University of Tennessee Athletics
Lady Vols Roll Past JMU, 89-60
November 15, 2017 | Women's Basketball
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – No. 13/18-ranked Tennessee rolled to an 89-60 victory over James Madison at Thompson-Boling Wednesday night, with senior forward Jaime Nared posting 25 points, nine rebounds and five assists to lead the way for the Lady Vols.
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UT shot 55 percent from the field, 53.3 percent from behind the arc and had four players in double figures. Freshman forward Rennia Davis followed Nared as UT's second-leading scorer with 17 points, while center Mercedes Russell and forward Cheridene Green tallied 14 and 10 , respectively.
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Nared and fellow senior Russell set the tone early, combining for the Lady Vols' first 11 points and fueling an 11-2 UT run to start the game. Â Tennessee opened up a 23-12 lead to close out the first quarter and never trailed in the contest.
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In the second stanza, Tennessee built its lead to 32-16 by the 7:20 mark before the Dukes mounted a comeback and cut the lead to 37-26 with 3:19 to play in the half. The Lady Vols proceeded to hold JMU to two points for the remainder of the half while tallying 11 points to take a 20-point advantage into the break, 48-28.
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With 6:50 to go in the third, a Russell layup sparked a 17-5 run that put UT up 71-40 with 1:12 to go. JMU netted four points in the final minute of the quarter, cutting Tennessee's lead to 71-44 heading into the final period.
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The Lady Vols added 18 points in the final period while holding James Madison to 16 to win the game 89-60.
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James Madison was led in scoring by Lexie Barrier with 14 and Kelly Koshuta with 13.
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Up Next: Tennessee will host Wichita State on Monday night in its final home game before departing for the Cancun Challenge in Cancun, Mexico. The game is set to start at 7 p.m. and is available for viewing on SECN+.
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Russell In 800-Rebound Club: Mercedes Russell added eight rebounds on the night, bringing her career total to 800 and making her just the 18th Lady Vol to reach that mark.
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Run and Gun: Tennessee scored 30 of their 89 points off fast breaks and tallied 24 points off JMU turnovers.
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Senior Shooting: Jaime Nared and Mercedes Russell have combined for 72 points in Tennessee's first two games and, as a pair, are averaging 63 percent percent shooting. Russell is hitting at 83 percent on 15-of-18 marksmanship thus far in 2017-18
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Dishing The Rock: Freshmen Anastasia Hayes and Evina Westbrook have led UT in assists the first two games. Hayes had eight vs. JMU, while Westbrook dished out six on Sunday vs. ETSU.
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UT shot 55 percent from the field, 53.3 percent from behind the arc and had four players in double figures. Freshman forward Rennia Davis followed Nared as UT's second-leading scorer with 17 points, while center Mercedes Russell and forward Cheridene Green tallied 14 and 10 , respectively.
Â
Nared and fellow senior Russell set the tone early, combining for the Lady Vols' first 11 points and fueling an 11-2 UT run to start the game. Â Tennessee opened up a 23-12 lead to close out the first quarter and never trailed in the contest.
Â
In the second stanza, Tennessee built its lead to 32-16 by the 7:20 mark before the Dukes mounted a comeback and cut the lead to 37-26 with 3:19 to play in the half. The Lady Vols proceeded to hold JMU to two points for the remainder of the half while tallying 11 points to take a 20-point advantage into the break, 48-28.
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With 6:50 to go in the third, a Russell layup sparked a 17-5 run that put UT up 71-40 with 1:12 to go. JMU netted four points in the final minute of the quarter, cutting Tennessee's lead to 71-44 heading into the final period.
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The Lady Vols added 18 points in the final period while holding James Madison to 16 to win the game 89-60.
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James Madison was led in scoring by Lexie Barrier with 14 and Kelly Koshuta with 13.
Â
Up Next: Tennessee will host Wichita State on Monday night in its final home game before departing for the Cancun Challenge in Cancun, Mexico. The game is set to start at 7 p.m. and is available for viewing on SECN+.
Â
Russell In 800-Rebound Club: Mercedes Russell added eight rebounds on the night, bringing her career total to 800 and making her just the 18th Lady Vol to reach that mark.
Â
Run and Gun: Tennessee scored 30 of their 89 points off fast breaks and tallied 24 points off JMU turnovers.
Â
Senior Shooting: Jaime Nared and Mercedes Russell have combined for 72 points in Tennessee's first two games and, as a pair, are averaging 63 percent percent shooting. Russell is hitting at 83 percent on 15-of-18 marksmanship thus far in 2017-18
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Dishing The Rock: Freshmen Anastasia Hayes and Evina Westbrook have led UT in assists the first two games. Hayes had eight vs. JMU, while Westbrook dished out six on Sunday vs. ETSU.
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Team Stats
JMU
UT
FG%
.368
.550
3FG%
.238
.533
FT%
.556
.577
RB
35
43
TO
17
13
STL
5
11
Game Leaders
Players Mentioned
WBB | Kaiya Wynn Media Availability (10.2.25)
Thursday, October 02
WBB | Zee Spearman Media Availability (10.2.25)
Thursday, October 02
WBB | Kim Caldwell Media Availability (9.23.25)
Tuesday, September 23
WBB | Kim Caldwell Media Availability (8.28.25)
Thursday, August 28