Tennessee gave its women’s basketball resume a hard-earned rewrite Sunday night.
The Lady Vols scored their first victory over a ranked opponent this season, beating No. 3 Stanford 79-69 in overtime before a crowd of 14,763 at Thompson-Boling Arena.
Led by freshman Shekinna Stricklen’s season-high 25 points, the youthful Lady Vols reversed the regular-season drama that played out between the two teams last season at Stanford, when the Cardinal won by four points in overtime.
This outcome will make for a much happier Christmas for the Lady Vols, who are off until a Dec. 30 game at Gonzaga.
“This is so much better,’’ UT coach Pat Summitt said. “I might even buy somebody a gift.”
The 11th-ranked Lady Vols (9-2) were way ahead of their coach, presenting her with a victory achieved the hard way with tough defense. First, freshman Alicia Manning saved Tennessee in regulation by blocking Melanie Murphy’s driving shot with three seconds left. In overtime, the Lady Vols held the Cardinal to 0-for-7 shooting from the field.
“If we had played defense like that all night we wouldn’t have had an overtime,’’ Summitt said.
Angie Bjorklund was UT’s only other double-figure scorer with 16 points.
Jayne Appel led Stanford (8-3) with 19 points. Jeanette Pohlen, who swished a game-tying 3-pointer with 52.6 seconds left in regulation, scored 16. Kayla Pedersen had 15.
The victory looked to have come at a heavy price when UT freshman forward Glory Johnson had to be helped off the court with 2:20 left in overtime. The postgame report, however, was that Johnson suffered a right thigh contusion.
“Knowing the other things that could’ve happened,” Summitt said, “We may have dodged a big bullet.”
The Lady Vols averted some performance pratfalls as well. They were out-rebounded, 50-43, and outscored from the foul-lane area, 36-28.
Their pressure defense, which was instrumental in a 64-48 victory over the Cardinal in last April’s national championship game, was used sparingly with virtually no impact.
To make matters worse, the resilient Cardinal overcame a seven-point deficit in the final 4½ minutes of regulation.
Yet the Lady Vols still mustered a resounding final say in the outcome.
“I think this was a huge growing experience for us, especially in that overtime,’’ Bjorklund said. “We’ve been working on defense since day one. I think in this game (with) our defense, we grew.”
Bjorklund began by picking up where she left off in scoring 29 points against Old Dominion on Thursday night. A pair of early jumpers staked UT to a 17-10 lead.
When the sophomore guard took a breather with 5:28 left in the first half, Stricklen emerged as a scoring accomplice. She popped back-to-back jumpers, including a 3-pointer, as UT’s lead ballooned back to 35-26.
The Lady Vols led by 10 points twice before halftime. The second time resulted from Stricklen exploding to the hoop for a rebound basket that had the freshman guard and her teammates whooping for joy heading into a time out.
Tennessee scored just three baskets in the final nine minutes of regulation. Down the stretch the Lady Vols looked tentative against Stanford’s zone alignment.
Stricklen changed that with three consecutive baskets in overtime, including a pair of 3 pointers.
“At the end of the game, she looked like a go-to player,’’ Lady Vols forward Vicki Baugh said of Stricklen, “which is a really big role for a freshman.”
It was a big role in a big win.
Dan Proctor draws Tennessee Football…
Cordarrelle Patterson drafted by the…
Georgia 8, Tennessee 6 baseball
Scripps Interactive Newspapers Group
Comments » 58
ncvol writes:
Way to go Lady Vols!
allvol9 writes:
Wow...awesome win girls! Pat is on her way to 1000 wins with her youngest team yet.Keep it up.
dwa7#337691 writes:
check my recent prediction under the Strickland will play against Stanford article on Dec 20. This was the 5th post. AWESOME PREDICTION here.........really lucky I guess. GO LADY VOLS - great win. Dammmmmm I'm good.
murrayvol writes:
Growing pains continue but they will ease by March. Probably not enough to win another NC but enough to be a tough out for whoever they play.
Timed_vol (Inactive) writes:
Pretty ragged game at times. I always have like Stanford, they play good ball. I like them MUCH better post-Wiggins.
The LV's need some balance, but you can see th talent. Some comments, based on my first look-see:
-Cain needs better power to the basket. at her size, she be able to turn and face and step-through.
-Angie looks good. The next thing for her to add is a good dribble-drive, but I like the way she plays.
-Be patient with Manning, I see some Sydney (sp) Spencer in her.
-Vicki needs to settle down a bit.
-Glory Johnson has it all, just maybe needs more time on shooting touch and angles.
Final comment; the LV's played up, knowing it was home, on ntational tv, and a highly-ranked team. We know one thing typically happens with a young team: they can just as easily smell it up in a 'mean-nothing' game.
I feel better fianly getting to see them. Lots of promise.
ps11824 writes:
Thanks for the good report, mparker. Didn't get to see or hear the game. A friend was keeping up with the score on his phone. He kept me updated until we went into OT then I could stand it no longer. Made it home just in time to here we had won by 10. Great win. Will there be a replay on espn2? Sometimes they replay, don't they?
YankeeVol writes:
Great, great win... I wish ESPN would televise more of them for those of us in the great, frozen north. We don't get the benefit of local TV, unless we want to watch UCONN.
us43137415#376444 writes:
Shoulda never been out of the top 10..
BigOrangeVol writes:
Good call Don!
If you would have told me before the game that we would be beaten on the boards (-7), beaten at assists (-5), beaten on points in the paint (-8) and on fast break transition points (-4) I would have been certain that we would have lost.
MP I agree with all five of your points.
My heart aches for poor little Cait.
I think the jury is still out on Manning.
Bri looks better at the point every game.
Syd has a huge heart and desire but not much else.
Brew she has GOT to get dirty, bang and crash the freakin’ boards!
I still think that Stricklen has a weak shot selection but tonight she was on thankfully!
Vicky has been a solid role player and can be counted on to give good effort every game.
Alex and Kelly need more floor time - they are way too productive to only play 13-15 minutes!!!
Angie has been a pleasant surprise; I hope she's grown up and competes EVERY night instead of once a month.
Looks like Amber is going to be sleeping in the doghouse for a while. I think she's a lot like Dae-Dae was in her Freshman year. Pat yells - she tunes her out. She has way too much talent to be making the same mistakes over and over.
My heart goes out to Glory and her family. We're all praying for ya gal!!! I guess we won't know any news until morning; let's hope for the best. Hopefully we'll have her back in 9 days for the trip to Spokane or at least in time for Piscataway.
All in all that was a HUGE, HUGE win! Congratulations ladies and props to Trish and the staff!!! Only 8 more to quadruple digits - remarkable!
VAvolfanRON writes:
Wow......are these ladies good or what??......yea, they have there inept young moments...but...WOW
Volnbama writes:
PAT IS THE BEST COACH ON THE PLANET!!
WeLoveTennesseeVols writes:
MurrayVol, murrayvol, murrayvol, when will you take Jon Adams' place?
kbart4033#247331 writes:
Note to Pat and staff: I heard John Wooden at a clinic say
that he believed his squads were always accurate shooting
teams because he always had at least one day a week where
all field goals had to be bank shots--or else they ran...
His thinking was that bank-shooting required more focus
and better follow-thru by the shooter--as well as better
shot selection and that focus, technique and selection were
the main ingredients in a good shooter....Suggestion: Lady
Vols might want to spend 2 days a week at this, instead of
one! They are very athletic, but seem to have missed learning
good fundamental shooting along the road to Knoxville!
CTOWNICON writes:
MY GIRLS HAD SOMETHING TO PROVE TONIGHT AN THEY DID IT. CONGRATULATIONS LADY VOLS I AM SO PROUD. PUT MY GIRLS BACK IN THE TOP TEN WHERE THEY BELONG. THEY LOST TO TEXAS A TEAM RANKED HIGHER THAN THEM AN THAT THREW THEM OUT OF THE TEN, I THINK NOT. I WANT TO SEE IF STANFORD IS DROPPED OUT OF THE TEN SINCE THEY LOST TO TEAM THAT IS RANKED LOWER, HMMMMM. AN BY THE WAY THAT GAME IN TEXAS WAS SO POORLY OFFICIATED I MEAN DOWN RIGHT AWFUL. I KNOW YOU CANT BLAME LOSSES ON THE REFS BUT THEY CAN CERTAINLY CHANGE THE WAY A GAME FLOWS. ALL IN ALL I AM HAPPY FOR THE TEAM. ONE GAME AT A TIME LADIES WILL GET IT DONE. LETS GET READY FOR THE NEXT ONE. AN PAT IF YOU READ THIS OR ANY ONE AFFILIATED WITH YOU CAN WE GET MORE KELLY CANE PLEASE. I WAS WONDERING WHY YOU DIDNT MATCH HER UP WITH JANE APPEL MORE. THAT TO ME WAS THE ONLY TIME SHE DID NOT SCORE WHEN KELLY WAS ON HER, AN THEIR BODY TYPES ARE SIMILAR. I THOUGHT SHE WAS A LITTLE POWERFUL AT TIMES FOR VICKIS SLIM FRAME, HOWEVER VICKI DID A GOOD JOB ON HER BUT KELLY WAS MORE EFFECTIVE. I THINK WE STILL NEED TO FIND A WORKING COMBINATION WHEN WE DO SUBS. THEY LOOK OUT OF SYNC AT TIMES SO LETS WORK ON THE SUB COMBOS. GOOD LUCK ON THE NEXT GAME. IM SO GLAD WE GOT THIS VICTORY TO SHOW THE TOP TEN POLL WE ARE MORE THAN CAPABLE.
Timed_vol (Inactive) writes:
98 and others....if UT is on espn, then they will also by on espn360.com, if your internet provider carries it.
you need a good pc and a good broadband to watch it.
MassVol writes:
I feel your pain.
adimatteo#261830 writes:
what a big win, ove a very talented and mature team that we beat for the championship. This was a big win, hard fought. and they did great.
Way to go girls, whatever happens this season, if these girls hang together, so much talent for next few years...
ladivolfan writes:
my condolences :o(
rockytopron writes:
Thanks for all of your "comments". I'm surprised you didn't "comment" on how slow the concession stands were or how long the lines were in the bathrooms. Did you see anything good in the game?
Lets re-write this.
Cain's 6'6" presence was effective on defense when she was able to play. At this point, we'll take it because she is still recovering from injuries.
Angie's shooting saved the Lady Vols against ODU and her shooting set the tone for the stanford game.
Manning will be better than Sydney when she gets done. A #2 guard playing point due to injuries only masks her talent.
Vicki is awesome and will be an alltime great before she leaves.
Same for Glory Johnson.
Next time you post, please view things a little more positive, especially when we beat the #4 team in the Country.
xvolx writes:
the game should never have gone to overtime. that was a moving screen appel put on bgorkland to free up the game tying three. smallbone tries so hard, but just skips and hops around. lot of wasted energy, no results.
richvol writes:
A quality win on national TV. I was impressed by Angie's shooting but she hardly took any shots in the second half. When Stricklen got a hot hand in the second half Pat sat her for a while. I realize you have to spell a player but if they are on fire why rest them then?
Manning made some great plays and that block probably saved the game for us. Vicky needs to learn how to shoot a layup...she puts it too high on the glass and shoots it too hard almost every time.
I hope Glory is alright. She is a tremendous athlete with a motor that is powerful but she still is hurting us at times. That foul towards the end of regulation was uncalled for and could have cost them the game. I like her aggressiveness but until she starts making a higher percentage of her shots she needs to pass the ball to the open player.
Cain can only get better as she plays into shape and I really like to watch Bass play...she can really move. Brewer is a smooth player with a lot of skill. UT is loaded for the future.
GR82BAVOL writes:
1000 wins coming up!
Way to hang in there Lady VOLS!!! Definitely a victory they can build from!
Biggie writes:
Oh, and where is it you coach at again?
ps11824 writes:
rockyron, is that all you have? Put some drapes up in that glass house of yours. Your scumpy condescension is showing.
mparker is one commenter who actually contributes some intellengent factual input amongst this too often officious site.
But hey, Merry Christmas, have a great day, and enjoy this big win.
grumps3 writes:
Are you kidding me...do you think each player called someone after the game and said they would "probably not" win another NC this year.....It is like a kid learning to walk...you know one day they will dance!!
mississippi writes:
GO BIG ORANGE
jsmithnga#207674 writes:
I tend to agree with you; I guess coach and staff probably would not know all this.
johnlg00 writes:
Agree completely with Pat's comment that if they had played defense the whole game the way they played in the OT, there would never have been an OT. Otherwise, a very nice effort amply rewarded. LOVED the way Angie and Shekinna shot it! REALLY glad Glory's injury doesn't seem to be serious. Looks like everything is coming together nicely for a really good season, though I would be surprised--NOT shocked--if they won another championship this year. As usual on Lady Vol articles, some good stuff from several posters--WAY better than the drivel one sees on most of the football articles!
johnlg00 writes:
Oh, I'm sure they do. The idea, correct in most instances, is that some of US might not know this stuff. If we all learned to watch the games with the knowledge and attention of those you seem to be criticizing, it is just amazing what can be seen. There IS more to it than the final score.
volboy81 writes:
what a great game and a great crowd!!! Good going Lady Vols...you beat 8 on 5!!!! Why cant the NCAA get any decent refs for womens basketball? Brian Interline HAS to be the WORST OFFICIAL IN ORGANIZED SPORTS! I especially liked the call where Stanford knocked it out of bounds and the UT players hand was up, a foot away from the ball, and they gave it to Stanford! Way to pay attention to detail, there, refs! This team will be awesome by March!!! Cant wait!!!
topgun writes:
Biggie,
Please allow me to enlighten you on the matters of LVBB. mparker and 98reax are two of the most accurate and down-right best posters on any UTVOLS site. They have earned the right. Cheers!!
DroopyDrawers writes:
BigOrangeVol,
I agree with everything you said excpt what was stated about Manning. Check her stats for mintues played. She was huge last night. If the jury is still out on Manning, then the jury is still out on the team except Angie.
mississippi writes:
something tells me that we probably wont be in the top 10 unless we beat ucoon
mad_poly_uct writes:
First time I got to see Tn last night. Very impressed with their quickness, speed, and overall athletic ability.As I've posted before, this is going to be a very tough team come March. This already is a top 10 team.Beating Uconn(ucoon?)is a pointless comment. Very glad to hear Glory Johnson didn't go down with a knee injury. Very, very weird to hear Bob Picozzi doing play by play for ESPN2, seeing he does the vast majority of Uconn games for Ct. Public Television. Hope you all have a wonderfull Christmas. Stay safe and God Bless.
johnlg00 writes:
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you, too! As easily the classiest UConn fan I have ever encountered, you are welcome here any time. Your team surely seems to be cooking these days, and you rise far above the level of the typical "interloping troll"(;-P)! Interesting background on the play-by-play guy; that was the first time I had ever seen him.
Volunatic writes:
That was a great game. I'm so glad the Lady Vols beat those thugs-- the Cardinal players were clearly trying to injure our players. I hope they are right that Glory Johnson's injury isn't serious. It looked awful when she was being helped off the court.
Timed_vol (Inactive) writes:
A civil reply for you: you never get better if all you do is look for what you did right. You chose to ignore the positives I DID mention, but, hey, that's your choice.
I'll post what I want, simply skip what I write.
Timed_vol (Inactive) writes:
work that one up yourself, biggie??
been coaching youth ball for years...the technical stuff, the post moves, post defense, shooting...but, hey, it doesn't really count in your world, right??
I'll take your smug remark to mean this: you think the LV's played well enough against a tired, beaten-up Stanford team (3rd road of the trip, the first being Duke) to get through the season??
The LV's should be pleased to tough out a win. They should NOT be pleased at a lot of the 2nd half play.
You, however, can settle for that. That kind of atitude will turn us into....Ole Miss, or Miss State, or Arkansas, or any other crappy SEC women's program you care to name.
Volunatic writes:
Does Cait McMahan have another knee injury? If so, I sure hope she heals up remarkably quickly. I thought she was really a great player her freshman year-- SO aggressive. This year's Lady Vols need someone like that.
Timed_vol (Inactive) writes:
mad_poly;
I am one of the UT fans that was not happy that Pat killed the series. The women's game still needs the marquee matchups, and I wish that Pat had found a different way to 'punish' Geno....
see you around, enjoy the holidays
ladivolfan writes:
mparker, after reading all the hoopla I decided I'd better go back and give your post another read (that will teach me for just skimming). For what it's worth, I think you're right on. I only needed to add xvolx's comment about smallbone and my personal adoration for Bass in there to make it complete.
I finally get to see a game in person. See you guys on Jan 18. I'll be the one wearing the orange shirt.
ncvol writes:
The best part was Strickland was goooooooood.Way to go Lady Vols! Makes for a good Christmas break.....
Go L.Vols!
mad_poly_uct writes:
"classiest Uconn fan"?? Now there's an oxymoron if I ever saw one!! Well, maybe there's a few of us around. Thanks though, I appreciate it.
mad_poly_uct writes:
mparker....I know you were, and I agree the game still needs those matchups, but heck, water under the bridge now.Both teams have moved on quite well,I think. Only other way for Pat to 'punish' Geno, as you suggest, would have been on the court.You have a great holiday season as well.
MillisaAnn writes:
Go Lady Vols!!! Keep up the good work and keep on working hard.
Glory and her family have my prayers, Get Well Soon Glory!!!
Timed_vol (Inactive) writes:
ladyvolfan, thanks.
I give Smallbone credit for sticking it out. She might be one of those players who 'click' as a junior and senior. Best thing for her would be find a skill and refine it, even if its just ballhandling and FT shooting, or maybe a spot where she's deadly at the 3.
You gotta love Stanford. Those girls play nose to nose with anyone, and don't back off. I surely do wish them well this season.
tenn32rebel writes:
"classiest Uconn fan"?? Now there's an oxymoron if I ever saw one!!
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
mad_poly_uct,
My hat is off to you, friend! A wonderful sense of humor will get you through many hardships!!!
Have a safe and wonderful Christmas. God bless you & yours.
"rebel"
GO BABY LADY VOLS---OUR FUTURE CHAMPIONS!!!
Timed_vol (Inactive) writes:
mad_poly, I felt the 'punishment' Pat chose hurt the women's game more than it will ever hurt Geno.
Still, as you say, it's done and gone. UConn would kick our butts down the river right now...don't know about in March.
I'm not a Pat koolaid drinker, but best thing is she doesn't want anyone to be. I'm anxious to see how she works these freshmen players: will she ease up on the physical demands as the season rolls on?? I felt like last year she wore Angie out, so maybe this year she backs off a bit...maybe??
Angie is looking so good for a soph shooter. I keep thinking she can REALLY be a big deal as time goes on.
Later poly.
mad_poly_uct writes:
It already has!! Thanks my friend, and you have a great Christmas too rebel!
"FUTURE CHAMPIONS".....'16,or '17 would do me just fine! lol!
amcguire01 writes:
I'm so proud of these kids. They didn't buckle under the pressure of Stanford's comeback in the 2nd half. Stricklen and Bjorklund were cold blooded.
Stanford was exposed. They were ranked too high to begin with. How can Tara get beat by a group of 18 and 19 yr old kids? LOL
Share your thoughts
Comments are the sole responsibility of the person posting them. You agree not to post comments that are off topic, defamatory, obscene, abusive, threatening or an invasion of privacy. Violators may be banned. Click here for our full user agreement.