University of Tennessee Athletics
LADY VOL BASKETBALL HOSTS LSU IN REGULAR SEASON FINALE
February 28, 2004 | Women's Basketball
Feb. 28, 2004
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TODAY'S GAME
The #2-ranked Tennessee Lady Vols (24-2, 13-0 SEC) honor seniors Tasha Butts, LaToya Davis, Courtney McDaniel and Ashley Robinson in pre-game ceremonies before facing #15/17-ranked LSU (22-5, 10-3 SEC).
PROBABLE UT STARTERS
4- LaToya Davis, F, 6-0, Sr., 3.5 ppg, 2.5 rpg
43- Shyra Ely, F, 6-2, Jr., 14.5 ppg, 8.1 rpg
33- Ashley Robinson, C, 6-5, Sr., 8.5 ppg, 5.7 rpg, 2.0 bpg
3- Tasha Butts, G, 5-11, Sr., 10.2 ppg, 4.9 rpg
5- Shanna Zolman, G, 5-10, So., 12.3 ppg, 2.7 rpg
OFF THE BENCH
1- Sidney Spencer, F-C, 6-3, Fr., 5.2 ppg, 3.2 rpg
13- Dominique Redding, F, 6-1, Fr., 2.0 ppg, 0.9 rpg
50- Tye'sha Fluker, C, 6-5, So., 5.9 ppg, 3.4 rpg
INJURED
21- Loree Moore, G, 5-9, Jr., 7.9 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 2.6 apg
ACL injury to left knee suffered on 1-24-04; lost for season
25- Brittany Jackson, F, 6-0, Jr., 8.7 ppg, 2.2 rpg
MCL injury to left knee suffered in practice on 2-18-04; status out for LSU
34- Courtney McDaniel, F, 6-1, Sr., 2.3 ppg, 2.2 rpg
Out for LSU; medical reasons; evaluated day-to-day
LSU's PROBABLE STARTERS
34 Wendlyn Jones, F, 6-1, So., 5.8 ppg, 4.1 rpg
52 Tillie Willis, F, 6-3, Jr., 3.4 ppg, 4.0 rpg
2 Temeka Johnson, G, 5-3, Sr., 12.8 ppg, 5.1 rpg
33 Seimone Augustus, G, 6-1, So., 18.7 ppg, 6.2 rpg
45 Doneeka Hodges, G, 5-9, Sr., 14.5 ppg, 4.0 rpg
IN OUR LAST GAME
Despite having only eight players in uniform, the #2-ranked Tennessee Lady Vols stretched their SEC regular season winning streak to 33 games with a 93-71 victory over Arkansas at Bud Walton Arena on Feb. 26, 2004. The win was UT's second against the Lady 'Backs this season, as Pat Summitt's squad earned an 83-44 triumph on Jan. 8 in Knoxville. While UA registered the contest's first points, the Big Orange answered with a 12-2 run to take an early 12-4 advantage. Offensively, the Lady Vols were nearly unstoppable in the opening portion of the first half, as they connected on their first five shots from beyond the arc to take a 28-14 lead with 10:29 showing. Still maintaining a 14-point margin minutes later, Tennessee closed the first stanza with a 15-4 run to take an impressive 47-21 advantage into the locker room. The score snapped a three-game streak in which the Lady Vols trailed at the half. In the first session, the UT shot 52 percent from the field and hit 7-of-10 from long range, while the opposition hit just 22 percent of their attempts. UT dominated the glass as well, snaring 10 more rebounds than the Lady 'Backs. After the break, Tennessee had little trouble extending its lead as the margin grew to 30 points, 63-33, following a 3-pointer by senior Tasha Butts with 14:12 remaining. Arkansas responded, however, with a 14-4 run during the next four minutes to draw within 20. Determined not to let the contest slip away, the Lady Vols quickly scored the next 11 points to take their biggest lead of the game, 78-47. The Lady 'Backs were unable to get the margin closer than 20 points the rest of the way, as UT coasted to the 22-point victory. UT was paced by Butts, who nearly recorded a triple-double with 25 points, 10 rebounds and a career-high eight assists. Also registering double-digit point totals were junior Shyra Ely (17), freshman Sidney Spencer (13), senior Ashley Robinson (12) and senior LaToya Davis (11). On the night, UT shot a season-high 58.2 percent (32-55) from the floor, including 64.3 percent (9-14) from 3-point range. UA was held to just 31.9 percent shooting. The Lady Vols were also strong on the glass and won the battle of the boards, 49-30.
FIRST IN THE SEC 11 OF THE LAST 12 YEARS
The Tennessee Lady Vols have claimed an amazing 11 SEC titles in the last 12 seasons. UT's worst finish during this stretch was a fifth place finish during the 1996-97, 10-loss season, where the Lady Vols still managed to win the NCAA title.
| 2004- | 13-0 | First |
| 2003- | 14-0 | First |
| 2002- | 13-1 | First |
| 2001- | 14-0 | First |
| 2000- | 13-1 | First (tie) |
| 1999- | 13-1 | First |
| 1998- | 14-0 | First |
| 1997- | 8-4 | Fifth |
| 1996- | 9-2 | First |
| 1995- | 11-0 | First |
| 1994- | 11-0 | First |
| 1993- | 11-0 | First |
UT- LSU
All-Time Series Meetings
UT leads 30-7
| DATE | SITE | W/L | SCORE |
| Dec. 17, 1977 | N15 | W | 72-63 |
| Jan. 9, 1978 | A | L | 62-72 |
| Feb. 6, 1978 | H | W | 86-68 |
| Jan. 24, 1979 | A | L | 80-85OT |
| Jan. 29, 1979 | H | W | 92-48 |
| Jan. 28, 1980 | H | W | 96-73 |
| Dec. 10, 1980 | A | W | 88-73 |
| Dec. 17, 1982 | A | W | 83-73 |
| Feb. 3, 1984 | H | W | 82-80 |
| Feb. 27, 1985 | H | W | 85-78 |
| Jan. 20, 1986 | H | W | 60-50 |
| Mar. 22, 1986 | N48 | W | 67-65 |
| Feb. 7, 1987 | A | W | 84-73 |
| Mar. 5, 1987 | N51 | W | 64-63 |
| Feb. 13, 1988 | H | W | 89-82 |
| Feb. 10, 1989 | A | W | 89-65 |
| Feb. 10, 1990 | H | W | 86-60 |
| Jan. 21, 1991 | A | W | 79-77 |
| Mar. 4, 1991 | N51 | L | 75-80 |
| Jan. 8, 1992 | H | W | 85-69 |
| Mar. 7, 1992 | N51 | W | 70-65 |
| Jan. 7, 1993 | A | W | 95-61 |
| Jan. 9, 1994 | H | W | 91-69 |
| Jan. 7, 1995 | A | W | 102-68 |
| Feb. 22, 1996 | H | W | 88-75 |
| Feb. 22, 1997 | A | L | 78-83 |
| Mar. 1, 1997 | N65 | W | 100-99OT |
| Feb.22, 1998 | H | W | 90-58 |
| Feb. 28, 1999 | A | L | 69-72 |
| Jan. 6, 2000 | A | W | 86-50 |
| Feb. 20, 2000 | H | W | 80-48 |
| Jan. 4, 2001 | H | W | 89-70 |
| Feb. 18, 2001 | A | W | 75-73 |
| Jan. 13, 2002 | H | W | 79-67 |
| Mar. 2, 2002 | N101 | L | 80-81 |
| Feb. 23, 2003 | A | W | 68-65 |
| Mar. 9, 2003 | N107 | L | 62-78 |
*denotes overtime
LSU SERIES
This marks the 38th meeting between the two schools dating back to the 1977-78 season with the Lady Vols holding a 30-7 advantage. The two teams began the series at the Miss. Univ. for Women Xmas Tournament and have played every year since that time. None of LSU's victories have ever come in Knoxville. The seven LSU wins have occurred in the following fashion: Win 1- in 1978, the Lady Tigers took a 72-62 win in Baton Rouge; Win 2-in 1979, LSU claimed an 85-80 OT win at home in a shortened, Dale Brown-inspired running clock overtime; Win 3-in 1991, LSU won the SEC Tourney with an 80-75 win over UT; Win 4-in the final 1997 regular season game in Baton Rouge, Sue Gunter grabbed her second win (ever) over UT with an 83-78 victory; Win 5-in 1999, the Lady Tigers upset #1 UT 72-69 in the final game of the regular season, Win 6- in 2002, unranked LSU bounces #3 UT out of the SECs, 81-80 and win 7-LSU outlasts UT in the 2003 SEC Final, 78-62.
AVERAGE SCORE
The average score of all UT-LSU games is 83.2 (UT) and 69.7 (LSU).
COMMON OPPONENTS
Outside of SEC play, UT and LSU share Rutgers as a common opponent this season. LSU defeated RU, 78-68, and UT took a 59-49 decision over Rutgers.
GAME REPORT 27 - LOUISIANA STATE
The #2/2-ranked Tennessee Lady Vols (24-2, 13-0 SEC) look to go undefeated in regular-season SEC play for the second straight year in a tilt against #15/17-ranked LSU (22-5, 10-3 SEC). The Lady Tigers have won four out of their last five games and have outscored their opponents, 80.2 to 65.2 over that span.
LADY VOLS VS. LADY TIGERS STAT COMPARISON
| TENNESSEE | LOUISIANA STATE | |
| OVERALL RECORD | 24-2 | 22-5 |
| SCORING | 76.3 | 74.6 |
| SCORING DEFENSE | 63.0 | 61.3 |
| POINT MARGIN | +13.3 | + 13.3 |
| REBOUNDS | 42.5 | 38.1 |
| OPP. REBOUNDS | 35.7 | 34.3 |
| REBOUND MARGIN | + 6.7 | + 3.8 |
| FG% | .453 | .472 |
| OPPONENT FG% | .382 | .387 |
| THREE POINT FG% | .385 | .324 |
| OPPONENT 3FG% | .271 | .303 |
| FT% | .718 | .734 |
| OPPONENT FT% | .686 | .694 |
| BLOCKS AVERAGE | 4.4 | 3.7 |
| STEALS AVERAGE | 8.9 | 9.4 |
| TURNOVER AVERAGE | 17.5 | 13.1 |
OUR LAST MEETING WITH LSU
Top-seeded and third-ranked Tennessee's run at an 11th SEC Tournament crown ended a little short of its goal in front of 8,042 fans at the Alltel Arena in Little Rock, Ark., with a 78-62 defeat to the second-seeded and #6/5-rated LSU Lady Tigers on Mar. 9, 2003.. With the loss, UT's record fell to 28-4 overall, while LSU improved to 27-3 on the season. On the afternoon, two Lady Vols reached double-figures as senior Kara Lawson led Tennessee with 16 points on 8-of-14 shooting from the floor, while freshman Shanna Zolman posted a personal scoring-high for SEC Tournament play with 15 tallies in only 21 minutes of action. The story of this contest was shooting percentage, as LSU hit 60.7% of its shots in the first half (17-of-28), to run out to a 17-point halftime advantage, and 50% for the game, while UT hit at a 37.5% clip for both stanzas. The Lady Vols managed only 1-of-13 shooting on its three-point attempts and were outrebounded 36-35, including 20-13 over the crucial opening 20 minutes of play. The Lady Tigers roared out to a 7-0 lead as UT missed its first five shots and posted four quick turnovers in the opening 4:24, before Zolman opened the scoring for UT with a four-foot jumper. Lay-ups by Gwen Jackson, Lawson and Ashley Robinson got the Lady Vols back in the game as UT trailed only 9-8 with 13:13 to play. However, LSU went on an 8-0 spurt behind the play of Temeka Johnson and Doneeka Hodges to gain a 17-8 advantage. Three straight tallies by Hodges boosted LSU's lead to 23-10, but three consecutive Lawson buckets drew UT back within nine points at 25-16 with 7:43 to play. The Lady Vols were within nine at 30-21 after a Courtney McDaniel lay-up, but LSU closed the half on a 17-4 run to head to the halftime break up 42-25. Tennessee won the second half against the Lady Tigers 37-36, but could never mount a substantial run to get back in the contest. Jumpers by Loree Moore and Lawson drew UT within 13 tallies at 49-36, but a three-point play by LSU's point guard Johnson re-extended the Lady Tiger advantage to 16 points. A 5-0 run keyed by a strong three-point play from Ashley Robinson got UT as close as it would get in the second-half at 61-49, but LSU had an answer in scoring the next four points to fight off UT's comeback bid.
CAREER STATS VS. LSU
Sophomore Shanna Zolman has enjoyed success against Louisiana State as the Syracuse, Ind., product averages 12.5 points per contest and has shot .470 percent against the Lady Tigers. Additionally, junior Shyra Ely averages 9.0 points and 6.8 rebounds per game versus the Bayou Bengals. Complete Lady Vol career statistics versus LSU can be found on page 78 of the 2003-04 Lady Volunteers Media Guide.
LSU SERIES TIDBITS
UT has won 14 of the last 19 meetings with LSU dating back to 1992
OUR LAST MEETING IN KNOXVILLE
The #2/3-ranked Tennessee Lady Volunteers faced an undermanned Louisiana State Lady Tiger team on Jan. 13, 2002 and had to fight for a 79-67 victory in Knoxville. The win upped UT's SEC home court winning streak to 35 consecutive games dating back to 1996. LSU had just dropped out of the top 25 polls during the week and looked like a team on a mission as they rolled into Knoxville, just eight players strong. The game see-sawed through the opening eight minutes before LSU pulled ahead. With 9:42 showing in the first half, the Lady Tigers held a seven-point lead, 15-8. UT then subbed reserve senior post Shalon Pillow who helped turn the first half around for the Lady Vols. In a three-minute stretch, Pillow scored eight points and UT led 26-23 with 4:30 to play. LSU went on a mini-run and led by five, 31-26, before a one-minute five-point scoring spree by rookie Brittany Jackson found the Lady Vols tied at 33-all at the half. LSU outrebounded UT in the first half, 21-18, grabbing seven offensive boards - much to the displeasure of the Lady Vol coach. In the second half, UT could not shake LSU. Tennessee led by four (41-37 at 18:07 and 60-56 at 11:01) and LSU would come right back. The Lady Tigers held a 63-62 lead with 7:54 showing before UT buckled down. UT junior Gwen Jackson hit a pair of free throws with 6:10 left to put the Lady Vols ahead for good, 64-63. LSU closed to within 70-67 with 3:43 remaining before UT shut the door and outscored the Lady Tigers 9-0 to take the win. On the afternoon, four Lady Vols were in double-figures led by Kara Lawson's 17 points (15 in the second half). Also in extra digits were Michelle Snow with 14 points, and Shyra Ely and Ashley Robinson with 10 each. Jackson, Ely and Lawson all grabbed seven rebounds apiece. UT connected on just 42% of their field goals (for the third consecutive game), 27% three-pointers and 77% from the charity stripe. Tennessee controlled the boards with a 45-31 advantage and did not allow LSU an offensive board in the second half. UT committed just 10 turnovers while forcing 19 miscues on 13 UT thefts.
UT & LSU RANKING OUR OPPONENTS IN 2003-04
The #2 ranked Tennessee Lady Vols have faced 11 ranked teams in 26 games (42% of its opponents) while LSU has taken on seven ranked teams in 27 games (25% of its opponents).
| TENNESSEE vs. ranked | LSU vs. ranked |
| #17/17 Notre Dame, W, 83-59, H | #9 Penn State, L, 46-83, A |
| #10/11 Louisiana Tech, W, 85-65, H | #22 Rutgers, W, 78-68, H |
| #25 Rutgers, W, 59-49, H | #25 Arizona W, 76-66, H |
| #6/5 Stanford, W, 70-66 OT, A | #21 Auburn, W, 70-59, H |
| #13/15 Oklahoma, W, 71-55, A | #17 Georgia, L, 74-80, A |
| #5 Texas, L, 60-70, H | #19 Auburn, L, 50-68, A |
| #19 TCU, W, 74-66, A | #20 Florida, W, 91-72, A |
| #1/1 Duke, W, 72-69, A | |
| #22/25 Auburn, W, 68-61 OT, H | |
| #4/3 Connecticut, L, 67-81, H | |
| #19/17 Georgia, W, 70-67, A |
INCREDIBLE COACHES
UT coach Pat Summitt and LSU's Sue Gunter are two of the legacies of women's college basketball. The have combined for an amazing 1,548 wins and just 470 losses in a combined total of 70 years of coaching. They are each Hall of Famers, former Olympic coaches and friends for almost three decades. Gunter has collected a total of seven wins over Summitt, four gathered at LSU and three collected during her stint at Stephen F. Austin. Conversely, Summitt has a 26-7 overall record against Gunter, 25-5 while at LSU and 1-2 from the SFA days.
HOW 'BOUT THIS?
Going into today's game, UT and LSU have met 21 times while both teams are ranked in the AP Top 25 poll. Tennessee has been the higher ranked team 18 times.
PLAYED A FEW RANKED
The Tennessee senior class of Ashley Robinson, Tasha Butts, LaToya Davis and Courtney McDaniel have faced 68 ranked teams out of 131 career games - 51% of their collegiate contests have been spent playing against the best in women's basketball. Following the game with #19/17 Georgia, the senior class has compiled a 55-13 record against ranked teams winning 81% of the time. Overall, this senior class is 117-15 in all games (.885) for their Tennessee tenure.
UT-LSU, CLOSENESS COUNTS
Twenty of the 37 all-time meetings between the two schools have been decided by 10 or less points. There is no other team to record that stat against the Lady Vols in as many meetings.
WOW--11 SEASONS OF 10 SEC VICTORIES
In the win over Ole Miss, Tennessee claimed its 12th SEC victory of the season. The Lady Vols have now registered double-digit victories in conference play an incredible 11 times. Since the 1991-92 season when SEC play expanded, the Lady Vols have won at least 10 games in the following years: 1992-10 games, 1993-11 games, 1994-11 games, 1995-11 games, 1998-14 games, 1999-13 games, 2000-13 games, 2001- 14 games, 2002- 13 games, 2003- 14 games and 2004-12 games (Still in progress).
33 CONSECUTIVE SEC REGULAR SEASON WINS
With the victory over Arkansas on 2-26-04, the Lady Vols have now won 33 consecutive regular season SEC games dating back to a loss at Vanderbilt on Feb. 2, 2002. Two years ago, the Commodores wrapped up the Lady Vols going away with a 76-59 victory in Nashville to deal Tennessee its only SEC loss of the season.
53 CONSECUTIVE SEC HOME WINS
With the victory over Florida on 2-19-04, the Lady Vols have now won 53 consecutive SEC home games. The last SEC loss at home was to Georgia on Dec. 8, 1996, 94-93 (OT).
FIRST HOME GAME WITH 10,000 IN THE STANDS WAS AGAINST LSU
On a bitter cold night on Feb. 6, 1978, 10,000 fans braved the frigid weather to heat-up Stokely Athletics Center when #1 LSU and #3 Tennessee faced off in an SEC women's basketball game. The Lady Vols prevailed 86-68 as the throng of 10,000 chanted "We're Number One." It marked the first time that 10,000 fans had attended a Lady Vol game.
OVER 300 WINS
The Tennessee Lady Vols recorded the program's 300th win over a Southeastern Conference opponent all-time with the 86-69 win over Mississippi in Oxford in 2002. Mississippi St. is the only SEC school which has not recorded a win UT.
