KNOXVILLE — Tyler Summitt has his impression down perfect.
He claps. He shuffles his feet. He waves with his hands in an effort to push the players down the floor.
Tyler watched film of Kentucky's women's basketball team with his mother, Lady Vols Coach Pat Summitt, yesterday. Summitt would rewind the tape so that they could watch Kentucky Coach Mickie DeMoss' actions on the sideline.
''She was running all up and down,'' Pat Summitt said.
When DeMoss was an assistant at Tennessee under Summitt for 18 years, she was known as the easy-going assistant, the friend of the players if Summitt ever started to push too hard. During games, she left most of the animated sideline work to Summitt.
In her second year leading the Wildcats' program, DeMoss looks a lot more like her mentor as she paces up and down the bench.
She will pace in familiar territory today, as she comes back to Thompson-Boling Arena for the first time as the coach of the visiting team.
''It's like coming back home,'' Summitt said. ''This was her home for 18 years, the longest that she's been anywhere in any program. She's such a part of our family, and the success that we had while she was here is tremendous. At the same time, I know that she's at a new place with a new home and a new team, and doing very good things.''
The Wildcats won only three conference games last season, but Kentucky (13-6, 2-2 SEC) is beginning to see a shift in its program, thanks mostly to the dramatic improvement in recruiting under DeMoss.
Summitt knows all about DeMoss' ability to recruit. With the exception of three freshmen, DeMoss had a hand in recruiting every player on the roster of No. 7 Tennessee (13-3, 3-0).
The two coaches still talk to one another after big games to discuss their teams, and they are still best friends off the court. But they did manage to take a few light-hearted jabs at one another through the media this week.
DeMoss joked that she didn't want to talk to Summitt when she got a phone call from her on Friday morning.
''Pat and I are going to play one-on-one once the game starts,'' said DeMoss, who played at Louisiana Tech. ''I can beat her.''
Added Summitt: ''If she could get a shot off, she probably would. I'm not sure she could get a shot off. Although…what was it at La Tech? She did lead them in shot attempts. She held that record for a long time, most shot attempts – not most made shots.''
DeMoss still has a pretty close relationship with several of Tennessee's players since she was involved in the recruiting of nearly every player on the roster, including three of the freshmen.
Senior point guard Loree Moore tried to call DeMoss earlier this week, but the Wildcats were on the road and Moore had to leave a message.
''We talk off-and-on, not as much as I would like to,'' Moore said. ''When I do get the chance, I try to see how she's doing. And whenever I get to see her, I really enjoy that moment.
''She has a legacy here. I think a lot will come back when she actually sets foot on the court, and she's coaching on a different side.''
Moore, who has played and started in all three games since returning from a tonsillectomy, will not get the start against Kentucky. Summitt was not pleased with the way the Lady Vols started off their two most recent games against Vanderbilt and Auburn.
Moore has favored her left knee in the past two games, a result of rust from her month off and stiffness from an ACL injury she suffered a year ago tomorrow.
Freshman Alexis Hornbuckle will start in Moore's place.
''I like her penetration game,'' Summitt said of Hornbuckle. ''After looking at the tape, there hasn't been that much difference in the defensive intensity. You've got to reward performance.''
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