Injuries pain for Lady Vols' continuity

Tennessee has miles to go this women’s basketball season and the journey is just beginning with a visit to Chattanooga.

The Lady Vols (1-1) and Lady Mocs (1-0) meet at 6:30 tonight at McKenzie Arena (TV: CSS).

For UT, the serious mileage will be accrued getting its performance in order. This week’s ESPN/USA Today coaches’ poll reflected how far UT coach Pat Summitt’s peers think her team has to go. After Monday’s 83-82 loss to then-No. 15 Virginia, the Lady Vols dropped seven spots to No. 13, marking the first time they’ve been out of the top 10 of those rankings in 11 years.

Summitt has more pressing concerns than polls, however.

“I’m living in the moment,’’ she said. And she truly means it.

At this moment, the revolving door on the trainer’s room continues to spin. Center Kelley Cain, who returned Monday night from a concussion, left Tuesday’s practice feeling light-headed and didn’t make the trip to Chattanooga. The 6-foot-6 redshirt freshman is back to being listed as day-to-day.

“It’s hard to say with a concussion,’’ Moshak said. “There’s no crystal ball. There’s no nothing.”

Angie Bjorklund’s situation is similar. The sophomore guard is making progress in recovering from a bulging disc in her back, but Moshak said it might be “a couple more weeks” before Bjorklund is back on the court.

On the flipside, sophomore Vicki Baugh, who was pulled off the court on Nov. 10, took part in Thursday night’s short workout and will play tonight, provided there are no physical setbacks from her practice work. The 6-4 forward has been recovering from reconstructive knee surgery.

The fluid nature of the injury report has made lineup decisions difficult. Performance issues also are complicating matters.

“I’m just trying to look at it one day at a time and one game at a time,’’ Summitt said. “There are going to be some situations where, yes, we may shorten the bench or we’ve got to figure out who is ready to play. And sometimes you don’t know that until you get into game situations.

“As far as the (player) rotation, I think so much of it depends on what they bring that day. I feel like at times you don’t know until you put them on the court, specifically our freshmen.”

The first road game adds to the mystery factor. Chattanooga is trying to set an attendance record tonight for its arena, commonly known as the “Roundhouse.” While the promotion figures to draw many Tennessee fans, their presence won’t necessarily constitute an advantage for the Lady Vols. UT’s young players were a bit unnerved by Saturday’s season-opening turnout at Thompson-Boling Arena.

Chattanooga, which beat East Tennessee State 77-71 Monday night, has enough firepower to threaten Tennessee’s shaky defense. Although two-time Southern Conference player of the year Alex Anderson and Brooke Hand, the most prolific 3-pointer shooter in conference history, have departed, the Lady Mocs still had five double-figure scorers against ETSU. Forward Shanara Hollinquest had 18 points and 15 rebounds. Former Powell High School standout Erin Ogan had 11 points and eight rebounds.

While Tennessee has a ways to go, senior forward Alex Fuller has some specific strides in mind for tonight.

“We have to make plays in critical situations,’’ she said. “We have to basically be smart and play as a team.”

© 2008, Knoxville News Sentinel Co.
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