Lady Vols lose two in a row, fall to Virginia Tech
The Lady Vols lost their second straight game on Sunday, losing 67-63 to Virginia Tech.
KNOXVILLE, TN - NOVEMBER 13, 2016 - Head Coach Holly Warlick of the Tennessee Lady Volunteers during the game between the Navy Midshipmen and the Tennessee Lady Volunteers at Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville, TN. Photo By Amy Linn/Tennessee Athletics
This past Sunday, Tennessee (3-2) travelled to Blacksburg, Virginia, to face Virginia Tech (6-0). After their 70-56 loss against Penn State, the Lady Vols were hoping for a win against the Hokies but fell short, 67-63.
Tennessee managed to mount a few comebacks and even took a late lead, but unfortunately, the Hokies were able to secure the victory. Junior center Mercedes Russell led the Lady Vols in points with 17, while junior Diamond DeShields was not too far from her with 15.
Tennessee started off the first quarter up two, but the Hokies quickly gained the lead. There were some nice scores from the Lady Vols, but Virginia Tech was able to stay ahead for the rest of the quarter.
The second quarter started off slow for Tennessee, but the orange and white eventually discovered its rhythm late in the quarter. With a little over two minutes left in the second quarter, the Lady Vols were able to grab a one-point lead on the Hokies.
As the half closed to an end, both Tennessee and Virginia Tech held leads, and eventually, the Lady Vols were able to clutch the lead, 31-28, going into the half.
Returning from halftime, Tennessee kept its lead for a few minutes, but the Hokies took back over not too long after the start of the quarter. Both teams went back and forth throughout most of the period, but Virginia Tech pushed passed Tennessee, ending the third with a seven-point lead over the Lady Vols, 51-44.
Tennessee straggled behind Virginia Tech all of the fourth quarter. At times, it seemed like the Lady Vols were going to regain the lead, but they could never quite get ahead of the Hokies, resulting in a 67-63 loss.
The Lady Vols beat out the Hokies in rebounds (53-43), free-throw percentage (72.7 percent to 56.5 percent), three-point percentage (25 percent to 10 percent) and from the field (37.1 percent to 36.1 percent), but it wasn’t enough to win the game. Virginia Tech lead in points in the paint against Tennessee (46-34). The Lady Vols hurt themselves in turnovers with 21, which created 21 points for the Hokies. Guard Diamond Deshields committed 10 of the 21 turnovers made by Tennessee.
The Lady Vols return to Thompson-Boling Arena this Wednesday, against the Tennessee State Lady Tigers at 7:00 p.m. ET.
Edited by Dalton King
Featured image by Amy Linn, courtesy of Tennessee Athletics
