All the hype prior to the State Farm Tip-Off Classic was centered on Baylor freshman Brittney Griner. The 6'8" center could dunk and had YouTube videos to prove it.

However, Sunday's biggest star was Tennessee's Shekinna Stricklen. Stricklen grabbed 14 rebounds and had three steals to go with her 25 points in the Lady Vols 74-65 victory.

Tennessee head coach Pat Summitt was proud of the effort from her sophomore guard.

"I just told her you're gonna be the leader, you and Angie [Bjorklund] have to provide the leadership and those are the two we count on every day," Summit said.

Tennessee center Kelley Cain got into early foul trouble, picking up two fouls and going to the bench just three minutes into the game. Stricklen and Glory Johnson kept Tennessee in the game by holding Griner to just five first-half points and outmuscling her on the boards.

Lady Bears forward Morghan Medlock picked up the slack for Griner scoring eight points with nine rebounds in the first half.

Baylor led by as much as seven points, but Tennessee was able to cut the lead to two at halftime.

Tennessee dominated the opening minutes of the second half. The turning point in the game came with 18 minutes left. The Lady Vols missed several close range shots, but continued to secure offensive rebounds. Cain finally made a layup while being fouled by Griner.

Griner picked up her fourth foul on the ensuing possession and went to the bench allowing Tennessee to take over. Another basket from Cain and a three ball from Angie Bjorklund gave the Lady Vols a 34-26 lead.

Baylor crept back into the game and had the momentum on its side until freshman guard Kamiko Williams provided a spark for Tennessee. Williams ripped the ball from a driving Lady Bear and slung a laser pass down court to Alyssia Brewer who laid it in, getting the crowd of 12,824 on their feet.

Following another Brewer layup, Williams hit a jumper. She then swiped a Baylor pass and streaked down the court for a fast break layin to push the Lady Vol lead to 14.

Griner scored ten points in the final ten minutes, but it was too little too late asTennessee hung on to win by nine.

Tennessee's zone defense was able to subdue Baylor's top scoring threats.

"First time ever in 36 years that we started in a zone and played it throughout the game," Summit said.

The Lady Vols will travel to San Antonio to take part in the ESPNU Road to the Championship. Tennessee will face Texas Tech on Tuesday night.