Lady Vols basketball needed to find a way to stop a two-game losing skid, but a trip to play a solid Georgia team provided a tough challenge. Ultimately, Tennessee held on to claim a narrow 82-77 win in overtime.
Here are three quick takeaways from the Lady Vols’ victory.
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That’s a Crucial Win
The Lady Vols needed this win badly. After a poor showing vs. Mississippi State at home and a historic loss to UConn on the road, Tennessee had to find a way to stop the bleeding.
Georgia is a solid team, too. The Bulldogs are firmly in the NCAA Tournament picture and received a good number of votes to be ranked in this week’s AP Poll Top 25, but fell just outside. Add in it being an SEC road game, and this will look good on the Lady Vols’ resume.
When you look ahead, this game becomes much more important, too. Tennessee has two more games that you can at least somewhat confidently project as a win. Those are home games against Missouri and Texas A&M. The other six games are toss-ups at best if not just UT being a pure underdog.
With that in mind, the Lady Vols needed to win any reasonable game necessary.
Three-Headed Monster
Talaysia Cooper has looked like an All-American and first-round WNBA draft pick at times this year. In other games, she completely disappears and struggles to leave her mark on the game.
This was one of the games where Cooper was critical. She posted 16 points on an efficient 6-for-11 shooting from the field and 4-for-8 on 3-pointers. She also posted nine rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block while impacting every aspect of the game.
Zee Spearman also played a massive role, particularly late in the game. She ended up as the team’s leading scorer with 23 points. This came on 7-for-15 shooting from the field and 2-for-7 on threes. Spearman added three rebounds, three assists and a steal to her line, as well.
The final piece was freshman point guard Mia Pauldo, who got back on track. She contributed 21 points, including an incredible 9-for-10 mark at the free throw line. She notched four rebounds and three assists in her time, too.
You also have to note what Janiah Barker did on the glass. Though she only scored nine points, she produced 13 rebounds on the night.
Should Never Have Gone to Overtime
This game should never have gone to overtime in the first place, though. With 8.5 seconds on the clock, the Lady Vols had used positive free-throw shooting to keep a three-point cushion on defense. However, when Dani Carnegie rose up for a three, Tennessee freshman Deniya Prawl fouled her.
Carnegie hit all three at the line to tie the game up at 68. The Lady Vols had a chance to win on the other end with five seconds left, but settled for a Talaysia Cooper prayer from distance that did not land.
While Tennessee still held on to win, that’s a mistake that could’ve proven to be very costly. Prawl is a freshman and should learn from it, but that’s a lesson you got lucky you didn’t learn the hard way.
Final Stats
Up Next
It’s another big test this weekend for the Lady Vols. Tennessee hits the road to play at No. 3 South Carolina on Sunday. Tip-off is scheduled for 3 p.m. ET and airs on ABC.
Then, the Lady Vols host former head coach and national champion player Kellie Harper and her Missouri squad the following Thursday. That tip-off is slated for 6:30 p.m. ET and will air on SECN+.
