DURHAM, N.C. - Tennessee's most inconsistent virtue covered for its vices Monday night.
The Lady Vols embraced a pregame speech by coach Pat Summitt and then went after the basketball in like manner, relying on rebounding to stay the unsteady course to a 67-64 women's basketball victory over Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium.
For No. 2 Tennessee (18-1) the victory ended a three-game losing streak against No. 9 Duke (15-5). In the gritty process, the Lady Vols stopped the Blue Devils' school-record 24-game home winning streak, the longest active streak in the nation.
"It was definitely a big win for us,'' UT senior guard Alexis Hornbuckle said. "Going 0-3 against Duke the last three years is no fun."
Tennessee's 40-29 rebounding advantage covered for 23 turnovers and 40 percent field goal shooting. The Lady Vols came up on the short end of points inbeneath the boards (30-22) and points off turnovers (29-18). Yet they compensated with a 21-0 whitewash in second-chance points.
"How many teams in women's basketball shoot 50 percent? Very few,'' Summitt said. "What you have to do is make defensive rebounding a priority. To me, that's where you can take away the edge.
"Duke, they're a great rebounding team. I thought we had to take away their second-chance opportunities. We did a great job on the offensive boards, but I thought defensive boards would be the key stat."
She made her perspective a point of emphasis beforehand. The players made rebounding their mission against a team that was among the nation's leaders in rebound margin (plus-9.1) and had outrebounded seven of its last eight opponents by an average of 15.3.
The Lady Vols' dominance, which featured a 24-18 edge in defensive rebounds and a 16-11 advantage on offense, was a huge accomplishment, considering they had been relatively ordinary plus-3.8 rebounders.
"The basketball gods said no tonight,'' Duke coach Joanne P. McCallie said. "Not if you're going to rebound like that. It's not going to happen for you."
Duke center Chante Black, who shared team scoring honors with Jasmine Thomas with 13 points but grabbed a season-low two rebounds, had the same take on the game.
"The stat sheet doesn't lie,'' she said. "I know when I was out there, I felt that I wasn't rebounding as well as I should have."
Despite leading by as many as nine points in the second half and by five with 4 1/2 minutes left, the Lady Vols needed a basket from Candace Parker with 22 seconds left to break a 64-all tie.
After Duke's Abby Waner missed an open 3-point shot for the lead, Lady Vols center Nicky Anosike scrambed to the floor to tie up the basketball with 4.1 seconds left, giving UT the possession.
After Parker hit one of two free throws with 3.2 seconds left, Waner made a final heave from beyond halfcourt that actually hit near the rim.
"I was really proud of this team,'' Summitt said. "I knew it would be a tough environment. I knew it would be a great challenge."
Parker led Tennessee with 17 points and 12 rebounds, but she shot 4-for-13 from the floor and committed six turnovers.
Fellow senior Hornbuckle shot 1-for-9 from the floor and committed four turnovers. She did manage to collect five steals. And she hit all four of her free throws with Duke's "Cameron Crazies" student section again chanting "Wal-Mart", reminding Hornbuckle of her arrest on a misdemeanor charge of shoplifting at a Wal-Mart during her senior year in high school.
Summitt, who had threatened last week to discontinue the Duke series if these taunts continued, said she didn't hear the chants.
Hornbuckle said she blew a kiss the students' way.
"I was showing love,'' she said. "Not showing disrespect."
The Lady Vols veterans showed a lot of respect for freshman Angie Bjorklund and Vicki Baugh.
Bjorklund scored 13 points. The Crazies did get to her but in a good way for UT. They goaded her into a rushed 3-pointer that she somehow managed to swish with 5:26 left.
"Oh gosh,'' said Parker, describing her reaction to the shot. "It went in."
Baugh, meanwhile, scored seven of her nine points in the first half, when Tennessee trailed by as many as seven points.
"Angie and I were sitting here talking about how Vicki came in and played her butt off,'' Parker said. "... She really helped us."
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Comments » 49
dburgVol writes:
Way to go Ladies! Poor Alexis, they have it out for her. Congratulations. Let's make it back-to-back National Champs.
huntined#565710 writes:
Beat Duke at home!!!! WOW!!!!
Way to go..Good game and a good win
GO VOLS..
VolBall_1 writes:
It was fun watching the crazies learning how to count backwards (counting down the shot clock about 5 seconds fast trying to throw us off)--they really are smart--and seeing Angie B hitting the big 3! Money!
bgreybass#247717 writes:
Need to work on those turnovers, but will take a win anytime. working on those turnovers will be more fun tomorrow than they could have been.
jevolball7 writes:
Good job!! ANY win in that little hell hole is great! Really have no desire to see coach K without a shirt. Can you see nose and bones??!!,puke at Duke....yeeccc,nasty! GO VOLS!
pms151 writes:
When Pat decides to hang it up this coach has got to be number one on our list. Great job Lady Vols.
http://www.goduke.com/ViewArticle.dbm...
snowvol writes:
A few observations: Bobbitt may be the point and certainly she is a fine player, but she needs to do more to run the offense rather than show off her ball-handling expertise. This young lady simply holds onto the ball way too long. Make a play or give it up.
And it would be nice to see Pat impress upon the players to stop picking up the dribble in the backcourt. For that matter, picking up the dribble anywhere on the court. If you can't make a play, give it up. But NEVER pick up your dribble. That's basketball 101.
Overall, really nice to finally beat Duke after three previous losses in a row. Hate to say it though, and as much as I hate them, UConn looks superior to us right now. Their guards are far more fluid and their post players are simply better than anyone we have. Doesn't mean we can't beat them should we hook up in March, but objectively speaking, we look far more beatable than UConn.
OldNumber7 writes:
Considering UConn is crushing the same opponents UT played I'd say Tennessee is not anywhere near the Huskies class yet. UConn beat Duke by 26, Stanford by 12, WVU by 36....not good.
BigOrangeInCarolina writes:
Came up for the Georgia game this past Sat. nite and I was not disappointed. Tennessee Basketball is class-both men's AND women's. They come to play, they play hard, and they have great coaching. Watching the ladies beat the Douches tonight was just icing on the cake. Here's hoping Coach Pearl will have the boys ready tomorrow night and they will take it to Alabubba. GO BIG ORANGE!!!
Caspian writes:
Always glad for a victory, especially over someone like Duke. But one thing has bothered me for a long time. Candace Parker is a very talented player - maybe the best natural physical skills of all time. But, to me, it almost always looks like she is playing too casually. Almost carelessly. Like she's developed a habit of relying on her skills w/o having to really bust it with consistent hustle. She's not a very good shooter from mid-range out. In fact, apart from her sheer athleticism, she's not even a very good shooter inside. She throws up too many bricks with no touch or trajectory. She doesn't respond well to being bumped. She acts like she's entitled to something. And after she makes a good play, there's too much self-centered mugging and posturing for my taste. There are two kinds of good players -- those that have talent and those that hustle. There's only one kind of great player -- those that have talent AND hustle on every play. I better stop there (at the risk of being accused of heresy). But, just some observations...
chrissyfarley55#627582 writes:
Yes UCONN is blowing opponents,but that does not mean they will be doing the same thing come March. Remember Duke last year was undefeated in the regular season and blowing opponents out. The only close game Duke had was against Tennessee then when they got to the NCAA they were not as sharp.
hdhurst writes:
First, nice defensive effort by the Lady Blue Devils on their home floor. However, even with UT struggling to put the ball in the hoop, DUKE still did not have enough offense to handle TN. I think they played us pretty even at forward, but our guards got the better of them down the stretch. The Lady Vols can turn it on when they have to, which is what the #2 ranked team in America should do. Despite some let downs, the lady vols had a sweet victory in Cameron arena. As others have stated above me, they definitely need to work on keeping the turnovers down, the guards need to work on getting their shot, and have to improve on the team free throw percentage. Go LADY VOLS!!
jsc1973#233920 writes:
1. UConn is playing all of these teams at home. Tennessee's been going into their barns and beating them. That's a huge difference.
2. UConn's schedule, except for the occasional highly-ranked team, is weak. UConn can go all-out against the better teams because their next opponent is almost always a patsy. Earlier this year, UT played five ranked teams in six games, and later played four ranked teams in a row. UConn has played (all at home, by the way) five ranked teams ALL SEASON.
redneckerson writes:
Were the crazies well behaved enough that Pat will not take her ball and go home? What if TN had missed the shot on the false countdown - would those cheaters have caused an end to the series? And, before you start, just lighten up - I'm just funnin.
BigOrangeVol writes:
I just saw a pic of the entire Auriemma clan; they look like the parallel universe - evil twins of the cast of Little People, Big World.
Ok Lord, I apologize for that right there, and please be with the starvin' pygmies in New Guinea, A-men.
spanky writes:
gate12 I definitley agree with you. Parker is lazy and needs to play both ends of the court. She needs to have some of Anioske's fight and determination. The freshman carried this team. This was not pretty but a win is a win. Go Lady Vols.
Titan writes:
Vicki Baugh impressed me tonight. She did not play like a freshman. If she can continue to improve, she will provide valuable depth during the rest of the season and march to #8.
redneckerson writes:
spanky, you and gate12 are in trouble now. I made a similar observation about Parker some time ago and all I can say is ... get ready, the fans of the light blue are coming after you.
wyomingvol writes:
Go Vols!
anthony writes:
the basketball gods my foot, it's just something you'd expect to hear from headhunting teams like Duke and UConn. Dirty playing taught by coaches that have inferiority complexes and can't stand to lose.
allvols7 writes:
I agree with gate12.
Candace is lazy and does just what it takes to get by. I has glad to see her come out of the game early on. She has the ability, I seen it last season. I've said it all year, the other girls play their hearts out and eventually Candace makes it down court. Poor sportsmanship as well. I know she can do better.
Nice win girls.
CrankE writes:
"The basketball gods said no tonight." !?!?
Haven't heard of any basketball gods-I guess I'm too narrow minded. But have you considered my Lady Vols, Coach McCallie?
vol4good#206163 writes:
I hope Pat can coach a few more years, I have a 10 yr old beating me at horse on a regular basis now, and she wants to play at TN. Take your vitamins Pat. GO VOLS!!!!!!
bmaples writes:
I agree, the LV looked sluggish, and not very good tonight in some ways -- pretty much a grind-it-out kind of game. However, Duke's defense might have had something to do with that.
The key fact of the game, I think, is that Pat told them before the game to win the rebounding wars, and they responded in fine fashion. Rebounding is just heart and hard work, so for the Ladies to out-rebound the Dukies says a lot about their desire for this one. Rebounding won the game. Great win in a very tough place to play -- this one will make a difference come March.
adimatteo#261830 writes:
Im sure they hear it so often it loses meaning.The fact remains, these girls are amazing, their talent, and their maturity. What we have at UT is unbelievable because of them, and win or lose, they make us proud.
Im still amazed at how they conduct themselves, go to class, etc...
My daughter grew up a Pat Summitt and Lady Vol fan, and as an alumn proud that she is starting next fall, so for selfish reasons, I hope Pat and some of the girls stick around a while more.
bustervols writes:
Need to kick up the intensity a knotch. Other teams are trying to dog us. Great game despite sloppy play. Team win!
rockytop#413695 writes:
Guys, Candace helps this team even just standing around, cause she attracts two and usually three players guarding her. She really is getting wacked every time she touches the ball. She had an off night last night but still dominated the second half. She knows she can turn it up a notch whenever she is needed. We'll miss her next year, so enjoy her now!
GoVol writes:
Where's the UConn fan today? Not mouthing off too much today. I think he went to sign up for State Farm insurance!!
rdberry#654521 writes:
To all those who criticize Candace for being lazy, check this out. Lest you forget, the women's National Team likely would not have qualified for Bejuing '08 Olympics had it not been for Candace. It must be hard for her to be beat on by triple teams in college. When she plays with the L.A. Sparks that will not happen. Lisa Leslie will see to that. Even the Tennessee-hated Dianna Tarausi says Candace is one of the 3 best players in the world. Those who are too critical of Candace should check themselves at the door and realize that after April of '08 Candace will be gone from Thompson Bolling for good. Even as great as she is, she may not be enough to derail UCON. I'd love to see Candace break Swoopes' record 47 points in an NCAA tournament game just to get her OUT of the recod books
chelseavol#206134 writes:
A great win, but this team will not be great until they can play without all those unforced turnovers. Baugh was a pleasant surprise.
mad_poly_uct writes:
GoVol....hey, I'm here!....oh wait, perhaps you mean the other Uconn fan.....
tigervol9802 writes:
Well, too bad the series will probably soon end, either that or Summitt isn't as tough as she wants us to believe. I was driving home from work and you could hear the Wal-Mart chants crystal clear on the radio. I'm calling her out on that one.
Summitt's bluff has been called by the Dookies! Are they gonna get kicked to the curb too? Seems to be her prevailing reaction when people don't play by her rules.
tlynn1#277099 writes:
Honestly, I don't care that Candance stands around on offense sometimes. Her jersey is usually being held or someone has an arm around her waist or they are holding on to her arm. I get that she is triple teamed often and that it is hard to score because her defenders are being so physical with her. But, what really ticks me off is to see her standing on defense. Duke had a great plan: Chante Black versus Parker in the paint equals points. And they were right. Candance didn't stop Black all night. Vicki Baugh had to do that. And, for an All-American everything to have one rebound in the first ten minutes of the game is ridiculous. She is 6-5. If she jumped, she would have gotten every rebound. I don't care about the lack of points on the offensive side because Angie, Nikki, Shannon, or Alexis will get the points. But I do care about not rebounding and screwing your teammates because you don't feel like playing defense. Teams will keep coming at Candance because she has shown she doesn't like physical play on either end. All the Lisa Leslies in the world won't stop that. I know Candace is a great player, but as Carloyn Peck pointed out last night, she seems to be great when SHE decides to take over a game, not night in and night out. Frankly, that's not good enough to beat most anyone down the rest of the season stretch.
tlynn1#277099 writes:
But, I do notice that UConnFan has not had the courage to post here today. Maybe he/she is too busy crying that we won. Oh, and just for the record, on the air last night, Mickey Dearstone, Ut's radio announcer, said that Pat told him she was just trying to get the crowd riled up and get her players' attention before the game. She also said she wanted the Cameron Crazies focused on her and that she was trying to distract them from attacking her players. She wasn't going to cancel the series. People, Pat Summitt did not become a great basketball coach by complaining and threatening to end series. If she does so, can't you have enough faith in her to know she is doing it for a strategic reason?
BIGEJ writes:
Living in this hell called tobacco road, my family and I went to Cameron two years ago and last night. If one have never been to this 8,000 seat modified high school gym setting, one would not understand how LOUD it IS. Intimidation if equated to the dB level and the proximity of player to the fan base does create an atmosphere that is unlike any other.
We sat center court, second level; when Duke was down 3 or more, one could hear Pat coaching and coaching hard. One could hear the shoes squeak across the floor. However, when Puke was within 2, or leading the noise level with a less than sellout crowds was deafening. (The local papers indicated a sell out but the arena was only 75% full). My ears were ringing as if I had been to a Who concert.
Four (4) tickets to UT vs. Duke - $15.00
Dinner for (4) before the game- $65.00
Watch the Dukies scatter like UConn cockroaches after a loss...Priceless
BIGEJ writes:
Poor, poor, pathetic Joe Smith....the Uconn fan...cannot produce an original thought...the same flatulant sounds coming from the orfice that speaks
vscebail#247785 writes:
Hey UCONN Fan --- SSSSEVENNNNN!!!!!!!
pendav#661488 writes:
In the last 9 years TN has 1 title and UCONN has 4 Titles. The UT reign is over. UCONN is #1 and everyone else is a distant 2nd.
tenacee#580995 writes:
Gate12 I tend to agree with your comments on CP. In last nights game I kept trying to figure her out in these games. To me it's like in these big games she gets herself so hyped that she almost shuts down, she loses her self control. And when she gets called on fouls she has a hard time moving on. I really don't think it is laziness. She like gets into her own head too much. And yes they are beating the h*ll out of her. The ref's could call a foul every time she gets the ball. It's like they get tired of calling fouls for her, which is wrong. I am sure she worries about going into the paint of someone cutting her legs out from under her, with her knees. She is the best player on the womens court today and when she gets comfortable with herself and just goes out and scores 50 points without worrying about being selfish, she will then be unstopable, except for the foul. She's a very complexed player. Remember she hasn't seen another female with her talent to use as a guide.
Very proud of our Lady's last night, they showed nerves of steel. Just love our freshmen.
I wonder if Nicky and coach Pat has a conversation about who calls substitutions yet. haha
tenn32rebel writes:
tenacee, I just wanted to HEAR the conversation between Pat and Nicky. Nicky's lawyer ambitions overrode her good sense when she questioned Pat. However, the conversation took place in private because Pat did not want to embarrass her player.
Pat is comfortable being in charge and knew she didn't have to squash Nicky in public. Now that their exchange is history, I bet Nicky and none of the young Lady Vols will question Pat.
Remember, Pat benched CP for the first half of her homecoming game because of a curfew violation!!! In 1998, she tossed Tiffani Johnson off the team after their threepeat and TJ was the starting post with one more year to play! TJ went on to play quite well for several years in the WNBA.
One thing is for sure and for certain at UT - Pat is in charge of her team. Go Lady Vols!!!!
vegasvol writes:
spin, spin, spin
volfanincarolina writes:
After reading all the post above me, I am truly a Vol fan, but after seeing UCONN play the other night against NC, Moore just took it to them. Unless TN starts playing like TN and quit turning the ball over, UCONN will kill them. You people can call me names and cuss me, you have a right to your opinion. Folks, you can not have that many turn overs and expect to beat the big teams. I give credit where it is due, Moore is tuff. For the idiot from UCONN, Tennessee made woman's basketball. Summit forgot more about basketball than that sissy looking coach you root for will ever know. One thing is for sure, you can not count out Summit, never. Hopefully, TN will get it together on the turnovers. Big win at Duke, any time you win there is big.
Go Vols
PureOrange writes:
My blood runs as orange as anyone's, but after watching the Duke game, and having seen the Stanford game and a few others, we are flirting with disaster.
Our Lady Vols have a lot of talent, but they like to take too many plays off. Also, the lazy, crazy passes remind me of year before last. In a place like Duke, you take the open shots and make the simple plays. Trying to make passes through the eye of a needle only gives two or three points at the other end. We need to play aggressively.
And one other problem which really bothers me. I respect Pat for wanting to help the game, but I do not ever remember a game in which she wore a mic that we played well in. It distracts from her coaching. Do interviews after the game, but leave the mics to others.
I absolutely hate UConn, but if we play them and we play like we did last night, we will lose by at least 25-30 points.
Get with it girls! Play to your talent level!
BIGEJ writes:
Took the bait; dumb as expected UCONNFAN; it tried to assimilate an original thought about stats but again...the same flatulance coming from the UCONNrectum boy;
calivol writes:
Wait I don't get it, UConnfan. When the Lady Vols won their first 6 titles, it was "Tennessee basketball and everyone else?" What does that say about UConn's undefeated season in '95, which came right before UT won 3 in a row? If it was Tennessee and everyone else, was that a fraudulent UConn team? And what about in '96 and '97, when Tennessee knocked very good UConn teams out of the tournament on their way to titles? I guess you're saying your beloved Huskies were a joke until this decade. That's kind of sad.
tenacee#580995 writes:
uconn take this down. uconn huskies are on their way. They will be beat, more than once. If ND would have hit half of their open shots. That game would have been the first. The two injuries ( and my heart goes out for these two ladies) will take its toll.
vols45 writes:
Hey, UconnFan.....you belligerent pierce........you and Geno obviously come from the same nest. You can't open your mouth without some pugnacious verbal jab. Damn Yankees!! You all remind me of hemorroids!!!! The only difference in you snow shovelers and a hemorroid is that we're fearful you'll want to come down South and live.......and if you did come down South to live, you'd never go back up. Wow, at least you can shove a hemorroid back up with some Preparation H. Y'all would never go back up to the dismal North......and that's a sad thing for us. Pat Head will be sitting on top as the greatest basketball coach ever when Geno is still scratching his jock.....or thong..... and being his usual pierce self to the basketball world. By chance, does he really belong to the "Hair Club"??????? Or, is that "on the air hair" just for the tv cameras????
betz writes:
I think we need to just ignore Uconn - he/she/it is very annoying and I don't want to provoke additional posts. I don't like Uconn but they have looked good the last two games they played. My understanding is that Tenn plays in a "system" as opposed to players just doing their thing. It was hard to tell in the Duke game why Caandace was late coming down the floor on defense sometimes baecause the camera was off that end. Was nayone actually there that could tell me if she was lagging, talking to the coaches, or getting bumped?
ballewville6 writes:
i read the lady vol columns and have seen them play a few times this year they should make it back to back national championships it would be the greatest thing to every happen in knoxville if that happens and the men s great team takes the tital a mens and womens national championship would be awesome
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