University of Tennessee Athletics
LADY VOLS FACE FAMILIAR FOE, LSU, IN FINAL FOUR
April 01, 2004 | Women's Basketball
April 1, 2004
| GAME 34: TENNESSEE vs. LSU - NCAA Final Four LADY VOLS (30-3, 14-0 SEC) " vs. LSU (27-7, 10-4 SEC) April 4, 2004 " 6:00 p.m. CT " New Orleans Arena " 18,000 " New Orleans, La. | ||
 No. 1 Tennessee | vs. |  No. 4 LSU |
 No. 2 LSU | vs. |  No. 7 Minnesota |
Complete Game Notes in PDF Format  Download Free Acrobat Reader | ||
| TENNESSEE TOURNAMENT PAGE | ||
| 2003-04 Basketball Video Clips | ||
 | 3/24 - 2003-04 Highlight Video | |
| | 4/2 - Player Profile - Shanna Zolman | |
PROBABLE UT STARTERS
4- LaToya Davis, F, 6-0, Sr., 5.0 ppg, 3.2 rpg
43- Shyra Ely, F, 6-2, Jr., 15.0 ppg, 8.0 rpg
33- Ashley Robinson, C, 6-5, Sr., 8.1 ppg, 6.4 rpg, 2.1 bpg
3- Tasha Butts, G, 5-11, Sr., 10.4 ppg, 5.2 rpg
5- Shanna Zolman, G, 5-10, So., 12.1 ppg, 2.6 rpg
OFF THE BENCH
1- Sidney Spencer, F-C, 6-3, Fr., 5.6 ppg, 3.5 rpg
13- Dominique Redding, F, 6-1, Fr., 2.0 ppg, 0.9 rpg
25- Brittany Jackson, F, 6-0, Jr., 7.6 ppg, 2.0 rpg
50- Tye'sha Fluker, C, 6-5, So., 5.5 ppg, 3.2 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
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Video Profile with Shanna ZolmanTHE GAME
The top-seeded and #2/3-ranked Tennessee Lady Vols (30-3) advance to the Final Four for an incredible 15th time in the NCAA Tournament taking on #19-ranked LSU (27-7) in one NCAA Final Four semifinal game on April 4. The winner from the UT-LSU game will advance to the Final Four title game and face the winner of the contest between UConn and Minnesota on Tues., April 6 at the 2004 Final Four in New Orleans.
IN OUR LAST GAME
For the second consecutive game, senior Tasha Butts connected on the game-winning bucket in the waning seconds of regulation, and the top-seeded and #2/3-ranked Tennessee Lady Vols advanced to their record-setting 15th NCAA Final Four with a 62-60 victory over sixth-seeded Stanford in the NCAA Midwest Region final in Norman, OK, on Mar. 30, 2004. The triumph was UT's second against the Cardinal this season, as UT prevailed in overtime, 70-66, at Stanford on Dec. 14. Early in the contest, both teams were in rhythm at the offensive end as the Big Orange hit four of its first seven shots and Stanford opened with 5-of-6 shooting. However, SU was able to capitalize more often and took an eight-point lead, 26-18, with 8:26 remaining in the half. Coach Pat Summitt's club responded, though, and held the Cardinal scoreless for nearly six minutes en route to an 11-0 run to take a 29-26 advantage. SU closed the opening stanza with a 5-0 spurt of its own and took a 31-29 lead into the locker room. In the first frame, the Lady Vols shot just 38 percent while SU connected on 48 percent of its tries. However, the Orange and White held a narrow edge on the boards, 19-18. While the Cardinal struck first in the second half with a 3-pointer by Nicole Powell, Tennessee answered by scoring 12 of the next 14 points to take its biggest lead of the game, 41-36, with 14:41 showing. Additionally, UT connected on seven of its first nine shots to open the second stanza. However, Stanford hung on and reclaimed the lead, 56-55, following another 3-pointer by Powell with 3:22 remaining. Still leading by one point minutes later, Butts drained a long ball to give the Lady Vols a two-point lead with just more than a minute remaining. After a game-tying bucket by Powell with 44 seconds left, Butts connected on a scoop layup from the left side with 1.7 seconds on the clock to send Tennessee to its third straight Final Four. UT was led by Butts, junior Shyra Ely and senior LaToya Davis, who recorded, 14, 12 and 10 points, respectively. All three were named to the Midwest All-Regional Team. Freshman Sidney Spencer just missed double figures with nine points. On the night, Tennessee shot 47 percent (25-53) while Stanford connected on 49 percent (28-57) of its attempts. Despite being out-shot, the Lady Vols held the edge on the boards, 30-29, and committed just 11 turnovers.
COMMON DENOMINATORS
Senior Ashley Robinson and junior Shyra Ely have played and started all 33 games for the Lady Vols this season.
2003-04 WON-LOSS DIFFERENTIAL
Wins: +39 (1), +31 (1), +28 (1), +25 (1), +24 (2), +23 (2), +22 (1), +21 (1), +20 (2), +16 (2), +14 (2), +10 (2), +9 (2), +8 (2), +7 (2), +6 (1), +4 (1), +3 (2), +2 (2)
Losses: -10 (1), -14 (1), -2 (1)
UT'S OFFENSIVE FIREPOWER
In all games, this is how Tennessee has shot from the field: 50%FG: Arkansas2 (.582), Vandy2 (.576), LSU (.561), So. Carolina1 (.542), Kentucky (.534), DePaul (.534), Arkansas1 (.500), 40%FG: Vandy1 (.492), ODU (.491), TCU (.491), Colgate (.486),Georgia (.483), DePaul2 (.478), UTC (.476), Stanford2 (.472), Miss. St.2 (.458), LaTech (.457), Alabama (.446), Ole Miss (.443), Florida (.441), Notre Dame (.439), Georgia2 (.424), GWU (.421), Rutgers (.418), Baylor (.404), Miss. St. (.400), 30%FG: Stanford (.397), Texas, (.394), Connecticut (.393), Duke (.387), South Carolina2 (.378), Oklahoma (.377), Auburn (.343).
DEEE ----- FENSE
In all games, this is how the opposition has shot from the field: 50%FG: Texas (.519), 40%FG: Stanford2 (.491), Vandy2 (.483), Ole Miss (.455), DePaul (.448), Kentucky (.446), Florida (.444), South Carolina2 (.439), Auburn (.433), Vandy1 (.435), Baylor (.424), Stanford (.415), Connecticut (.409), Georgia2 (.400), 30%FG: So. Carolina 1 (.396), Notre Dame (.393), GWU (.392), Duke (.358), Alabama (.356), LaTech (.343), Rutgers (.367), LSU (.3764), Oklahoma (.338), TCU and Miss. State (.328), Arkansas2 (.319), Georgia (.317), 20%FG: UTC (.292), Miss. St.2 (.289), DePaul2 (.288), ODU (.281), Colgate (.257), Arkansas1 (.250)
GAME REPORT 34 & POSSIBLE GAME REPORT 35
(For extensive UT game notes on LSU, Connecticut or Minnesota, please refer to the additional notes section in the Tennessee postseason supplement).
SURVIVED AND ADVANCED - HEADING TO THE BIG EASY
The six-time NCAA Champion Tennessee Lady Vols have advanced to the Final Four for the 15th time. On Sun., Apr. 4 at 6:00 p.m. CT (ESPN) Tennessee faces #19 LSU in an NCAA Semifinal at the New Orleans Arena.
YOU WHO, IT'S US . . . WE'RE AT THE FINAL FOUR . . . AGAIN
After attending four consecutive Final Fours (1995, 1996, 1997 and 1998) and winning three consecutive titles (1996, 1997 and 1998), the Lady Vols missed the festivities in 1999 and 2001. UT did make an appearance at the 2000 NCAA Final Four in Philadelphia, Penn., and lost to the Connecticut Huskies for the title. Currently, this is the Lady Vols third consecutive Final Four after attending the 2002 Final Four in San Antonio, Texas (losing to Connecticut in the semis) and the 2003 Final Four in Atlanta, Ga. (losing to Connecticut in the title game). The Lady Vols have now advanced to their 15th NCAA Final Four and will be looking to grab an unprecedented seventh title.
NO PRESSURE BUT. . .EVERY LADY VOL HAS PLAYED IN ONE
Every Lady Vol hoopster (since 1976) has played in at least one Final Four during her career at Tennessee. Lady Vol seniors Tasha Butts, LaToya Davis and Ashley Robinson have gone to three Final Fours during their careers at UT -- the 2002 Final Four in San Antonio, Texas, losing to Connecticut in semifinal play, the 2003 Final Four in Atlanta, Ga., (losing to UConn in the Championship game) and this season's festivities in New Orleans.
SHE LOVES MARCH AND APRIL, TOO
Tennessee Lady Vol basketball coach Pat Summitt loves to kick things up a notch in the months of March and April. Summitt, who has now coached in 1,017 collegiate contests and sports a 851-166 overall record in 30 seasons, has gone into battle 200 times in the months of March and April. She has come out a winner in 159 games losing just 41 basketball games (.805). Her teams are 58-2 at home, 9-1 away and 92-38 at neutral sites in the third and fourth months.
TENNESSEE'S AVERAGE SCORE IN THE FINAL FOUR
In 100 NCAA Tournament games since 1982, Tennessee has averaged 77.6 ppg while holding the opposition to 64.1 ppg. In 13 previous Final Fours, here's how the numbers stack up in all games played. In Final Four semifinal games, the Lady Vols average 70.1 ppg and give up 67.9 ppg to the opposition for a winning differential of just +2.2. In just Lady Vol semifinal wins, Tennessee has a dozen point advantage in victories, 76.8 ppg to 64.8 ppg. When UT has lost in the semis, it's been by almost a 20-point margin, 74.7 ppg to just 55.0 ppg for the Lady Vols. In NCAA title games all-time, the Lady Vols win by almost six points - 70.4 to 64.7. In NCAA title game victories, Tennessee typically wins big - 76.1 ppg to 61.6 ppg. Conversely, when the Lady Vols lose in a title game, it's usually by an average of a dozen points, 71.0 to 59.0.
SUMMITT'S NCAA RECORD
Lady Vol coach Pat Summitt has coached in 1,017 basketball games to date producing an incredible 851-166 (.838) overall record. What's even more amazing is that she has coached in 100 NCAA Tournament games --- her record in the NCAA's, 84-16 (.833) in 100 NCAA contests. Just as an FYI, Dean Smith (North Carolina) leads the men's side of things in the NCAAs recording 65 NCAA wins from 1967-97. Summitt has appeared in all 23 (consecutive) NCAA Tournaments, and has now tied Smith also appeared in 23 consecutive tournaments from 1975-97.
THE MIDWEST TOURNEY TEAM
The Tennessee Lady Vols placed three players on the 2004 NCAA Midwest Regional All-Tournament team as seniors Tasha Butts and LaToya Davis were selected along with junior All-American Shyra Ely. They were joined on the team by Most Outstanding Player Nicole Powell (Stanford), Jessica Stratton (Baylor) and Susan Borchardt (Stanford).
LAST TWO GAMES, NO BUTTS ABOUT IT
Tennessee senior Tasha Butts never envisioned the role she's been playing in her final games for the Lady Vols but she relishes the opportunity. Against Baylor, she hit the game winning free throws with :0.2 ticks on the clock. "When I got to the free throw line all I was thinking was every day in practice that's what you shoot free throws for. I wasn't in a panic." In the NCAA Midwest Regional Final, Butts canned a spinning move to the bucket with just 1.7 seconds showing. "It's unbelievable. This whole season we've been put in positions like this and it always seems like I have the ball in my hands. Right now I'm very confident that I can make the play for my team. The last second shot coach just told everyone to flatten out and it was up to me to make the play. I just felt like it was now or never. I have always had a scoring mentality. I think as a leader you can't shy away from a challenge. We all have to step up and make big plays. It just happened in the last second the ball was in my hands. It just came down to you're either going to go into overtime or your going to lose and finish out your career."
GET SOME BEATLES BUMPER MUSIC - LET IT BE
Ask Tennessee coach Pat Summitt or the players anything you want - but just let what happened at the end of the Baylor go - it's done, in the history books, over. The facts: the Lady Vols staged a furious rally in the final six minutes to tie the score in the last minute of play, there was a Baylor foul, there was time left in the game, Tasha Butts hit two free throws, Tennessee wins the game. Would there have been the same controversy if a UT player had been called for the foul and Baylor hit the free throws?? Coach Summitt perhaps summed it up the best, "If such a foul occurs in the first three minutes of a game, do you call it? Yes,'' she said. Case closed. Let it be.
SENIOR MAGIC
Senior starters Tasha Butts, LaToya Davis and Ashley Robinson are enjoying the best games of their Lady Vol careers. The trio has accounted for one-third of the team's total production in the 2004 NCAA Tournament, The group is connecting on 47% of its field goal tries, 77% of its charity tosses, and 39% of its three-pointers. They contribute about 30 points per game, 21 rebounds, 10 assists, four steals and three blocks per game, collectively.
FOND MEMORIES OF THE BIG EASY
The Tennessee Lady Vols have fond memories of winning an NCAA title in New Orleans - the Big Orange pulled off the 1991 NCAA Championship in Lakefront Arena taking a 70-67 overtime win over Virginia.
IT ALL STARTED HERE
Upstart Connecticut joined NCAA ole-timers Tennessee, Stanford and Virginia at the 1991 NCAA Final Four in New Orleans. The Huskies were dispatched by a Dawn Staley-led Cavalier team while the Lady Vols knocked off the defending NCAA Champion Stanford Cardinal. Tennessee and Virginia then met in the first NCAA overtime title game with the Lady Vols winning 70-67.
NIKKI C MADE A BIG IMPACT AS A ROOKIE IN NEW ORLEANS
Current Lady Vol assistant coach Nikki Caldwell was a Lady Vol freshman when Tennessee won the 1991 NCAA Championship in New Orleans, La. After producing 10 points and four assists against Stanford in the Final Four semis, Caldwell was a defensive stopper and tallied two points and three rebounds in the title game against Virginia. Caldwell would later become an assistant coach at UVA (1999-02) before returning to Knoxville as an assistant.
TODDLER TIDBITS
Lady Vol coach Pat Summitt's 13-year old son Tyler attended his first Final Four in New Orleans as a seven-month old. Several of the Lady Vol players - notably All-American center Daedra Charles-- kissed his head for good luck at the games. At this Final Four, there is another infant on the UT sidelines. Eleven-month old Cole Brown, son of assistant coach Greg Brown, will be attending his first Final Four in New Orleans. Cole is a well-traveled little boy, he accompanied his dad and mom, Teresa, when the Lady Vols traveled to Italy and Greece last summer as an infant. By the way, this marks Tyler's ninth Final Four.
TITLE DROUGHT
Since the NCAA began sponsoring championships for women, the Tennessee Lady Vols have never gone longer than five years between basketball titles. UT started play in the NCAA Tournament in 1982 and won its first Championship in 1987. Two more titles followed in 1989 and 1991. It would be five years before the next championship in 1996 but that started a string of three consecutive in 1996, 1997 and 1998. The Lady Vols are due to win a championship in 2004.
AGAINST THE 2004 TOURNAMENT FIELD
Tennessee has faced in 21 teams in 25 games from the 63-team (plus UT) NCAA bracket. Overall, the Lady Vols have turned in an 22-3 record. UT has defeated: Auburn (68-61 OT), Baylor (71-69), Duke (72-69), Rutgers (59-49), Chattanooga (83-52), Oklahoma (71-55), George Washington (65-51), Louisiana Tech (85-65), Stanford (70-66 OT and 62-60), Notre Dame (83-59), Old Dominion (66-42), DePaul (96-89 OT and 79-59), Colgate (77-54), Vanderbilt (79-54 and 94-88), TCU (74-66), Georgia (70-67), Florida (88-79), LSU (85-62) and Mississippi (85-69). The Lady Vols' three losses have come against Connecticut (67-81), Texas (60-70) and Georgia (66-68 OT).
2004 NCAA TOURNEY TIME FOR TENNESSEE
The Lady Vols are in postseason for the 29th time in coach Pat Summitt's 30-year career at Tennessee. UT traveled for the first time ever in the 23-years of the tournament and attended the NCAA Midwest First and Second Round games at Leon County Arena in Tallahassee, Fla., on March 20 & 22. On March 20, the #2/3-ranked Lady Vols defeated Colgate, 77-54 and then #25-ranked DePaul, 79-59. Tennessee advanced to the Midwest Regional Championship in Norman, Oklahoma, and defeated #15/17 Baylor, 71-69, on Mar. 28 and #10/8 Stanford, 62-60, on Mar. 30.
PLANTED SEEDS
You can call it longevity. You can call it coaching and performance. You can call it strength of schedule. Whatever you call it, the University of Tennessee has earned 16 number-one seeds all-time in the NCAA Tournament since 1982. Additionally, UT has been seeded number two on three occasions, number three, three times and number four just once. From 1988-96, the Lady Vols had nine consecutive number one seeds. Only 26 schools have ever received number one seeds over the years.
2004 #1 SEEDS
The four number one seeds in the 2004 NCAA Tournament have all been there before as UT leads with 16 top rankings in 23 NCAA Tournaments, Texas follows with five, Duke has four consecutive number one seeds, while Penn State has earned three over the years.
IN THE OLD AIAW DAYS
The University of Minnesota was the last school to host the old format 16-team AIAW National Championship tournament in 1977. The festivities in Minneapolis marked the first appearance in the "AIAW Final Four" for Tennessee and LSU. The Lady Vols played Delta State in one semifinal and lost, while LSU faced Immaculata in the other semifinal and advanced to the championship game against the Margaret Wade coached Delta State squad. The Lady Statesmen were too much for the Ben-Gal Tigers and LSU settled for a runner-up spot while the Lady Vols dispatched Immaculata in the consolation finals to finish third in their first national championship appearance. UT was led by All-American center Patricia Roberts and a rookie point guard from Bearden High School, and the Rocky Hill Community in Knoxville, Holly Warlick.
OLD HOME WEEK FOR PAT AND SUE
Lady Vol coach Pat Summitt and LSU head coach Sue Gunter go way back. Gunter, one of Summitt's mentors, was an assistant coach on the 1976 Olympic Team in which Pat Head (Summitt) was the team captain. Four years later, Head (Summitt) was Gunter's assistant coach for the 1980 U.S. Olympic Team which never made it to Moscow due to the United States boycott of the Games.
POKEY HAD FUN WITH THE LADY VOLS
When LSU defeated Tennessee, 80-75, for the 1991 SEC Championship, interim LSU head coach Pokey Chatman led the Lady Tigers charge in the title win.
CRAWFISH CONNECTION
A little something will be missing from the Lady Vols sidelines at this Final Four that's been around at the last dozen trips - Mickie DeMoss. DeMoss, former Lady Vol associate head coach (1985-2003), who moved into the head coaching position at Kentucky after the Final Four in Atlanta, Ga., last year, was part of UT's six NCAA titles and the Lady Vols resident Cajun. A native of Tallulah, La., DeMoss, along with coach Pat Summitt, were famous for their "Krawfish Kookout" at the Summitt Family Compound along the banks of the Tennessee River each Spring. The DeMoss' Louisiana family members would drive through the night with hundreds of pounds of live crawfish for the weekend boil.
I'M AN LSU GRAD BUT MY PAYCHECK HAS ORANGE INK
UT Women's Athletics Director Joan Cronan was a 1966 graduate of Louisiana State University and a native of Opelousas, La. Cronan has been onboard as the Women's Athletics Director at the University of Tennessee since 1983 and was a 1995 inductee into the LSU's Alumni Hall of Distinction. Cronan is married to Tom Cronan, also an LSU grad, who is an associate professor of Health, Physical Education and Recreation at Carson-Newman College in Tennessee.
BUT GETTING TO THE ROUND OF 8 SURE IS ELITE
The Lady Vols have been fortunate to advance to the Elite 8 round of the NCAA Tournament for the 19th time in 23 consecutive years in the NCAA Tournament. Additionally, Tennessee has advanced to the Final Four in eight of the last 10 years.
ADVANCING FROM THE ROUND OF 16 SURE IS SWEET
The Lady Vols have been fortunate to advance to the Sweet 16 round of the NCAA Tournament for 23 consecutive years. Additionally, Tennessee has made it to the regional finals in 19 of the last 23 trips to the Sweet Sixteen. The Lady Vols did not advance to the regional finals in 1985 (losing to Ole Miss, 63-60), in 1992 (losing to Western Kentucky, 75-70), in 1994 (losing to Louisiana Tech, 71-68) and in 2001 after a devastating loss to Xavier, 80-65.
FAMILIAR FACES IN THE 2004 ELITE 8
The Tennessee Lady Vols have seen some familiar faces among the seven other teams that remained in the Elite 8 as UT took on five of the these teams in six games this season. UT posted an 4-2 overall record taking wins from then #6/5 Stanford (70-66 OT) A, #19/17 Georgia (70-67) A, #1 Duke (72-69) A, and #15/17 LSU (85-62) H. Tennessee's two losses were to then #4/3 Connecticut (67-81) H and #20/16 Georgia (66-68 OT) N.
TENNESSEE'S AVERAGE SCORE IN THE ELITE 8
Known as the toughest 40 minutes in collegiate basketball, in 18 all-time games in the Elite 8, the Lady Vols average 72.7 ppg and give up 67.5 ppg to the opposition for a winning differential of just +5.2. The four times Tennessee lost an Elite 8 game, UT averaged just 64.3 ppg while the opponents tallied 71.7 ppg giving the Lady Vols a losing average of -7.4. In six Elite 8 games played in Knoxville, the Lady Vols doubled their overall winning average, outscoring the visitors 78.0 while holding them to 65.2 ppg for a +12.8 winning margin.
