Tennessee (16-9 | 9-4 SEC) vs. #13 LSU (23-4 | 10-3 SEC)
Sunday, February 25th, 2024 | 11:02pm CT / 12:02pm ET
Knoxville, TN | Food City Center | TV: ESPN
Knoxville, TN – Tennessee (16-9, 9-4 SEC) enters a challenging three-game stretch to close the regular season, welcoming #13/10 LSU (23-4, 10-3) to Knoxville on Sunday.
The Lady Vols and Tigers are slated to tip at 11:02am CT inside Food City Center in a contest televised by ESPN.
UT enjoyed its second off-date during the SEC slate on Thursday after completing a dominating season sweep of Vanderbilt last Sunday in Nashville, 86-61.
Tennessee and Ole Miss are tied in the league standings through 13 games at 9-4, while LSU is just ahead in second place at 10-3. Thus, UT’s next three games will considerably impact SEC and NCAA Tournament seeding.
The Lady Vols drew 11,073 fans for the South Carolina game on February 15th and are expecting their biggest crowd of the season on Sunday afternoon.
LSU arrives on Rocky Top with a five-game winning streak, fighting off Auburn, 71-66, on Thursday night in Baton Rouge to avoid being swept by AU. The Tigers also played on Monday night, winning at Texas A&M, 81-58.
Broadcast Details
Courtney Lyle (PxP) and Debbie Antonelli (Analyst) will have the call for the ESPN broadcast.
All games included in the ESPN package (ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU) will be available through WatchESPN, accessible online at WatchESPN.com, on smartphones and tablets via the WatchESPN app, and streamed on televisions through Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, Chromecast, Roku, Xbox 360 or Xbox One to fans who receive their video subscription from an affiliated provider.
The contest can be heard on Lady Vol Network stations and by audio stream, with Brian Rice providing play-by-play. Jay Lifford is the studio host.
A link to the live audio stream can be found on the Hoops Central page or the schedule on UTSports.com.
For a list of Lady Vol Network affiliates, please click on the Fans tab at the top of UTSports.com, select Vol Network, and then select the Vol Network Affiliates tab.
Air time is typically 30 minutes before tip-off.
Game Promotions And Information
Smokey Wheaties t-shirts will be given to the first 500 students.
Download the Tennessee Athletics app to join the Coca-Cola GBO Zone Lightshow.
Tickets are available for purchase at AllVols.com or by calling the Tennessee Athletics Ticket Office at 1.800.332.VOLS or 865.656.1200.
Doors Opening Early On Sunday
With the largest crowd of the season expected, doors to Food City Center will open to the general public at 10:30 a.m. on Sunday.
The student gate will open at 10:15am.
Parking, Traffic Flow, Entry Alerts
Fans coming to campus looking to purchase parking will do so on-site with a credit card for all events, including men’s and women’s hoops.
All tickets and Tennessee Fund parking passes are digital.
Just like last season, fans will see walk-through metal detectors outside of all Food City Center entrances.
The designated rideshare drop-off/pick-up area will be on Todd Helton Drive, west of Food City Center.
Shuttle service starts at 10:00am for the LSU game.
ADA shuttles and entry are the same as in previous years.
Phillip Fulmer Way Closure Information
Due to construction and upgrades to Neyland Stadium, fans and media members should be aware of changes to traffic patterns on Phillip Fulmer Way and Peyton Manning Pass during the 2023-24 basketball season.
Phillip Fulmer Way from G-10 garage to Neyland Stadium Gate 21 vicinity is currently closed.
The G-10 garage will not be accessible southbound on Phillip Fulmer Way.
Phillip Fulmer Way will be closed to southbound traffic at Middle Drive, and it will not be accessible via Peyton Manning Pass.
For events at Food City Center, G-10 and Staff 5 parking areas will be accessible via Lake Loudoun Boulevard, but it is strongly recommended that vehicles enter G-10 via Neyland Drive.
Additionally, G5/30 will only be accessible from Lake Loudoun Boulevard.
Season Reset
After functioning without All-America and SEC Player of the Year candidate Rickea Jackson for eight games from Nov. 13 to Dec. 10 and posting a 4-4 record during her absence, Tennessee has been a drastically different team since she was cleared following a lower leg injury.
The Lady Vols are 11-4 since Jackson returned to action and are in a season-best stretch where they have won 12 of their past 16 games and are currently tied for third in the SEC standings and at No. 36 in the NET.
Among those triumphs are top-65 NET victories over No. 28 Oklahoma, No. 38 Mississippi State, No. 50 Auburn, No. 58 Florida, No. 59 Vanderbilt (twice), and No. 63 Arkansas. The win over Okla. in November was without Rickea Jackson.
Tennessee also led at the half and was tied after three quarters vs. No. 1/1 South Carolina on Feb. 15 in a game featuring 14 lead changes and 11 ties that USC ultimately won, 66-55, for its second narrowest margin of victory in SEC play this season.
In addition to getting Jackson back, UT has been bolstered by the continued improvement of 6-foot-6 center Tamari Key. The school’s all-time leading shot blocker was sidelined after eight games a year ago due to blood clots in her lungs and understandably needed time to reacclimate to the rigors of the game.
With the players available for the past 15 contests stepping into and accepting their roles, the Lady Vols have competed cohesively as a team, with different players each game emerging to provide valuable contributions in starring and support capacities.
For the third week in a row, the Lady Vols are receiving votes in the AP and USA TODAY/WBCA Coaches Polls.
Milestone Watch
Rickea Jackson, who became the eighth Lady Vol to surpass 2,000 career points on Feb. 4 vs. Missouri, now has 2,078 and overtook Meighan Simmons (2,064, 2010-14) to move into seventh place on UT’s all-time scoring leaders list, including transfers.
She needs 35 to catch Tamika Catchings in sixth (2,113, 1997-2001).
Jackson also is close to tallying 1,000 points exclusively as a Lady Vol, standing at 993 and only seven away from that milestone in her second season here.
Standing just above Jackson in career scoring by transfers are Michelle Marciniak (1,004, 1993-96) in fourth by 11 and Diamond DeShields (1,018, 2014-17) in fifth by 25, with that duo playing three seasons at UT compared to Jackson’s two.
With 24 points at Vanderbilt, Jackson tied Rennia Davis for fifth in career 20-point games by a Lady Vol with 23 in only 52 games. With another, she can take sole possession of fifth.
Tamari Key has 985 career points and is just 15 away from reaching the 1,000-point plateau.
Jackson and Key can become the 49th and 50th players to accumulate 1,000 points in a Lady Vol uniform.
Key is tied for sixth on the SEC all-time blocked shots list with South Carolina’s Aliyah Boston (2019-23) with 330 swats and could take sole possession with her next rejection. Vanessa Hayden of Florida stands in fifth place with 357 from 2001-04.
On the glass, Key is 17 away (683) from registering 700 career rebounds and joining Jackson, who eclipsed 700 at Vanderbilt on February 18th.
With a trio of treys at Vanderbilt, Tess Darby tied Brittany Jackson (2001-05) for seventh on UT’s career three-pointers list with 161.
Darby is just behind No. 6 Shekinna Stricklen (163, 2008-12) and No. 5 Ariel Massengale (164, 2011-15).
The senior currently ranks No. 8 in career three-pointers attempted at 427, standing behind No. 7 Brittany Jackson (443, 2001-05).
Jasmine Powell is one assist away from tallying 100 for the third consecutive season. She had a career-best 116 last year and 108 in 2021-22 at Minnesota.
Kellie Harper won her 100th game as head coach of the Lady Vols when UT defeated Vanderbilt on January 21st.
Harper is now 11 shy of 400 for her career in 20 years.
The LVFL’s win over Missouri was her 50th vs. an SEC foe in her fifth season at her alma mater, and her victory over Arkansas came in her 150th game at UT.
UT Lady Vol Standout Stats
Rickea Jackson (993 pts.) and Tamari Key (985 pts.) can become the 49th and 50th Lady Vols to score 1,000 points.
UT is 20-3 when Rickea Jackson tallies 20+ points, including 6-1 this season.
Tennessee enters ranked No. 11 in the nation in rebounds per game at 43.24 per contest, facing an LSU team that rates No. 1 at 47.04 per outing.
Jasmine Powell is one assist away from recording her third straight season with 100 or more dimes, playing the past two campaigns on Rocky Top.
The fifth-year guard enters Sunday with 517 career assists, a total that would rank No. 5 all-time at Tennessee had she played her entire career here.
Big Orange opponents’ 69.8 ppg. is the lowest that average has been since the opening contest vs. Florida A&M (64.0).
Tennessee has trimmed its turnovers to 13.1 per game over the past seven.
Recapping The Last Game
Tennessee scored a season-high 30 points in the first quarter and never looked back, racing past Vanderbilt at Memorial Gymnasium, 86-61, last Sunday afternoon.
The Lady Vols (16-9, 9-4 SEC) shot a sizzling 76.9 percent in the first frame, including an eye-popping 83.3 percent from the three-point arc, to seize a 15-point lead in the first 10 minutes en route to their eighth straight victory in the series with the Commodores (19-8, 6-7 SEC).
The UT Lady Vols finished the game at 52.5 percent from the floor, marking their second-best percentage of the season behind a 53.3 rate vs. Kentucky on January 7th.
The 86 points by UT matched its total there last year on February 12th and was the second-highest vs. VU this season.
Fifth-year forward Rickea Jackson enjoyed an 11-for-15 day from the field to lead the Big Orange in scoring, with 24 points, as well as in rebounds (7), assists (4) and steals (1). Senior guard Jewel Spear connected on three of six three-point attempts and contributed 16 points, while fifth-year point guard Jasmine Powell tossed in 12.
Iyana Moore’s 25 points led Vanderbilt, while Jordyn Cambridge and Sacha Washington added 14 and 13, respectively.
Postgame Notes vs. Vanderbilt
Dominance On All Fronts
The UT Lady Vols never trailed in today’s contest and held their largest lead of 25 at the final buzzer. Tennessee possessed advantages of 15,15, and 18 at the end of the first three quarters.
Vanderbilt, which was shooting 41.8 percent heading into the game, shot 32.9 percent from the floor during the match-up. The Commodores allowed Tennessee to shoot 52.5 percent from the field, which is nearly 13 percentage points higher than Vanderbilt’s season defensive average of 39.7.
Rickea Rising
With 24 points in the match-up, Rickea Jackson moved into seventh place on UT’s career scoring list, now totaling 2,078 points for her career. She surpassed Meighan Simmons, who tallied 2,064 points from 2010-14. Jackson also eclipsed the 700-rebound milestone for her career, tallying seven boards to bring her career total to 704.
Jackson Dropping 20+ Again
Rickea Jackson delivered her seventh game with 20 or more points this season and the 23rd of her career. She tied Rennia Davis (2017-21) for fifth on the Lady Vol all-time list and stands four games behind Tamika Catchings (27), who starred from 1997-2001.
Spear Responds
Jewel Spear bounced back from a tough outing vs. South Carolina to score 16 points against the Commodores. Spear, averaging 12.8 ppg. against all teams and 14.6 ppg. vs. SEC foes coming into the game, has now scored in double figures 16 times on the year.
Darby From Deep
With a trio of three-pointers made in the Vandy game, Tess Darby is now tied for seventh all-time in Tennessee history with 161 threes. She joins Brittany Jackson, who played for the Big Orange from 2001-05, on the career leaderboard.
Key Denying Access
With two blocks against Vanderbilt, Tamari Key moved into a tie for sixth place all-time in SEC history with South Carolina’s Aliyah Boston, totaling 330 total blocks for her career. The redshirt senior from Cary, North Carolina, now has 35 swats on the year.
Early Offensive Explosion
In the first quarter, the Big Orange shot 76.9 percent from the field and 83.3 percent from three-point range to jump out to a 30-15 lead at the end of the frame.
That total is the most points that Vanderbilt has given up in a stanza this year, and it is the third-most points scored in a quarter, as the Lady Vols produced 31 in the third frame against Troy and 33 in the same period versus Liberty.
Volunteer State Supremacy
With the win, Tennessee moved to 263-62-1 in match-ups against four-year in-state foes. Kellie Harper is 19-1 in those match-ups, with a 3-1 record this year. The Lady Vols have now won the past eight outings against the Commodores, bringing the series total to 80-10 in favor of the Big Orange.
UT-LSU Series Notes
UT enters the 72nd meeting in the series with a 53-18 lead, including a 23-4 record in Knoxville, a 16-10 slate in Baton Rouge, and a 14-4 mark at neutral sites.
The Lady Vols are 1-1 vs. LSU in overtime games. The last time the two teams went to OT was on March 1st, 1997. Tennessee won the game 100-99 to advance to the semifinals of the SEC Tournament.
Kellie Harper is 3-4 overall vs. LSU and 3-3 vs. the Tigers while the head coach at Tennessee.
Harper is 1-3 in head-to-head match-ups with Kim Mulkey, dropping a contest to Baylor on November 23rd, 2017, when she was head coach at Missouri State, and falling in 2022 and 2023 as UT’s skipper before winning in the 2023 SEC Tournament semifinals.
A Look At The LSU Tigers
LSU has six players averaging double figures in points, led by Angel Reese at 19.4 and with Aneesah Morrow (17.1), Mikaylah Williams (15.0) and Flau’jae Johnson (13.5) not far behind.
Reese adds 12.8 rebounds per game to average a double-double, while Morrow is just shy at 9.9 rpg.
LSU leads the NCAA in rpg. at 43.24, and Reese is No. 2 in rpg. and No. 1 in o-boards per game (5.7).
The Tigers have a scoring margin of 26.1 ppg. in all games and 14.9 ppg. in SEC match-ups.
About LSU Tigers Head Coach Kim Mulkey
Kim Mulkey is in her third season at LSU and 23rd year overall as a head coach, sporting records of 83-12 and 715-116, respectively.
Leading the Tigers to the 2023 NCAA trophy, Mulkey became the first head coach in college hoops history to win national championships with multiple programs. She won at Baylor in 2005, 2012 and 2019, and did so with LSU in 2023.
Played for head coach Pat Summitt on the 1984 U.S. Olympic Team that won gold in Los Angeles.
LSU’s Most Recent Game
Angel Reese tallied 25 points and 20 rebounds to lead No. 13/10 LSU to a 71-66 win over Auburn on Thursday night in Baton Rouge.
Last-Tear Poa (13) and Flau’Jae Johnson (11) also were in double figures for LSU, which improved to 23-4 overall and 10-3 in conference play after taking the tightly-contested battle.
Last UT-LSU Contest
The Lady Vols erased a 17-point second-quarter deficit to take a 69-67 victory over No. 4/3 LSU in Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, SC, on March 4th, 2023, and advance to the program’s first SEC Championship appearance since 2015.
No. 3 seed Tennessee trailed by 14 at the half and fell behind by 16 in the early going of the third quarter, but the Big Orange stormed back by outscoring the No. 2 Tigers 43-27 over the final 20 minutes to pick up their signature win of 2022-23.
Senior Rickea Jackson was UT’s (23-10, 13-3 SEC) leading scorer, posting a double-double with 26 points and 10 rebounds. Fellow senior Jordan Horston also had a double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds. Sophomore Jillian Hollingshead and junior Tess Darby added 11 and 10 points.
LSU (28-2, 15-1 SEC) was led by Angel Reese, who had a double-double with 22 points and 11 rebounds.
Last Time We Met In Knoxville
No. 16/14 Tennessee closed out Senior Day with a 13-1 run to pull within two in the closing seconds but came up just short, falling to No. 8/8 LSU in Knoxville, 57-54, on February 27th, 2022.
Tennessee (22-7, 11-5 SEC) was led by junior Tamari Key, who finished with 12 points and nine rebounds. Senior Rae Burrell and graduate Alexus Dye were also in double figures with 11 and 10, respectively.
Jailin Cherry led LSU (25-4, 13-3 SEC), posting a double-double with 14 points and 10 rebounds.
Next Up For UT Women’s Basketball
The Tennessee Lady Vols basketball team is back at Food City Center on Thursday night, as Texas A&M comes to Knoxville for the second meeting between the teams this season.
UT’s final regular season home game of the 2023-24 campaign also will be the Lady Vols’ Senior Night, with players being honored beforehand.
The game will be televised by SEC Network at 6:00pm CT and carried on Lady Vol Network stations statewide and via live stream on UTSports.com.
