QUICK FACTS
Tennessee Lady Volunteers at Texas Longhorns
Erwin Center
Nov. 25, 2004
Tipoff: 7:00 p.m. (CST)
Television: espn2
Erwin Center 16,755
2004-05 Records
Tennessee: 3-0
Texas: 1-1
The Series
Overall: Tennessee leads 15-10
at Knoxville: UT 6-5
at Texas: UT 7-4
at Neutral Sites: UT 2-1
Next Up
Nov. 28
vs Temple
3 p.m. EST
RANKINGS
Associated Press Poll
Tenn: 1st / Texas: 4th
ESPN/USA Today-Coaches Poll
Tenn: 1st / Texas: 4th
THE COACHES
Tennessee Lady Volunteers
Pat Summitt
Overall Record: 855-167 (31st year)
2004-05 Schedule
2004-05 Statistics
Texas Longhorns
Jody Conradt
Overall Record: 848-270 (36th year)
2004-05 Schedule
2004-05 Statistics
Probable Starters
TENNESSEE LADY VOLUNTEERS (4-0)
No. Name Pos. Ht. Cl. PPG RPG
1 Sidney Spencer F 6-3 So. 6.7 4.7
43 Shyra Ely F 6-2 Sr. 13.0 5.7
50 Tye'sha Fluker C 6-5 Jr. 4.7 7.0
21 Loree Moore G 5-9 Sr. 4.3 6.3
5 Shanna Zolman G 5-10 Jr. 12.7 3.0
Texas Longhorns (1-1)
No. Name Pos. Ht. Cl. PPG RPG
33 Tiffany Jackson F 6-3 So. 21.0 5.0
21 Heather Schreiber F 6-2 Sr. 16.5 5.0
43 Annissa Hastings C 6-2 Sr. 5.0 3.0
11 Jamie Carey G 5-6 Sr. 8.0 2.0
4 Kala Bowers G 6-2 Sr. 4.0 5.0
Tennessee Faces Experienced Texas Team
THE GAME
The winningest coaches in women's collegiate basketball square-off on Thanksgiving night as Pat Summitt takes her #1-ranked Tennessee Lady Vols (3-0) into battle against longstanding rival #4-ranked Texas (1-1) and fellow 800-win coach Jody Conradt. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. CT on ESPN2 at the Frank Erwin Center in Austin.
LADY VOLS AT A GLANCE
This is the Lady Vols' 31st season under Head Coach Pat Summitt...She has compiled a staggering 855-167 overall record...Needs just 25 wins to become the all-time winningest coach in NCAA basketball history...Her 2003-04 squad finished as the NCAA runner-up with a 31-4 record...UT also is the seven-consecutive-time defending SEC regular season champion, and has been picked by both the media and the coaches to finish first in this year's SEC race as well.
The Lady Vols are led by National Player of the Year candidates, seniors Loree Moore and Shyra Ely and junior Shanna Zolman. Each has appeared on one or more pre-season watch lists or ballots for the Naismith Player of the Year, Wooden Award, etc. Tennessee returns seven letterwinners and welcomes eight newcomers to the lineup...Rookie Alex Fuller (Shelbyville, Tenn.) will redshirt this season after undergoing surgery in October...Fellow rookies Candace Parker (Naperville, Ill.) and Sa'de Wiley-Gatewood are also currently sidelined with injuries.
LONGHORNS AT A GLANCE
Texas went 30-5 last year and was ranked No. 4 in the final AP Poll and No. 10 in the final USA Today/ESPN Poll (post-NCAAs)...The Burnt Orange is picked to finish first in this year's Big 12 race as well, voted the favorite to repeat in preseason voting conducted by both Big 12 coaches and the media...The Longhorns return 11 letterwinners and welcomes three newcomers...Texas lost just one player from a year ago - All-America four-year starter and 6-1 post Stacy Stephens...UT is the only school in the nation to have three preseason candidates up for the State Farm Wade Trophy and Wooden Award as National Player of the Year (seniors Jamie Carey and Heather Schreiber, sophomore Tiffany Jackson), and one of only two schools (along with UConn) to have three players as Naismith Player of the Year candidates.
UT'S OFFENSIVE FIREPOWER
In all games, this is how Tennessee has shot from the field: 60%: none 50%FG: none 40%FG: .481 (UTC), .468 (GWU) 30%FG: .373 (N.C. State)
DEEE ----- FENSE
In all games, this is how the opposition has shot from the field: 50%FG: none 40%FG: none 30%FG: .321 (GWU), .373 (N.C. State) 20%FG: none 10%: .135 (UTC)
JUMP SHOTS
The Southeastern Conference holds the top three spots in this week's AP poll - The Lady Vols are #1 followed by LSU and Georgia...Tennessee's first three games of the season found junior Tye'sha Fluker and sophomore Sidney Spencer making their first career starts...Lady Vol walk-ons Abby Canon and Aubrey Guastalli saw action for the first time in Tennessee uni's picking up some minutes against George Washington...There are no names on the back of the uniforms this season because Coach Pat Summitt and her squad felt like taking a different approach to the season...It marks the first time - ever -- that there are no names on the jerseys...Senior point guard Loree Moore is back in her familiar spot at point guard after missing the final 17 games of last season due to a torn ACL in her left knee...The Tennessee-UTC game attracted the largest crowd in Lady Moc basketball history, 10,051 spectators...
THE 4-1-1 ON TEXAS
After opening the season with a convincing 84-69 victory over #21 Penn State, the Texas Longhorns (1-1) traveled into dangerous SEC territory and took on a hard-charging and youthful Georgia Lady Bulldog squad on Nov. 21. Rookie phenom Tasha Humphrey scored all but three of her 27 points during the second half, and fifth-ranked Georgia rallied from a 15-point deficit to stun second-ranked Texas 78-64. UT sophomore forward Tiffany Jackson scored a career-high 27 points for the Longhorns, while senior forward Heather Schreiber had 22. Texas put together a 15-0 run in the first half for a 28-13 lead. Schreiber accounted for eight of the points, including a couple of three-pointers, and Texas kept UGA off the scoreboard for more than seven minutes. On the verge of getting blown out, Georgia rallied behind sophomore Cori Chambers. She broke the scoreless drought with a jumper, followed with a three-pointer and closed the first half with another trey. Humphrey also connected from outside the arc, helping Georgia close the half with a 14-4 run and trailed 32-27 at the half. In the second stanza, a six-point spurt over 38 seconds by Humphrey gave the Lady Bulldogs the lead for good with 16:22 to play and the Longhorns saw taillights the rest of the way. For her outstanding play, the Georgia rookie was named SEC Player of the Week.
THE SERIES WITH TEXAS
This marks the 26th meeting between the two schools (Tennessee leads 15-10) dating back to the 1978-79 season. Since 1986-87, Tennessee has held a 14-6 advantage in the series and has won 13 of the last 16 meetings. In both the 1997-98 meeting and the 1993-94 meeting with Texas, UT produced the biggest victory margin ever in the series, 34 points. Still, Texas has dealt the Lady Vols three of the worst defeats in school history. On Dec. 11, 1984, Texas won by 31 points (91-60 in Austin), on Dec. 1, 1985, Texas won by 22 points (74-52 in Knoxville), and on Dec. 9, 1987 by 19 points (97-78 in Knoxville).
SURPRISE, SURPRISE
With all of the national prominence generated by Tennessee and Texas throughout the years, it is ironic that the two teams have never met in an AIAW or NCAA title, or even a playoff game. In 2003, it looked as if the two traditional powerhouses would meet in the NCAA title game. However, UConn slipped past Texas and met the Lady Vols in the title game, instead. Typically, the games have either been blowouts or close affairs (under six points). The only overtime game in the series was the 1996 meeting in Austin, when the Lady Vols won by a 68-65 margin.
AVERAGE SCORE
The average score of a UT-Texas game is 74.5 to 69.2 in favor of Tennessee. In the last
UT AVERAGES VS. TEXAS
Only one Lady Vol holds a double-digit career scoring average against Texas -- Shyra Ely, with 10.0 ppg. Loree Moore leads in rebounds vs. the Longhorns with 5.0 rpg, in assists with 4.3 apg and in steals, 5.0 spg.
GAME REPORT 4 - TEXAS
Texas returns home with a 1-1 record after an upset loss to Georgia on Sunday, 78-64. The Longhorns opened the season on their homecourt with a solid 84-69 victory over Penn State.
OUR LAST MEETING
Having faced six nationally-ranked teams in its first eight games, the #2-ranked Tennessee Lady Vols came up on the losing end for the first time in the 2003-04 season with a 70-60 defeat to fifth-ranked Texas before a crowd of 15,396 at Thompson-Boling Arena on, Dec. 28, 2003. The loss snapped a 24-game home-court winning streak that began after a 69-66 loss to the Longhorns on Feb. 12, 2002. Tennessee (7-1) was paced by senior Ashley Robinson, who nearly recorded a double-double with a 15-point, nine-rebound effort. Senior Tasha Butts and junior Shyra Ely also tallied double-figure scoring totals with 11 and 10 points, respectively. On the defensive end, junior Loree Moore equaled a career high with seven steals. With a raucous crowd on hand, the Lady Vols fed off the fans' energy early and jumped out to a quick 5-0 lead following a Moore steal and layup. After extending the margin to six, 18-12, with 11:18 remaining in the first half, Texas clawed back to take a 32-30 halftime advantage. The Longhorns shot 48 percent 15-31) in the opening frame compared to Tennessee's 43 percent (13-30). The visiting team also controlled the boards, out-rebounding Pat Summitt's club, 21-14. UT came out cold in the second half, scoring just four points in the first seven-and-a-half minutes of play. Texas capitalized and pushed the margin to eight following a lay-up by Coco Reed at the 11:23 mark. Tennessee would not go away quietly, however, as it chipped away and cut the lead to one after Ely connected on a seven-foot jumper with just under seven minutes remaining in the contest. Following a 30-second timeout by Texas, the Longhorns neutralized the game's momentum and gradually pulled away at the end with perfect free-throw shooting (10-10 to close out the game). On the afternoon, Texas shot 52 percent (27-52) from the field, marking the first time this season a UT opponent has hit on more than half of its shots, while the Lady Vols managed to connect on just 39 percent of their attempts. From the free throw line, UT shot just 56 percent (5-9) compared to Texas' 93 percent (13-14). The Longhorns also held a large advantage on the boards, snaring 15 more rebounds that the Lady Vols (42-27).
BIG XII CONFERENCE
Tennessee has taken on 11 teams from the Big XII Conference all-time and sports a 37-11 record. Only two teams have claimed victories over UT - Texas (10 times) and Colorado (once). The Lady Vols were honorary members of the Big XII last season taking on Oklahoma (a 71-55 win), Texas, a 70-60 loss and an NCAA Sweet 16 win over Baylor, 71-69. After losing 13 straight to the Lady Vols in the 1990s, the Longhorns have won the last three.
OUR LAST MEETING IN AUSTIN
The #4-ranked Tennessee Lady Vols (8-2) suffered its second loss of the season, falling 63-62 to the #22/21-ranked Texas Longhorns in front of 9,057 fans at the Frank Erwin Center in Austin, Texas on Dec. 21, 2002. The defeat marked the second straight for the Lady Vols in the series with Texas, dating back to the Feb. 12, 2002, 69-66 upset at the hands of the Longhorns in Knoxville. On the afternoon, Tennessee managed only 35.7% shooting on 20-of-56 from the floor, while Texas hit at a 40.3% clip. The Longhorns also won the rebounding war, albeit by a minor 41-40 margin. Kara Lawson led all scorers with 24 points, and managed to tie the all-time single game three-point record with six treys out of nine attempts. Tasha Butts posted the first double-double of her career with 11 points and 10 rebounds. The game looked like it might be a blowout early on as seven straight points helped UT to a quick 7-0 advantage. Texas was ready for a 15-round fight, as a three-pointer from Heather Schreiber, who posted 18 points on the evening, drew Texas within 11-7 with 14:05 to play. The Lady Vols managed a six-point lead at 19-13 with 10:20 left after a Lawson trey, but the Longhorns fought right back to take their first lead at 23-22 with 5:58 remaining. Texas eventually grabbed a five-point advantage at 32-27 before Tennessee closed the gap to 35-33 heading to the locker room. The second half was tight as the teams traded the lead eight times and were tied on six occasions. The Lady Vols led by as many as five at 48-43 with 10:34 to play before Texas rallied back to take a 57-55 advantage with 3:39 left. Tied at 57-all, Lawson made a huge three-pointer to give UT a three-point lead at the 1:29 mark, but Schreiber answered immediately with a trey of her own to knot the tally at 60-60. With one second remaining, Texas' Nina Norman bombed in a "prayer" trey to give the burnt orange a three-point lead, 63-60. The Texas bench spilled on the floor with 1.0 remaining and was assessed a technical. Lawson made both tosses to pull within a point, 63-62. A Tennessee final desperation shot with one tick left was not to be, as a full court pass from Lawson to the UT basket was on the money but slipped through guard Loree Moore's fingers as time expired.
THWARTED LAST YEAR
In last season's contest against Texas, the Lady Vols were looking to extend their home court winning streak to 25 games which would have tied for the fifth longest in Tennessee history. Twenty-five wins would have also moved UT into a then-tie with Texas for third-place in the NCAA Division I home court winning streak standings. However, the Longhorns won their third consecutive game over the Lady Vols thus ending the streak. Ironically, that Tennessee win streak began after Texas defeated the Lady Vols 69-66 on Feb. 12, 2002.
RETURN THE FAVOR?
With its 1-0 mark at home to start the season, Texas currently has nation's longest current homecourt win streak - at 37 games...This 37-game home-court win streak ties the second-longest homecourt UT streak ever; Texas also won 37 straight home games from 1977-81...
"T" IS FOR TENNESSEE, TEXAS , TURKEY AND TIGHT
Tight? Exactly. As in tight defense. Over the last four meetings, Tennessee has produced a 1-3 record against the Longhorns including two rare losses in Knoxville. The two UT's are generally considered to be offensive juggernauts but in the last four games the two teams have reached 70 points just one time. In these most recent meetings, Texas has outscored Tennessee 261 (65.2 ppg) to 255 (63.7 ppg).
"T" IS ALSO FOR TRYPTOPHAN
A pre-game meal of turkey loaded with tryptophan is not on the Lady Vols Thanksgiving agenda. Instead, the Tennessee team and staff will celebrate Thanksgiving Dinner in Austin, Texas, on Wednesday night. Turkey has the reputation for containing the highest parts-per-million of the chemical tryptophan. That's the stuff that makes you sleepy, especially when you combine it with vast quantities of mashed potatoes and images of football being played on television. This year, those overdosing on turkey can watch Tennessee and Texas square-off on ESPN2.
SAW YA AT THE BIG DANCE
At the 2003 NCAA Final Four in Atlanta, Ga., Tennessee was joined at the Final Four by Connecticut, Duke and Texas. The Lady Vols dispatched Duke in one semifinal, 66-56, while Connecticut hung-on to beat the Longhorns narrowly, 73-64, in the other semifinal. Fans at the Georgia Dome were clearly disappointed that an all-orange final with Tennessee and Texas and the two winningest coaches in women's basketball did not materialize for the title game.
IT WAS 13 IN A ROW OVER TEXAS
Until Texas broke the streak on Feb. 12, 2002, in Knoxville, the Tennessee Lady Vols had registered 13 wins in a row over the Longhorns and dominated the 1990s with a 12-0 slate. It was a far cry from the late 1970s and 1980s when Texas fashioned a 7-2 record over Tennessee. Texas has reversed the trend and now won three straight over the Lady Vols in the 21st century.
LOTS O' WINS
Seems like winning is all Pat Summitt of Tennessee and Jody Conradt of Texas know how to do as women's collegiate hoops coaches. Going into today's game, the two Hall of Famers (Women's Basketball Hall of Fame and the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame) have combined for 1,703 victories against just 437 losses in a total of 67 seasons. Additionally, both coaches have won NCAA titles with undefeated teams.
ATTRACTING A CROWD
Of the Lady Vols' top 100 all-time attended games, nine contests against Texas have made the list. The largest crowd ever to see Tennessee and Texas play was in Knoxville, Tenn., on Dec. 9, 1987, when a then-world record crowd of 24,563 packed Thompson-Boling Arena. The Longhorns spoiled the Lady Vols party tagging a 97-78 defeat on the home standing team. The biggest crowd to show up in Austin was 10,858 on Dec.22, 2000, to see Tennessee knock off the Longhorns, 67-59.
HIGH PROFILE GAMES - EARLY
The Lady Vols will be thrown into some high profile games early again this campaign. After defeating an always dangerous UT-Chattanooga, 68-34, (ranked #29) to open the season, the Lady Vols turned around two days later and defeated N.C. State, 64-54 in the Jimmy V Classic on ESPN2. Now, two days after that was the home opener versus always tough George Washington which produced a 71-41 win. You guessed it, two days later, UT travels to #4 Texas for a Thanksgiving night clash on ESPN2. A whole three days later, UT faces Temple at home.
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