Lady Vols basketball is set to begin its SEC Tournament run on Thursday. 6-seed Tennessee is set to meet 11-seed Alabama in Greenville, S.C., on Thursday night.
Here’s what you need to know ahead of the game.
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How to Watch — 6-seed Lady Vols (16-12, 8-8 SEC) vs. 11-seed Alabama (22-9, 7-9 SEC)
- Start Time: 8:30 p.m. ET/7:30 p.m. CT
- Location: Bon Secours Wellness Arena (Greenville, S.C.)
- Watch: SEC Network | PxP: Tiffany Greene, Analyst: Carolyn Peck
- Online Streaming: Watch ESPN
- Radio (Knoxville): The Vol Network/The Vol Network App
- Vol Network radio crew: PxP: Brian Rice, Studio Host: Jay Lifford
Betting Odds
Lady Vols: -4.5 (BetRivers)
ESPN Matchup Predictor
Lady Vols – 63.9%
Alabama – 36.1%
What Kim Caldwell Said
On the value of winning a game at the SEC Tournament
“It would be great. It would be great to see one go through. Again, I’m excited about the break that we have in between to put some practices together, but it would be great to get a win again.”
On what she likes about having a bye in the SEC Tournament
“I think that we have players that are gonna be excited for it. I think our entire preseason has prepared us for an environment like this. We’ve played really hard games in big environments. So this should be unflappable to our freshmen.”
Last Five Games
Lady Vols:
- vs. Vanderbilt, 87-77 L
- at LSU, 89-73 L
- at Oklahoma, 100-93 L
- vs. Texas A&M, 82-74 L
- at Ole Miss, 94-81 L
Alabama:
- vs. Missouri, 65-48 W (SEC Tournament)
- vs. Texas, 72-65 L
- at Vanderbilt, 85-60 L
- at Florida, 76-71 W
- vs. South Carolina, 76-57 L
Where They Land In Rankings
Lady Vols:
AP Poll – RV
Coaches Poll – NR
Bart Torvik – No. 20
Alabama:
AP Poll – RV
Coaches Poll – No. 25
Bart Torvik – No. 31
Stat Leaders
Lady Vols:
- Points: Talaysia Cooper – 16.1
- Rebounds: Janiah Barker – 6.7
- Assists: Talaysia Cooper – 3.7
Alabama:
- Points: Jessica Timmons – 16.8
- Rebounds: Karly Weathers – 6.1
- Assists: Karly Weathers – 3.3
Prediction
The Lady Vols are in desperate need of a win. Even if Tennessee goes one-and-done in the SEC Tournament, it’ll be in the NCAA Tournament, but it’d mark seven-straight losses and 10 losses in the previous 12 games.
That’s not a great formula for success in March Madness. While winning a game in Greenville won’t fully make up for the rough stretch, it could put the team back at least somewhat on the right track.
Last time the teams met, the Lady Vols won on the road, 70-59, but forward Essence Cody didn’t play in that game. That’ll create another challenge for Tennessee to deal with this time around.
The Lady Vols are going to need the stars to shine again in this one. If they can get Talaysia Cooper and Janiah Barker going, they’ll have a decent shot to win.
Lady Vols 76, Alabama 70
