Tennessee's Kelley Cain will be a spectator for Tuesday night's game against George Washington after suffering a concussion in Saturday's 61-47 women's basketball victory over UCLA.
Jenny Moshak, the Lady Vols associate athletic director for sports medicine, said that concussion protocol was being followed with the 6-foot-6 redshirt sophomore center, who sat out Sunday's practice. Cain had suffered a concussion earlier this fall in a non-basketball-related incident.
A starter in all five games for No. 6 Tennessee (5-0), Cain is averaging 8.4 points and 8.6 rebounds per game. Against UCLA, she scored eight points and grabbed a team-high 11 rebounds.
With Cain out, the Lady Vols will rearrange the other four starters - Glory Johnson, Taber Spani, Angie Bjorklund and Shekinna Stricklen - and deploy 5-2 sophomore Briana Bass as the starting point guard.
Coach Pat Summitt said the lineup change probably wouldn't have occurred if Cain was available. But Summitt also added, "I like Stricklen (at the point) but I think there's times when Bri does a better job of pushing tempo."
Sticklen struggled against UCLA on Saturday, starting with low energy and finishing with 1-for-9 shooting from the floor.
UT reserve Alicia Manning, who suffered a right knee contusion Saturday, practiced Sunday and will play Tuesday.
Villanova Visitor: One person was happy the Lady Vols changed their schedule and practiced Sunday: Villanova coach Harry Perretta. Summitt's coaching buddy visited after his team won at Chattanooga, 64-59, Saturday night in the final of the Double Tree Classic. Perretta will be recruiting in North Carolina this week.
"We were going to be off so when he called me I said: Well, guess what we're practicing today and he goes 'Oh great,' " Summitt said.
Summitt said that she was going to cook for Perretta last night.
"The man can eat,'' Summitt said. "I know he's going to want a big steak."
Rocking Intro: Summitt will be introducing the Rockettes tonight before they perform at Thompson-Boling Arena.
"They called and asked if I would introduce them,'' Summitt said. "I'm excited. I have a good intro coming up."
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Comments » 11
utvolz#637682 writes:
How did this happen? Get better soon Kelley!
CTOWNICON writes:
Get well Kelly! The team needs you. Happy to hear Manning is ok!
YankeeVol writes:
Kelley has had more than 2 concussions, hasn't she? Not all of them related to basketball, I believe. That's not good for long-term health, as the NFL has proven.
98reax writes:
Unfortunately, we are very questionable w/o Cain. This situation rots. Hopefully Glory, Strick and Brewer will step up and take control of the boards. They will need to ramp up the offense too, to make up the Cain deficit scoring.
Lady Vols, this is your time to show unity in the way you can step up and cover an injured teammate. It will take a united effort for sure. GW is no slouch. Got to have a lot more energy than you brought for the Bruins.
LdyVolFaninKS writes:
I watched the game from start to finish and didn't see her get hit! Well, at least not any more or worse than usual. Get well soon Kelley, we have come to rely on your inside presence!! Take care of the ball Bri...no lazy passes! I guess it surprises me a little that Manning isn't starting, leaving Strick at point. Maybe Bri can push tempo and we can run them into the ground! GBO!!
tennboy78 writes:
When the Lady Vols have energy, they are lights out. When they do not show energy, just turn the lights out so we do not have to endure the lazy passes and non-movement on both ends of the floor. They create so much adversity for themselves by sleep-walking at times. When they are moving the ball and moving themselves, they are GREAT. Otherwise they are just as average as any other team.
tennboy78 writes:
I have DirecTV as well. Most of the games are on FSN 649. Some will be on ESPN2 209, and a few are on ESPNU 614. Not all games are televised, but the schedule and which channel (if any) is available at http://www.utladyvols.com/sports/w-ba.... Several other games are on CSS, and this is not available on DirecTV unless it is part of a Premium Sports package.
YankeeVol writes:
Oh, go ahead and give pbs a donation. It's cheaper than a ticket...
YankeeVol writes:
Oh, Mike... it's a worthy cause. A heartwarming gesture to for the betterment of all those in CT.
switcher76 writes:
I was at the game and saw her go down once but she got right back up and it didn't seem bad or anything out of the ordinary? What's with her getting concussions all the time?
golfin_blondie writes:
Well I don't think we missed Cain today. Lacy had a huge game.
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