A year ago, Tennessee’s locker room was silent and empty. The same room was full of sound and celebration Thursday night.
The Lady Vols clinched an SEC regular-season championship with an 81-65 women’s basketball victory over Kentucky before a crowd of 12,100 at Thompson-Boling Arena. The achievement wasn’t readily apparent on the court afterward. The scene was much different behind closed doors, the same doors that were closed to the team after their loss at Kentucky on Feb. 19 last season.
“We went crazy in the locker room,’’ guard Shekinna Stricklen said, “just not on the court.”
No. 4 Tennessee (26-2, 14-1 SEC) was all business on the court in handling a scrappy bunch of Wildcats and securing the team’s 15th SEC regular season title and its first since 2007. Five Lady Vols scored in double figures, led by Kelley Cain’s 14 points in 19 playing minutes. Tennessee’s center also had seven blocks.
Glory Johnson scored 13 points while Angie Bjorklund and Stricklen each had 12. Alyssia Brewer scored 10.
Alicia Manning’s 11 rebounds led UT’s 45-37 rebounding advantage.
Victoria Dunlap had a game-high 22 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for No. 16 Kentucky (23-5, 11-4), but she didn’t have enough help. The Wildcats only other double-figure scorer was Kayla Snowden with 14 and she scored six of her points in the final minute.
Overall, Kentucky shot 29.9 percent (20 for 67) from the floor.
“It’s great to watch the progress this team has made from last year to this year,’’ UT coach Pat Summitt said. “It’s because of the investment they’ve made on the court and in the weight room. They understand what it takes now.”
Even UT junior guard Angie Bjorklund, who celebrated a national championship as a freshman, got caught up in the moment.
“We finally won something,’’ she said. “We’re all pretty excited.”
The Lady Vols were pretty motivated at the outset by the memory of last season’s 66-56 loss to the Wildcats. Along with losing their locker room, the players also lost the use of their practice attire. They had to bring their own gear and do their own laundry.
“We talked about it right after the LSU game (on Monday night),’’ Johnson said. “We wanted to make sure that we were ready for this team. We remembered what they did last time and we didn’t want it to happen again.”
The Lady Vols put their conversation into action by bolting to a 20-6 lead at the outset. Their shooting percentage never dropped below 50 percent and their advantage grew to 21 points until they sputtered into halftime with a 45-31 edge.
Not bad, considering Cain played just three minutes because of early foul trouble.
With Cain back, Tennessee went back to work in the second half, building their lead in methodical fashion until it reached 26 points, 71-44, with 6:37 left.
Even as the Lady Vols’ field goal accuracy cooled to 45.6 percent, they maintained a sizzling 92.6 percent accuracy at the free-throw line (25 for 27) — a stunning performance by a team that’s been shooting 62.1 percent from the free-throw line in conference play. Summitt credited the new practice edict of no talking while shooting free throws.
“If they’re talking, they’re not real good,” she said. “If they’re focused, they’re good.”
From Kentucky coach Matthew Mitchell’s vantage point, UT was very good.
“I thought they really showed that when they want to assert themselves, they can be a very powerful basketball team,’’ he said.
Only the ending was anticlimactic as the reserves had a hand in squandering nearly half of UT’s lead while topping off the team’s 22 turnovers.
The finish didn’t spoil the locker-room mood or the achievement.
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Scripps Interactive Newspapers Group
Comments » 62
ssgdebity writes:
For the First time LOL, Great Game, and great improvement over last year. Congrats go out to my lady vols. Now if only the men would from these ladies then everything would be great. Go Vols Now lets dominate the tournament and go beat Connecticut for another NC.
PINK_CHAMPAGNE writes:
Good job and great game! You handled Kentucky's pressure defense and played with great composure. Kelly is a force to be reckoned with in the paint. Block shots are becoming her norm, keep it up, I enjoy it. The defense tonight from the lady vols was amazing,and the offense was good. I am so happy with the performance tonight. Congrats to Pat and staff and team for their 15th regular season title. One game at a time! Let's be ready for Ole Miss when they come to town!
orangecountyvols writes:
Great comments Mark and Pink. Really proud of the way the team is coming on.........Glory Johnson making vast improvement, the team 25 for 27 at the line. A few turnovers along the way but hard to stay sharp with the big lead and playing reserves also. Great effort !
USNVOL writes:
Nice win for the Lady Vols!
What a team effort.
bmaples writes:
Excellent game for the Lady Vols! The team is MUCH better than earlier in the year. At times, it looked like true Lady Vols basketball -- defense, rebounding, and transition scoring. Congrats to all -- and let's keep improving!
uconnfan1 writes:
that will not happen.
chl1958 writes:
Congratulations to all the Lady Vols;you are truly a credit To The University of Tennessee!
PINK_CHAMPAGNE writes:
You don't know that! That's why the games are played!
ssgdebity writes:
If you want some come get some, and you can't see us until it is too late. we will be more than happy to through our big players and block you all out of the game. ALL NIGHT LONG BABY Lets see if you can stop them. NOT By the way if you are so confident you can beat the LDV's much your money where you mouth is. GO VOLS
UTVOLSRROCKN writes:
Congrats Lady Vols on yet another SEC championship! Two games in a row now with 5 players in double figures! Great team play. Great defense as always. Best posts in the country with Cain and Brewer! Everybody is improving and thats ALWAYS a good thing!! Great job Pat!
LV.....TCB.......KOKO.....GBO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
pdhuff#552644 writes:
Kudoes, LV's and HCPS.
huntined#565710 writes:
Good win and great to get another SEC champ. Just think where we were a year ago and we started 1 jr and 4 soph. tonight. If we can get ALL the players there healthy by next year they will be TOUGH..
Titans_Vols777 writes:
Great team effort both off. &. def. It's a good time to be playing you're best.
tonyvick#213307 writes:
I am so proud of the LV's and this is truly one of Pat's best coaching efforts. To bring this group of girls to win the SEC championship. Which are the same group as last year, wow! I believe if you all play your best game, in which you have not yet, you all can beat anyone in the country. And if you merely play at the level you are playing now you will go far into the tournament. Thanks for what you all do for us fans.
xvolx writes:
great effort. now you aren't living in the shadows. I'm still steamed that the Ga. game was stolen by the refs. Payback in the tourn..
hcjournals#206623 writes:
Now go and win it all. I'm not kidding......Win it this year.......National Championship. Put the team first, give it your all and it will happen. Stay in it mentally. Good luck.....
ps11824 writes:
Little purrin' kitty kats
Looking at the latest stats
Gotta get a piece a' dat
Gotta get a piece a' Pat.
We can win it all tonight
We can win it outright
Kitty Kats gonna be uptight
O&White gonna scratch & fight.
O yea, we won it outright
O yea, we took it all tonight
Orange&White feelin' alright
In SEC we're The Champs tonight!
Congratulations, Lady Vols SEC Champions. That sounds soooo sweet.
UTbassdrummer writes:
It. Has. Happened. Before.
rocky_topper writes:
Great game girls! That's what happens when you give it your all! Keep working and getting better and that #9 will be yours come April.
Spend lots of time in Pratt!
rocky_topper writes:
(This comment was removed by the site staff.)
ladivolfan writes:
Now that was a championship team playing last night. Not only did these girls play the entire 40 minutes, I got an entire 40 minutes of pleasure watching.
fpcoach writes:
you guys need to ignore pitiful little interlopers that come on our site. comments from the armpit of the USA should mean nothing to us. GBO
BeRealistic writes:
Ignore him, if nobody responds he will realize he is wasting his time.
feathersax writes:
Looks like uconn bimbo is back trolling. If coach Im-an-enema blows this one, it'll be a surprise. Keep those recruiting doors at espn wide open.
johnlg00 writes:
Probably not the way go trash-talking UConn. It was Pat who canceled the series with UConn, not the other way around. Judging by the comments from UConn fans on here, they would have liked nothing better than to have played us twice a year for the last however many years. However, if they were smart, they would be more worried about the LVs than they will let on. The way the LVs are playing right now, I would actually feel pretty good about their chances against UConn, but we will just have to wait until the tournament to find out.
BigDave486 writes:
Congratulations Lady Vols! I can't wait for the SEC tournament . . . then on to March Madness!!
GBO
johnlg00 writes:
The core group of the team is playing at a very high level right now, except for a few too many careless turnovers. I would feel a LOT better about the team if they could cut down on those, but every other phase of the game seems to be coming along nicely. Even as badly as they were going last year, I said at the time that all of our opponents had better get in their licks while they could, because these gals were going to come out romping and stomping this year. It took a little longer than we might have liked, and it wasn't pretty for awhile there, but I think they are hitting their stride at just the right time. Great job by the coaches and players! GLV!!! TCB!!!
bobbizee#247300 writes:
Congratulations LadyVols proud of you. I live 15 miles from Duluth, Ga got my tickets ready to howl with friends, soooooo our coach isn't a JERK after all you uconn fans on this comment board great job as usual Coach Pat
Jephry writes:
Way to go Lady Vols. Am I sensing another Coach of the Year honor for Pat? She sure deserves it!
Cldvols1 writes:
Way to go Lady Vols!!!
Gumby#1381110 writes:
Congrats Lady Vols! You are awesome!
ladyvolsfan789 writes:
She definately deserves it, but I've heard talk that the head coach of Nebraska has pretty much got that locked up. SEC coach of the year however is a definate possiblity.
1volk-nowi-tall writes:
I wonder if even one Lady Vol fan ever looks at the you con sight.
maxvolfan#217855 writes:
Congrats lady Vols!! Look folks the
. future looks bright for these girls. Final four is definitely in view, next year we will have a dominant healthy post game with two awesome pointguards coming in. #2 wing player and hopefully 6'3 Kiah Stokes for 2011. This team has the potential to win 2 natl champ
richvol writes:
There was a play last night during the game that reminded me of the great LadyVol teams of the 90's. The ball went the length of the court for a fast break layup without touching the ground. Three crisp and highly accurate passes were made and it was a thing of beauty to watch.
As pointed out in previous posts,the next two years are the ones I expect the LadyVols to be dominant again. The girls are rounding into better physical condition...Cain and Brewer have made significant improvement since losing weight and with Vicky Baugh back,along with a real point guard,this team could go all the way...twice. If this years team gets to the final four it would be good enough. It would whet their appetite for more than just getting there and give them confidence.
martinvol34 writes:
I totally agree with you and if Cain will shoot that little jump shot in the lane, and they teach Glory that Alyssa Brewer hook shot and avoiding contact on her shot instead of initiating it when the refs are calling fouls, she will be dominant and this team will roll.
ladyvolfaithful62 writes:
CONGRATULATIONS, Lady Vols. Keep it up and hope to see you in the Final Four.
ps11824 writes:
Always the voice of reason is johnlg. Trash talk is not unlike admitting, "yea, I can be as lame as you are." Why do it? It escalates into total egregious insanity. That's not the Lady Vols way. Chillax, our team will do their talking with points, rebounds, assists and blocks; not trash talk.
tonyvick#213307 writes:
I'm glad the LV's didn't celebrate winning the championship on the court last night. It signifies there's more work to be done and that the LV's want more. I got a feeling you guys are going to do something very very special this post season.
ps11824 writes:
I think Glory is just so fast that she cannot gear it down to shoot her sweet little jumper the way she did in a few of her better games. She's lightening getting down court on D, however to upgrade her offense, I'm thinking a fall-away or a pull-up jumper Holdsclaw-style is somewhere in her repertoire. Would that not be the killer for any opponent?
On a side note, writers: It would be only proper to give the Lady Vols more run time after WINNING THE SEC. Would it not behoove you to give them their just recognition? If it were Bruce and the guys, the news articles would be more than we could read in a sitting, yet, you treat last night as a small task for the LVs. "It ain't right, guys. You know it ain't," moans 98reax.
RLL59 writes:
I'm sure Nebraska has the National Coach of the Year wrapped up. They weren't even in the pre-season top 25 in either poll and didn't even get a vote for top 25 in the ESPN/USA Today poll. Coach Summitt obviously has a strong shot at the SEC award, although Coach Mitchell's Kentucky team was a much bigger surprise than Tennessee.
In my opinion, the big change in the last 2 games has been the confidence and looseness of the Lady Vols on the court. Since Coach Summitt's 'disrespect' for basketball tirade (remember that? it was only a week ago), she decided that she'd put more responsibility on the players. The players are still making some mistakes, but no one appears concerned that their next error in judgment will get them yanked from the game, or that they will become the target of Coach Summitt's wrath at the next time out. No one's tentative anymore. It's a lot more plausible that Coach Summitt's change in policy and demeanor has led to the recent successes than any miraculous 'see the light' conversion by all ten players near the end of the season. Give her and the players credit for finding a way to get it all together.
Congratulations for another SEC title.
johnlg00 writes:
Well said. Pat has set the bar so high for herself, she rarely gets respect for a given year's performance. Perhaps in another year, she would get recognition for the way she brought this team back from the dead this year. It's only fair that the Nebraska coach and Mitchell get the credit they do since so little was expected of them. Unfortunately, Pat's coaching is judged mostly by how they do in the post-season, long after the regular-season COY awards are handed out. I'm sure she would settle for another national championship over any number of COY awards! Personally, I agree with you that this was one of her best coaching jobs ever, hopefully with more excellence to come.
MillisaAnn writes:
Congrats to Pat Summitt and The Lady Vols :) :) :)
SummittsCourt writes:
I guess coach Summitt has this coaching thing down "Pat".
ssgdebity writes:
Just to let you know, those comments were pointed to that UCONN fan trying to talk smack. And to any other UCONN fan. I am a full Vol fan through and through born and raised in Tennessee. I think you might have thought I was a Uconn fan actually I am not. Can't stand them This is just to clear up any misconception about my previous comments.
johnlg00 writes:
I didn't doubt you were a Vol fan, I questioned the wisdom and propriety of trash-talking UConn when we, in essence, are ducking THEM. I don't know all of Pat's reasons for doing that, since she hasn't stated them publicly that I know of, though I tend to support any decision she makes for any reason she chooses. I certainly don't condone UConn fans, or anybody else, coming on our board talking trash, but until we beat them or they lose to somebody else, we don't have much room to trash-talk them, is all I'm saying.
PINK_CHAMPAGNE writes:
Choosing not to play a team because their coach is considered unethical, and violate recruitment rules is not ducking them. Pat has said in an archived interview that if a program does not follow the rules, she will not play them. I don't blame her! What goes for one should go for all! Come on now, thirty pages of documentation submitted against Uconn! I think by now, everybody in the country knows the reason they don't play anymore, and it isn't ducking!
AtLeastMyTeamHasPerfectSeasons writes:
If they win out including the SECtourney they SHOULD get a #1 seed.
SoddyVol writes:
Since Lady Vols beat Uconn the Last THREE times they played, twice at Hartford, Conn and the middle game at Knoxville, I don't think its valid to say anyone is ducking. You can bet Pat had GOOD reason to end it with Geno.
RLL59 writes:
Hey, cut John some slack! Reads his posts. He's a true believer. Maybe 'ducking' isn't the best word to use, but clearly we don't play UConn only because Coach Summitt decided not to play them, for whatever reason. UConn would play us anytime, despite, as Grantck says above, losing to the Lady Vols the last 3 games.
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