Game Info: 3:00 pm EST Sun Dec 12, 2004
Tennessee doesn't lose at Thompson-Boling Arena very often.
When it comes to playing DePaul, the ninth-ranked Lady Vols (4-2) have had their way with the Blue Demons (6-1) everywhere.
Tennessee will try to improve to 16-0 all-time against the visiting Blue Demons and recover from a rare home loss as the teams meet Sunday for the first time since last season's NCAA tournament.
The Lady Vols enter off a 59-57 loss to No. 3 Duke at Thompson-Boling Arena on Dec. 2. The Blue Devils became only the seventh team to defeat the Lady Vols at the arena, where Tennessee is 241-14 since it opened in 1987.
Besides Duke and Connecticut, the only other teams to win at Tennessee were Texas, Auburn, Georgia, Stanford and Louisiana Tech, which hosts the Lady Vols on Wednesday.
Tennessee has lost two of three overall, shooting just 31 percent (64-for-207) over that span. The Lady Vols shot 28 percent (21-for-75) in the loss to the Blue Devils.
``I think coming off the Duke loss, we got a lot of information about our basketball team,'' said Tennessee coach Pat Summitt, whose team also lost to No. 4 Texas, dropping from the No. 1 spot.
``It was certainly a disappointing home loss for us.''
The Lady Vols posted a 79-59 win over DePaul in the second round of the Midwest Regional in Tallahassee, Fla., last season as the teams met on a neutral site for the first time.
Freshman Alexis Hornbuckle will make her first collegiate start for Tennessee as she replaces starting point guard Loree Moore, who underwent a tonsillectomy Friday. Moore is expected to be out at least a month.
Moore missed the final 17 games last year with a torn anterior cruciate ligament in her left knee and the Lady Vols went 14-3 in her absence, losing to Georgia in the SEC championship and twice to Connecticut, including the national championship game.
Hornbuckle is averaging 6.0 points and 4.3 rebounds per game.
``Alexis wants to be in charge. She likes taking the initiative,'' Summitt said. ``When you have a player like Alexis they don't shy away from anything. I think the team has a lot of confidence in her abilities.''
Hornbuckle will run an offense that averages 61.8 points, compared to DePaul's 94.1. The Blue Demons led the nation in scoring last season at 84.4 points per game.
``This is going to challenge us defensively,'' said Summitt, whose team allows 51.7 points per outing. ``I do think we are better prepared for that style of play, and the girls understand that we have an opponent coming in that really pushes the pace and puts a lot of points on the board. We are going to have to defend 94 feet. DePaul is clearly the best running team we have faced to date.''
Junior Shanna Zolman and senior Shyra Ely are the only two double-digit scorers for Tennessee at 11.2 and 11 points, respectively.
Junior Khara Smith averages team highs of 19 points and 11.1 rebounds for the Blue Demons, who are shooting 49 percent this season. She was one of five double-digit scorers for DePaul before her cousin, Charlene Smith, tore the ACL in her right knee against Loyola of Chicago on Monday. Charlene Smith, who was averaging 11 points, is out indefinitely.
Playing their first game without her, the Blue Demons suffered their first loss of the season, 69-61 at No. 21 Purdue on Thursday.
Khara Smith had 13 points and 15 rebounds, and sophomore Jenna Rubino added 14 points for DePaul, which had enjoyed an average margin of victory of nearly 39 points in its first six games.
``We did not plan to be in our gym for six straight and on the road for six straight, but that's how it worked out,'' DePaul coach Doug Bruno said. ``Obviously you don't learn how to win close games when you win 50-point games. So that definitely is a factor.''
The Blue Demons have won just one of 10 all-time matchups against teams ranked in the AP poll. They are 13-37 against SEC opponents.
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