Lady Vols are doubly motivated

For Tennessee, two causes are in play tonight.

The first will be evident in the Lady Vols' attire. They will have pink trim on their white uniforms for a women's basketball game against Duke at Thompson-Boling Arena (Tipoff: 7:30 p.m., TV: ESPN2). The game is part of the Women's Basketball Coaches Association's "Pink Zone" initiative to raise money and awareness for breast cancer research. No. 4 Duke (20-3) will wear blue and pink uniforms.

The other motivation involves the national standing of No. 15 Tennessee (18-6). There's no dressing up the Lady Vols' record against ranked opponents. They've lost their last four games by an average margin of about 12 points and are 2-6 overall this season. To date, their best win was a 79-69 overtime victory over then-No. 3 Stanford on Dec. 21.

UT coach Pat Summitt addressed the situation on Sunday with her players, saying that tonight's game will impact the NCAA tournament bracket.

"I told them in the locker room it's a must-win for national seedings,'' she said.

"We need a win against a highly ranked opponent. "This is our chance."

The Lady Vols will have guard Shekinna Stricklen. The 6-foot-2 freshman guard returned to practice Sunday after suffering a partial dislocation of her right patella Thursday against Alabama and will start tonight.

"It lets us start a big lineup,'' Summitt said. "She makes a big difference for us in a lot of ways."

UT will go even bigger for the opening tip, replacing 5-2 Briana Bass with 6-1 Alicia Manning.

It will help greatly to have Stricklen back. And it didn't hurt having the Lady Vols fully involved with the pregame preparations. They watched video of Duke and offered their input during a scouting session on Sunday.

"They knew all their personnel,'' UT associate head coach Holly Warlick said. "They knew everything."

Of course, these glad tidings won't mean much unless they translate into an inspired, determined effort. After all, Duke will have its own agenda and the means to implement it.

The Blue Devils have won on their previous two visits to the arena. Two years ago, they charged to a 19-0 lead at the outset, withstood a furious UT rally that erased the advantage and were more poised down the stretch in defeating the eventual national champions, 74-70.

With the regular-season series ending, Duke has a chance to go unbeaten and join Texas and Louisiana Tech as the only teams to win three in a row against the Lady Vols in Thompson-Boling Arena.

On top of that history, Duke coach Joanne P. McCallie hasn't forgotten the Blue Devils' 67-64 loss to UT in Durham, N.C., last season, describing it as "a game we gave away."

In this meeting, the Blue Devils' aggressive defense will be especially challenging, given Tennessee's penchant for committing turnovers.

"That's what this team is all about,'' Duke guard Abby Waner said. "We take pride in our defense and full-court press and being able to shut down a team."

On offense, 6-5 center Chante Black, who's averaging 15.3 points per game, is more of a sure thing. Waner, meanwhile, is a dangerous wild card. Her 9.7 points-per-game scoring average doesn't reflect her impressive performance here two years ago, when she connected on five 3-pointers and scored 24 points.

"It's nice to go back into a gym where you know, as a shooter, that you've shot well before,'' Waner said.

UT can't even count on its usual rebounding advantage, not without considerable effort. The teams are mirror images of each other with Tennessee having a plus-8.4 average and Duke a plus-8.3.

Any way you look at it, the must-win initiative will require a lot more than a fashion statement.