhythm. ... They play within the system and execute to get good looks. So you can't allow them to get comfortable offensively... Then when Connecticut extended to full-court pressure, the Huskies were able to turn Stanford over 10 times in the second half."

Sounds pretty much how things played out. Kara just predicted the wrong result.

Posted by BIGEJ on April 10, 2008 at 12:41 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Kara Lawson picked who she thought would win....or did she pick with ESPN and flame the volunteer fire? I think she did the latter to help her alma mater and if she did not....well her pick was good motivation and had the same positive results. I hope she picks games over the season and tourney against the Vols and I hope the results are the same.....GO VOLS

Posted by snafu14u on April 10, 2008 at 1:57 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Kara Lawson is a Volunteer for life. And we are damn lucky to have her. She's doing her job, not like Lou Holtz who is the ultimate "homer".She has Orange in her heart not in her brain.And it's not a traitor that picks against the Vols.She has given too much to the program.Enough.bonazaivol

Posted by bmassey on April 10, 2008 at 3:07 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Kara Lawson rocks!! She is doing a great job for ESPN as a basketball analyst and commentator. I believe her heart wanted to bust out and say "Yea baby, Lady Vols all the way", but her head, rightfully so, told her Stanford had the advantage with Parker injured. Keep on keeping on, Kara!

Posted by robertstanelle on April 10, 2008 at 6:18 a.m. (Suggest removal)

If I was the analyst/announcer, I would have picked Stanford also. Anyone would have made them the favorite, and did, the way they were playing. Kara is great rep of UT in every way.

Posted by CrankE on April 10, 2008 at 6:22 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Puck farity. Go Lady Vols

Posted by piledriver on April 10, 2008 at 7:32 a.m. (Suggest removal)

James Carville called Bill Richardson "judas." HAW! Ah just joking. Kara and Stacy probably planned this ahead of time. One pic UT. One pic Stanford. You know, "fair & balanced?" I don't think it was anything sinister on Kara's part. She's got orange blood. But even if that's how she really felt, she's got a right to say it. We all see things differently. Wouldn't it be awful if everybody saw things alike? Then we wouldn't need competition.

Posted by GreerVol22 on April 10, 2008 at 7:34 a.m. (Suggest removal)

blah, blah, blah....Lawson was even wearing a Cardinal red jacket for Pete's sake.

But, if I worked for ESPN, and got paid what she did, then I'd cross my fingers under the table, wear a red jacket and pick Stanford too!

Posted by bmaples on April 10, 2008 at 7:40 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Snafu14u -- well said.

Posted by LadyVolFanForever on April 10, 2008 at 7:45 a.m. (Suggest removal)

These seniors were awesome, very frustrating at times but awesome. They made me very proud to be a Lady Vol fan. They stuck together as a team, believed in each other, supported each other, worked extremely hard, keep their cool, fought for what they wanted and achieved it. What a class act ! What role models !

Thank you Lady Vols for making us proud !!!

On the Kara comments, she is just doing her job and doing it very well, in my opinion. I am extremely proud of her and she represents the Lady Vols well. She cannot, in her position, be biased. She is another Lady Vol success story.

Posted by RockyTop1 on April 10, 2008 at 9:16 a.m. (Suggest removal)

This was our best starting five ever....we've had some great ones but the heart of this team is undaunted!! Kara however never led her teams to a championship, she faded in the tournament. Just a fact. Maybe that was Candace's comment that "....at least I have TWO (championships)....OUCH!! Kara got hers in the WNBA but NOT at Tennessee. Love her still but she failed to deliver when it counted most...

GO LadyVols it was a GREAT EIGHT. I look forward to next years "new TEAM". I'm pumped for the future!!

Posted by dwolfcreek on April 10, 2008 at 9:33 a.m. (Suggest removal)

thanks to all lady vols and staff , girls basketball will become great , if espn would get on band wagon . they give bowling more attention .

Posted by camoman270 on April 10, 2008 at 9:34 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Kara will always be a Lady Vol and she gave her all while at Tennessee!! She has done a great Job at commentator and did the logical thing picking the cardinal with Candace injured and with Wiggins playing lights out on offense in the previous tournament games.....And remember folks!!! Stanford had just beaten the unbeatable mighty UConnt!!!!!!!
Who in their right mind would have picked Tenn with our offensive woes and the very best player in the Nation hampered with such an injury???
We just refused to Lose and we look like the greatest team of all time for doing it but it WAS an UNLIKELY win with the factors considered!!!
Go Lady Vols!!!!!!!!!!!YOU are the BEST!!!!!!

Posted by volboy81 on April 10, 2008 at 9:49 a.m. (Suggest removal)

who cares who Kara picked? WE WON! She tries to be too impartial and PC instead of saying what she really thinks and feels. Since when has anyone at ESPN had a clue who would win what anyway? Theyre talking heads, most of which have never been on a competitive court or field!
THE LADY VOLS RULE!!

Posted by adimatteo on April 10, 2008 at 9:59 a.m. (Suggest removal)

As I have said all season, we are blessed to have the program, people, and students we have had for so long.
lets enjoy it while we have them all.
having followed this class for the past few years, sad to see them go, but each one of these seniors have given there all, and we will miss each and every one of them. They all made these championships possible. As the articele said, we owe them a thank you for choosing to come here, and what they did during their time here, both on and off the court.
I was fortunate to be in tampa and watch them , and what a thrill it was.
I know I sound like a broken record, but win or lose, a great or not so great season (record wise), this program is wellabove any other.
Go lady Vols, you deserve everything that comes to you, for all you gave these past few years!!!!!!!!!!

Posted by rockytopron on April 10, 2008 at 10:07 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Remember the Super Six recruiting class of four years ago? How is it that only 4 remained to win 2 national championships? Where are the other 2?

Truth is, the other two did not have the hearts of champions and left this great program because they wanted more playing time. Where are they now? Gatewood has disappeared and in her place we have Bird and Little Bit and Sybil Dosty is coming off the bench at Arizona St. (She has lost several pounds though)

Alex Fuller, who also sat out her freshman season with a knee injury will be back next season. She has 2 rings.

Alexis Hornbuckle, all time steals leader has 2 rings.

Nikki Anosiki, great post defender and had two of her best games as a vol in the championship games, has 2 rings.

Candace Parker, greatest player ever, numerous awards and now she has 2 rings. (if she came back next year she would surely have 3 rings)

Starting Line up for next season.

SF - Alex Fuller 6'3"
PF - Vickie Baugh 6'4"
C - Kellie Cain 6'6"
SG - Angie Borkland 6'1"
PG - Cait McMahon 5'4"

I really like our chances for a 3-peat when we have the best coach in the world coaching these great ladies.

Posted by superk on April 10, 2008 at 10:12 a.m. (Suggest removal)

I was waiting for someone in the media to come out and say the Vols would wine because of EXPERIENCE in the title game(s) last year. I was waiting for someone to say that Stanford may pucker up and get too tight thus pulling up short on some shots. I was waiting for someone to say that UT would simply hound Stanford defensively all game. My opinion was that Pat and her crew had been thru more wars as underdog or favorite in these games and would prevail with all things being close to w\equal.

Posted by johnlg00 on April 10, 2008 at 10:17 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Great article in general, but the heart of it was the quote by Alexis near the end. Those words should be carved on a slab in the Lady Vols' locker room. They should be told to every Lady Vol recruit until the end of time. No one should come to the Lady Vols program to be a star; they should come to be a member of a TEAM that works together and wins together. If they do those things, THEN they will BE stars. Are you sorry you didn't realize that when you had the chance, Sa'de Wiley-Gatewood? How did you like watching your former team-mates on TV winning their SECOND CONSECUTIVE national championship? And how much do I love Nicky Anosike? She has all the qualities to be President some day! Who wouldn't be proud to have a daughter like her?

Posted by volboy81 on April 10, 2008 at 10:22 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Did anyone else notice that the only 2 losses the Lady Vols suffered this year were to the 2 teams we beat in the Final Four!!!!!

REVENGE IS SWEET!

LADY VOLS ARE #1

Posted by Kwitcherbellyachin on April 10, 2008 at 10:49 a.m. (Suggest removal)

I've been following women's hoops for quite sometime, all of it as a Vol fan. It's always nice to look at a repeat national champion and say "this is the greatest team of all time", etc. And it's easy for us to think that as Vol fans. However, at first pass, I wouldn't even rank this year's team in the top three. My top four look like this:

1) 1998 Lady Vols, with Holdsclaw, Catchings, and Randall

2) The UConn Huskies team with Taurasi, Cash, Bird, and Jones

3) The USC team with Cheryl Miller, Cynthia Cooper, and the McGee girls

4) This year's Lady Vols.

That being said, this group was tenacious on defense when they wanted to be (i.e., in the tournament), and CP has some spectacular skills. These girls will be missed on the Hill.

Posted by rckytpfn on April 10, 2008 at 10:50 a.m. (Suggest removal)

rockytopron is right on!! The LV's TEAM has an excellant chance to 3-peat (again). We'll miss Lex, Nicki, Little Bit and Candace for sure, but Pat's got the program loaded with talent right now. GO LADY VOLS write a new contract and do it again!!

Posted by abnermc on April 10, 2008 at 11:17 a.m. (Suggest removal)

I loved watching Kara L. play & now she's outstanding on ESPN .She can even make a proper, complete sentence. Most people picked us to lose ,no big deal. Fact is we won w/ great players but more imp. a great game plan. As someone alluded to earlier,very close to what Kara said we needed to do. The Stanford/UCONN game helped. It was obvious Stanford could not handle the press (esp. full court). That was key to our game plan. Well done. By tournament time next year our "beginners" will be veterans. Look for a shot @ NINE. Go Vols!!!

Posted by volboy81 on April 10, 2008 at 12:22 p.m. (Suggest removal)

SEC school's records for football, mens & womens basketball for the 2007-08 school year.
BE THANKFUL FOR WHAT WE HAVE.
THESE STATS ARE UNREAL.
NO MORE WHINING FROM VOL FANS!!

1. TENNESSEE 77-11 .875
2. VANDY 56-24 .700
3. LSU 56-26 .683
4. GEORGIA 51-29 .638
5. FLORIDA 52-30 .634
6. ARKANSAS 48-30 .615
7. MISS ST 47-31 .603
8. AUBURN 43-32 .573
9. KENTUCKY 43-34 .558
10.S CAROLINA 36-40 .474
10.OLE MISS 40-36 .526
12.ALABAMA 32-44 .421

87.5% WINNING PERCENTAGE...ITS PROBABLY THE BEST
IN THE NATION!
WE'RE ALSO #3 OR #4 IN FB ATTENDANCE,
(#1 IN THE SEC)
#1 IN WOMENS BB ATTENDANCE(IN THE SEC & NATION)
AND #3 OR #4 IN MENS BB (#2 IN THE SEC)

VOL ATHLETES AND FANS ARE THE BEST!!

Posted by rockytopron on April 10, 2008 at 12:50 p.m. (Suggest removal)

Tennessee and Texas are the only teams ranked in the top 25 in football and both men's and women's basketball.

Note: I am assuming the final polls will have the texas women's basketball team in there, but if not, Tennessee is the only team to have all three!

Posted by murrayvol on April 10, 2008 at 3:39 p.m. (Suggest removal)

johnlg: I would agree.

Posted by murrayvol on April 10, 2008 at 3:49 p.m. (Suggest removal)

volboy81: Regarding men's & women's basketball most Bama fans would counter with a casual "so what, they have no power here." And they would be right.

Posted by bigsig on April 10, 2008 at 5:56 p.m. (Suggest removal)

Folks,

I don't care who you are, you don't pick against the Lady Vols. The entire starting five could have been injured and Pat in jail for racoon abuse and you still pick the Lady Vols to win. They probably wouldn't have won but that's like picking against the Bulls with Jordan, the Steelers of the 70's, Tiger Woods etc. It is a sin to be a Vol and pick or talk bad about the Vols unless it is to another true Vol in a soundproof booth.

Posted by mun4life on April 10, 2008 at 9:07 p.m. (Suggest removal)

bigsig, "pat in jail for raccon abuse". hahahhahaha

Posted by calivol on April 11, 2008 at 2:32 a.m. (Suggest removal)

dwolfcreek, i'm pretty sure ESPN is not the thing holding back women's basketball. what a dumb comment. how can u ask them to join the bandwagon when they've been broadcasting all 63 games of the tournament for years and are constantly promoting it, despite only average ratings? it's ESPN that has been LEADING the bandwagon...it's up to the others to catch up.

Posted by johnlg00 on April 11, 2008 at 8:46 a.m. (Suggest removal)

Oh, come on, bigsig! You can't be serious! If everyone followed your standard, NO one could serve as an analyst for any sport. Why would anyone hire you for such a position if ALL you did was say, "My team is gonna win, no matter what the records and stats say"? You probably think none of them have any credibility anyway--in which case you would be wrong--but what you are suggesting just CAN'T be done! Besides, all of those teams and individuals you mentioned lost SOME of the time. It's one thing for you--or me, for that matter--as a fan to say, "I'm pulling for the Lady Vols, no matter what." It is quite another for a studio analyst to say the same, or more to the point to say "The Lady Vols WILL win no matter what", wherever she went to school.

Posted by tshipley7963 on April 12, 2008 at 4:26 p.m. (Suggest removal)

To bisig I am a lady vol fan down here in Bama land and will admit I did not think the lady Vols could pull it off not with candice hurt and she was hurting. and the way we play aganist LSU. I was hoping we would not get embarrased because we could not buy baskets. we was just throwing the ball up and hoping something would fall in. plus look at how many free throws Candice miss and layups. I do not condeme Kara for her pick. Now that said I will say that was some of the best defensive BB I have ever seen. That was Lady Vol BB.

Posted by tennesseehogfan1 on April 17, 2008 at 6:56 p.m. (Suggest removal)

now really,wouldn't all you Lady Vols fans gripe and whine if say ---- another team in the country--like maybe UConn or Rutgers had won championship after championship,year after year? You all think you're entitled to this every year,no matter what.And don't even try to rationalize that clock snafu at Rutgers. That clock ran out way before the ref called the foul and that should have been it,Rutgers got robbed!!!!!!!

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