Lady Vols say Griner's future a slam dunk

She is big, strong, athletic, and 6-foot-8. And yes, Baylor freshman Brittney Griner can dunk.

Griner's only dunk came during warm-ups before No. 8-ranked Tennessee dunked No. 7 Baylor 74-65 Sunday in front of 12,824 fans at Thompson-Boling Arena.

It wasn't the first time UT coach Pat Summitt had seen Griner, and it surely won't be the last.

"I tried to recruit her," Summitt said. "She didn't like orange, but that's OK. She's a difference-maker in this game and she's only going to get better. She's a freshman, and that's the difference maybe right now between Kelley (Cain, UT sophomore post, and Griner).

"Kelley, I think her ability to catch at the rim, she's running to the rim all the time, and got great touch, but Griner's right there, and she's got other things that Kelley doesn't have, obviously with her size and shot-blocking ability. It's amazing. She's going to have a powerful impact not only at Baylor but on the game."

There was plenty of hype about Griner's dunking ability before the game, and as a result Summitt had a message for the Lady Vols.

"I didn't want that to be a distraction for our team," Summitt said. "It's only two points. I told Angie (Bjorklund), if Griner dunks, then she has to hit a three and we're one up."

Griner's impact Sunday was big - both when she was on the court and when she went to the bench in the second half in foul trouble.

Cain picked up two fouls in the game's first three-plus minutes and went to the bench. Alyssia Brewer, a 6-3 sophomore forward, entered for Cain and got two quick fouls trying to block shots by Griner. Brewer went to the bench, and 6-3 freshman Faith Dupree entered to guard Griner.

UT trailed 26-24 at halftime, and that's when there was a Griner-sized momentum swing.

Griner got her second foul less than a minute into the second half.

After a missed shot by Griner, the Lady Vols got three offensive rebounds on their next possession. Cain got the third rebound, scored on the follow shot, was fouled by Griner, and made the foul shot.

"That gave us a spark right there," Cain said. "It was just getting the rebound and putting it back in and getting fouled. It helped us get started again."

On its next possession, Baylor missed a shot, and UT's Glory Johnson grabbed the rebound away from Griner. As Johnson turned to go down court, Griner reached over Johnson, tried to grab the ball, and was called for her fourth foul.

"She got a little frustrated, and I guess she thought since I was smaller I couldn't out-rebound her," Johnson said. "The rebound went her opposite way and I got it. I was taking advantage of a couple of her weaknesses. I'm a little quicker than she is."

Griner went to the bench and didn't return until the 11:42 mark when UT had a 46-38 lead.

"I wouldn't say it was frustration," Griner said. "They were petty fouls. That's part of learning. I will have to learn how to play with four fouls and watch the petty fouls that aren't necessary."

Griner scored 10 of her 15 points after coming off the bench in the second half. She was 3-of-8 from the floor and 9-of-10 from the line and grabbed four rebounds.

"She's going to be good, no doubt," Cain said. "All she needs is some experience."

Lobo In House: ESPN sideline reporter Rebecca Lobo, who led Connecticut to victory over UT in the 1995 NCAA Championship game, was covering the game and was introduced at halftime along with the five other inductees in the 2010 Class of the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame. There was a smattering of boos when Lobo was first introduced before the crowd gave her a warm ovation.

Dave Link is a freelance contributor.

© 2009, Knoxville News Sentinel Co.
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