CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. — Before heading back to Knoxville on Sunday, Tennessee’s players were informed of another return trip they will be making.
The Lady Vols’ locker room at Thompson-Boling Arena is theirs again after a 77-63 victory over Virginia before a Cavaliers women’s basketball record crowd of 11,895 at John Paul Jones Arena.
“We were celebrating for about five minutes,’’ UT forward Glory Johnson said. “Except for the win, it’s the best feeling I’ve had this week.”
The locker room doors, which closed after a painful loss at Kentucky on Feb. 19 last season, were opened by a poised performance in a hostile environment that answered the Cavaliers’ 83-82 victory in Knoxville on Nov. 17, 2008.
Angie Bjorklund, who didn’t play in last season’s game because of back problems, scored a game-high 24 points for No. 6 Tennessee (3-0). The junior guard hit five 3-pointers and scored 14 of her points in the second half.
Fellow guard Shekinna Stricklen scored 20 points, grabbed a game-high eight rebounds and dished out six assists.
Johnson had 14 points, hitting 5 of 7 shots. Center Kelley Cain had six blocks.
Guard Monica Wright scored a team-high 21 for No. 12 Virginia (3-1). Despite hitting her scoring average, Wright’s output was a far cry from the 35 she scored against Tennessee last season.
“We’ve grown a lot,’’ UT coach Pat Summitt said. “Last year was a little painful because it was hard to know who was going to show up and play.”
The Lady Vols’ evolution also is exemplified by how they continue making an out-of-character defensive strategy pay off. For the second time in three games, the Lady Vols opened in a zone defense and relied heavily on the alignment.
Against the Cavaliers, they utilized the zone throughout the first half and for stretches of the final 20 minutes. Like the season opener against Baylor, the deployment was considered the best option against an opponent with athletic guards and a knack for dribble penetration.
“When we first practiced it, we were kind of hesitant,’’ Johnson said. “But we trusted our coaches; that they knew what they’re doing. It’s buying into the system.”
Virginia coach Debbie Ryan prepared the Cavaliers for Tennessee’s zone, no matter how strange it seemed.
“I just feel this is what they feel they have to do to win,’’ Ryan said. “If you penetrate it, you can get good things. Unfortunately we were settling for long-range jumpers.”
Fortunately for Virginia, Tennessee was doing the same thing and its halftime lead was just 40-33. Three consecutive layups pulled the Cavaliers within three points (42-39) with 13:46 left.
What followed was the game’s biggest basket: a Bjorklund 3-pointer that drew a foul by Wright, resulting in a four-point play and a 46-39 Tennessee lead.
The moment didn’t make an impression on Bjorklund, perhaps because she squeezed the trigger 17 times and connected for nine baskets.
“I honestly don’t remember,’’ she said. “You just have to focus on the rim. Don’t think about the defense.”
The basket left its imprint on the outcome, however. Virginia never drew closer than seven points thereafter. Within the next minute, UT pushed its lead to double figures and kept it there, leading by as many as 18 points down the stretch.
“At that point, I don’t think we recognized the (game’s) pressure point,’’ Wright said. We needed to get a stop and a score consecutively. That comes down to leadership. I’ll take responsibility for that.”
Wright, on the other hand, received a compliment of sorts from the Lady Vols, who seemed satisfied in holding her to 21 points on 21 shots.
“We slowed her down,’’ said Johnson, who guarded Wright when UT was playing man-to-man defense. “We had a hand in her face. Twenty-one points is definitely a stretch from 35.”
It was progress — on the way back to the locker room.
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Comments » 29
pdhuff#552644 writes:
Quality win, LVs.
Keep it up.
utvolz#637682 writes:
Great job Lady Vols! I'll be in town to see you play both Texas and Oklahoma!
CTOWNICON writes:
Good win against the top 12 team in the country. Great balance scoring. Way to go lady vols. Great way to let sports nation know that you can play and beat the top teams. Was this game televised. I searched all the networks and found nothing. Looks like this game would have been televised being that is was two great ranked programs.
eduardo writes:
(This comment was removed by the site staff.)
connster9700 writes:
Eduardo- Why do you even bother posting if you only want to flame? That's a pretty pathetic post on your part. I support BOTH Lady Vols and Vols and BOTH represent Tennessee well!
GREAT win by the ladies and wish the men all the best as well.
Fulton_Vol writes:
If you were a "real Vol fan" then you would have known that the women playing basketball were real Vols and that the men's team began play at 6pm this evening.
Good game for the Lady Vols and a quality road win. It's good to see Angie shooting well and the team playing well. Keeping it up and we'll see you in TX come March/April. Go Lady Vols!
Fulton_Vol writes:
PS: The men's team just won their semi-final game in the Paradise Jam.
lewhs93#205993 writes:
Sorry you don't know real BB when you see it.
CladnBigOrange writes:
hey mike congrats on the big win at notre dame yesterday...i'm being friendly...you ought to try it sometime.
CTOWNICON writes:
You running scared Mike! Your team may beat Stanford up their in Connecticut, but if the refs call a fair game, Uconn will lose. I won't hold my breath for the officials to do that so Stanford will have to fight twice as hard against Uconn and the refs. You are so jealous of lady vols success this season. I think you grew up crying! You need to seek some help about this fixation you have with Pat Summitt and her team. You are starting to seem certifiable! By the way, who did Uconn beat the other day, oh, a cupcake program, Holy Cross! Geno has got to do better with this scheduling. The difference as I have pointed out to you before is Pat plays quality programs and she is not scared to play ranked opponents, win or lose. I mean she and her team only beat the number 12 team in the country. What is Holy Cross's rank?
jumby92 writes:
OK, the best thing that ever came out of Connecticut is I-91. Talk about a turdpile, Connecticut is it.
Eduardo, were he an ice cream flavor, would be pralines & poop.
UTByrd writes:
Not sure about the stat, but I believe well over 70% of Pat's Lady Volunteer's victories have come against ranked opponents. Could be higher, I'm not sure.
Be that as it may. I wonder what Gino's win % against ranked opponents is.
Add in 1000 plus victories and see what you come up with.
Could some one come up with the stats?
Go VOLS!!!!!
UTByrd writes:
I must add that Conneticut has had some tremendous teams and seasons.
Personally, I would like to see the rivalry renewed.
Go VOLS!!!!!
YankeeVol writes:
(This comment was removed by the site staff.)
YankeeVol writes:
God I hate I-91. I have to drive it everyday to VT. Hey, speaking of VT, how about an ice-cream naming contest for ED, a la Ben and Jerry's:
Pralines and Poop is one submission
Blueberries and Barf
Oh, I'm too tired to continue, but I trust the creative public who frequent GVX.
mad_poly_uct writes:
Was game televised down there? Just curious as to what Virginia's new arena is like. I'm sure they must have had around 10,000 or better in attendance. Congrats on big road win against ranked opponent.
mad_poly_uct writes:
LOL!....I-91 is still a lot better than the clusterf*** I-95 that I gotta deal with everyday!
newportvol writes:
let me guess Jeff from Blount County or maybe his brother or son.. Women's BBall is just as important as Mens.. Dont be hatin on the women.. We are in the Yr 2009
UTVOLSRROCKN writes:
Great job Lady Vols! They have only played 3 games but it is very obvious that they are a much improved team. You notice I said "team". They are playing as a "team" and it reminds me of the Lady Vols that won two national championships all played together as a "team", which in turn lead to back to back national championships. It only the start of the season and I see a very bright future ahead for these Lady Vols under the guidance of their coach Pat Summitt, which by the way, is the greatest Coach EVER! By the time the "Big Dance" gets here, this team is going to be awesome! It's going to be a great year for the women and men who play for Tennessee! GBO!!!
richvol writes:
No one named Eduardo knows anything about basketball...just beans and the resulting condition.
ridor9th writes:
Tennessee's 77-63 triumph over Virginia was to be expected. I always felt that Tennessee possessed a wealth of experience (Read: Bjorklund, Manning, Bass, Cain, Johnson, Stricklen & Brewer) than Virginia had (Read: Wright, W. Edwards, Shine and Moorer).
7 experienced players vs 4 experienced players? I was hoping that maybe one or two freshmen could emerge as a scorer for Virginia Cavaliers to alleviate the burden on Monica Wright ... only Simone Egwu did very well with 10 points and 6 rebounds.
Truth be told, I was turned off by abrasive UT fans in Knoxville, Richmond and Norfolk when I attended to cheer for Virginia many years ago in late 1980s and early 1990s. They were boisterous, nasty and arrogant to a point where I deplored them that much.
Not this time. They were gracious, polite and easygoing. There were several couples whom one wore UVa t-shirt and the other UT shirt ... amazing, is it?
Right before the game, Pat and Debbie hugged tightly and chatted bit longer than I expected. When the game ended, Debbie usually had her team huddle in the center of the court - but what surprised me is that UT players joined UVa players in the huddle and I have no idea what they were doing at that moment. Afterward, many of them hugged each other. But that was nice gesture - for the first time in a long time, I feel the loss to Tennessee was not bad mainly because UT players, coaches & fans were sensitive and gracious.
After the game, I got to joke a little with UT fans. None of 'em drank moonshine, by the way. In the past, I was turned off by their antics - they shout (I'm Deaf but I can feel the vibrations when they shout that loud!) and would make a body/hand gesture(s) in a way that deflate the others' support for other teams. Again, this was what I experienced with UT Lady Vols in 3 cities.
This time? They did not do that. They seemed to be sensitive, respectful and easygoing. Maybe the UConn fans made them realize that their behavior is not appreciated by many? I am delighted by the "change" in LVs atmosphere, really.
If Virginia lost in the NCAAs, I'd root for Tennessee to win it all. Shocking, is it?
The recap of the game? Basically, UVa opened with a 6-2 lead only to see UT going on a 11-0 run which they never relinquish ... often the lead would balloon then shrink then balloon then shrink ... 'til the end.
Angie Bjorklund was the killer that repeatedly broke several momentums whenever UVa went on a run.
From what I can see on Angie's face, she's clearly on a *mission*. Expect her to be the catalyst for some major games in this season.
hcjournals#206623 writes:
I love the Lady Vols comments section here. When former players get on and share their experiences, it's just great. I don't know if I'm the only one, but.......If we keep up the focus, we are going to be tough to beat this year.......In any game...I'm not kidding........
BigRMan writes:
Mike plays center tampon to all the huskettes! (LOL)
BigRMan writes:
The LVS show a world of character in going to Charlottsville and playing so well. This year's team shows light years of progress so far and is now worthy to inhabit their locker room once again! If you saw the locker room, it's better than half the apartments for public rental in Connecticut (LOL)-This year's edition of the UT LVS will be one that players, fans, coaches, and alumni can be proud of. That is evident to this point. There are players like Baugh who need to get healthy of course, but all in due time!
ps11824 writes:
Solid win for Lady Vols. Three top-25 teams were defeated yesterday by unranked teams, most impressive win by Miss St. over #20 Maryland, who received a massive dose of Alexis Rack who scored 43 points.
Love it that Angie had a great game. She has really been criticized by many LV fans. I guess she can sympathize with Jon Crompton.
I was able to see snippets of Baylor and Cal. That Griner kid is drawing a lot of attention. Belated congratulations to our Lady Vols for handling their business with that team. I expect them to be a team to be reckoned with as this Griner kid develops. Kim Mulkey will have an All American.
reachkim00 writes:
Better to be pissed off than pissed on.. oh wait.. the 'fake bball' pissed on your party!!
Your a frigg'n idiot.
Great win ladies.. keep up the good work.
GO LADY VOLS!!!!!
martinvol34 writes:
eduardo wanted to be a lady vol and was rejected so now all he can do is complain about them. he's probably 5'3.
ps11824 writes:
Yea, long_vol, I resent to stripes' insistence on "fluffing down" the women's game. These athletes play hard against a male practice squad only to be charged with the ticky-tack touch fouls in real game situations. That has to be frustrating to the players, and fans deserve to see real basketball whether it is men or women on the court.
I realize the officials have certain points of interest to look out for in order to protect the athletes to a certain degree as well as to maintain the integrity of the game. That said, I do believe some officials like to take a lot of the intensity off the officiating team by setting an overly "fluffy" tone right out of the gate. I think they like to play it safe as opposed to having to make a lot of close calls. Then there are a few who simply think they are the stars of the game. They should be force to buy a ticket, sit in the stands and be subjected to the frustrations of the stripes taking over the ball game...
johnlg00 writes:
No question in my mind that the LVs are a completely different--i.e., MUCH better!--team this year, as most of us thought they would be. Absolutely solid game at both ends by Glory; if she brings it like this every night, the gals will be dangerous to everybody by tourney time. Shekinna is destined to be one of the all-time great LVs, especially if she helps them get a championship at some point. Just an excellent all-around performance by everybody. They deserved to get their locker-room back!
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