BOWLING GREEN, Ky. - Worst Lady Vols team ever: That's how this bunch could be remembered.
As harsh as that might read, it's the reality of playing basketball for a coach who has won more than 1,000 games and for a program that has won eight national championships, including the last two. The standards are staggering.
And this team hasn't met them.
That's why this NCAA tournament venture contrasts so sharply from so many of the others. Tennessee isn't just trying to reach the Final Four; it's trying to rewrite its legacy.
Before the tip-off of this evening's first-round tournament game against Ball State, this is the team that couldn't.
It couldn't win the SEC tournament. It couldn't win the SEC regular-season championship. It couldn't finish in the top 10.
What more couldn't it do?
Answer: It could not reach the sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament for the first time in program history.
UT assistant coach Dean Lockwood was asked Saturday if he thought the players were aware of how they would be perceived if they made a hasty exit from the tournament?
"I don't know if they have any grasp of that," he said.
"Somebody that wants to go out swimming in the ocean could think I could get killed by a shark. I don't think (the players) think that way. I think they think, 'I like swimming in the ocean.' "
There's no sense of trepidation about this team as it heads for the deepest water of women's basketball. Instead, the players seem buoyed by how they played in the SEC tournament (blowout loss to Auburn aside) and by their NCAA tournament preparation.
"I think our team is totally different," team leader Alex Fuller said. "We have a totally different mindset. We've come together."
Whether that's wishful thinking or the prophetic voice of a transformed team, it can't change the fallout from the regular season. The two-time defending national champions have played themselves into a fifth seed; the first weekend of the tournament is no longer a warm-up.
The players were reminded of that last Monday night when ESPN televised UT's selection into the tournament. The invitation was contrasted by the airing of an interview in which Summitt questioned her players' competitiveness as well as her ability to motivate them.
Imagine sitting there as a player listening to the preeminent coach in the history of women's basketball say how difficult you are to coach. Even though the players knew the interview was recorded earlier - after three losses in four games - the words had to resonate.
"There's no doubt in my mind that it (had an impact)," Summitt said. "Absolutely."
The attraction of March Madness lies in the second-chance possibilities. In that respect, rarely has the month been so appealing to the Lady Vols.
Never mind the season-ending injuries to two veteran players, the dependence on so many freshmen, or the up-and-down season. The team doesn't lack talent. In fact, Summitt believes her freshman talent is comparable to the class that included Candace Parker, Alexis Hornbuckle and Nicky Anosike, who formed the nucleus of the last two national champions.
"Does it have that upside and potential?" she said. "Yes. How long will it take to get there? I don't know."
This team's legacy is hanging in the balance.
Sports editor John Adams may be reached at 865-342-6284 or adamsj@knoxnews.com.
Tennessee's signing class for 2012
Tennessee defeats Georgia 3-2 in…
Scripps Interactive Newspapers Group
Comments » 16
KCHS63 writes:
Sorry you missed the boat, John. The game is Sunday.
pdhuff#552644 writes:
This article is scheduled for the Sunday paper.
utang1602#204610 writes:
Such a positive article. Seems like every single column you've written to accompany a gamer or a preview lately has been overly negative. Perhaps you might try something new. I know they teach the art of finding a new angle in journalism school. This angle is old.
DroopyDrawers writes:
John misses the boat if it is Sat,Sunday or Monday.
teampenny#658108 writes:
Kill the messenger Great game plan But not an original one. Wish you well Lady Vols!
vol98champ writes:
I think Pat is very happy that U Conn isn't waiting if we win 2 games. This is a bracket that we can either win if we play well or look very foolish if we play poorly. The talent is there, but for some reason they are still playing like freshmen. I said this time last year we would loose 10 games this year, but when I saw the Stanford game I thought we might make it to the final 4.
budd#207344 writes:
What did he say that is wrong. The KNS or any other paper is not here to cheer UT on to victory. It is here to report what happens and in the case of columnists to give an opinion. One that the head coach and a lot of fans share.
KNS could be like the ajc here in Atlanta and write articles about how great a team is then rip 'em a new one when they lose. But then they would just be like the fans.
bmaples writes:
About the bracket:
-- Beat Ball State (12 seed)
-- Beat Iowa State (4 seed)
-- Beat Duke (1 seed)
-- Beat Stanford (2 seed)
FWIW, that's what it should take to get to the Final Four.
If they win the first two (certainly doable), they get to the Sweet Sixteen and meet Duke. Probably the end of the road.
I've said it for a while -- get to the Sweet Sixteen, and come back next year ready to kick it up about four notches. That would be the ending I would love to see.
Lose the first game, and you'll be remembered as the worst LV team in a long, long time. Lose the second, and we'll mourn the end of the S16 streak, but we'll all hope for better things next year.
All that said -- I'm pulling for two wins this weekend, and a good effort next weekend. Go Lady Vols!
Bruce in Louisville
miatatom writes:
It's crunch time, ladies. Grind them up. No prisoners. Make them believe in you.
JtDL writes:
Bmaples, your guess is that it will take beating the highest-seeded team at each step of the way? Don't go crazy on your predictions or anything.
airvol#1339576 writes:
"This team's legacy is hanging in the balance." What a goof ball statement. This is the same person who never wrote anything bad about Wade Houston fail program. What a joke at the end of your story.
pdhuff#552644 writes:
Ball State, nothing else.
Or....
blitzshoot writes:
A bold splash of reality. It will difficult at best.
pastor_VOLSfan writes:
An early exit from the tournament may for sure make this one of the worst seasons in Lady Vol history but I think it is much to early to declare this the worst team in LV history. If they exit early with all the freshmen playing and then return and win a couple of NC then they are far from being the worst team in LV history. There legacy is still much unwritten and only the next two or three season will give us the proper perspective to evaluate this team, this season and this overall class.
With that said, lets not make history in a bad way. On a positive note, a friend bet me a steak dinner this would be the first time in TN BB history that the men went further than the ladies. I took his bet and it looks like I am on the verge of collecting me a dinner at TX Land and Cattle Co. Go Lady Vols.
Timed_vol (Inactive) writes:
there's no 'win' in this bunch. they just don't get it. I've seen AAU teams play better ball. Kelley cain is good, nad that's it. she can't stay off the injured list.
I'm sorry to say it. anybody who reads my stuff knows I try to be objecive. objectively speaking, these girls are basketball DUMB. It's not about talent, it's about guarding 3-point shooters, about making good passes, about securing the ball...stuff you learn in the 10th grade.
Too many 'all-americans', no damn sense.
billwall writes:
History just won!! This team can't win without athletic post play. The absence of Baugh and Cain killed their chance of doing much. Johnson had the ball under the basket with no one around her and she passes the ball back out to the perimeter.
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.