Big first quarter powers Lady Vols to 80-60 Senior Day victory over Georgia
The Lady Vols capped off an up-and-down 2015-2016 campaign with an impressive 80-60 win over the Georgia Lady Bulldogs on Senior Day.
Pat Summit Statue, University of Tennessee, Knoxville. //Photo by Ryan McGill
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Though their last season on Rocky Top has been disappointing so far, the three senior Lady Vols have a reason to smile after dismantling Georgia 80-60 on Senior Day.
Tennessee’s two-game skid came to an end thanks to the combined efforts of seniors Bashaara Graves and Nia Moore (2o points, 16 rebounds combined) and the shooting of Diamond DeShields, who led all scorers with 22 points. The biggest surprise of the evening came when senior Jasmine Jones entered the game after being told by the UT medical staff that she would not be cleared to play again due to a history of head injuries. Jones received the loudest cheers of the night and was able to shoot a long three-pointer in the waning seconds of both the game and her career as a Lady Vol.
Tennessee would hold the Lady Bulldogs to just 2-of-15 shooting in the first quarter. Offensively, the Lady Vols seemed unstoppable at times, with two separate double-digit scoring runs. After Georgia’s Halle Washington opened the scoring, the Lady Vols would score 12 straight. The Lady Bulldogs would convert on only one basket for the remainder of the first quarter, while Tennessee closed the opening frame strong, scoring the final 10 points, resulting in a 22-4 lead.
Georgia looked more comfortable offensively in the second quarter, outscoring the Lady Vols 20-18 while shooting 50 percent from the field. Unfortunately for the Lady Bulldogs, the hole they dug themselves in the first quarter was too deep to crawl out of, and they were still down big at the half, 40-24.
The two teams traded buckets throughout the third quarter. For the second consecutive quarter, Georgia was able to play Tennessee relatively evenly, only being outscored 19-18. The Lady Vols finished their most impressive performance in a while by outscoring the Lady Bulldogs in the fourth quarter 21-18.
One of the key components of Tennessee’s victory was their ability to avoid turnovers. Giving the ball away has been a major problem all season long, but the Lady Vols managed to avoid mental mistakes throughout the game, registering only 12 turnovers compared to Georgia’s 22.
The win brought Tennessee to 17-12 on the season and 8-8 in conference play, meaning the team will avoid their first-ever losing season in SEC play. They will take the court next in the SEC tournament, which begins on March 2.
Featured image by Ryan McGill
Edited by David Bradford
Quinn is an assistant sports editor for TNJN and a sophomore majoring in Journalism and Electronic Media at the University of Tennesse. When he's not writing, he's probably doing something else. You can follow him on Twitter (@QuinnNotCook) or e-mail him at qpilkey@vols.utk.edu.
