University of Tennessee Athletics
@LadyVol_Hoops Report (1/21/15)
January 21, 2015 | Women's Basketball
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- Head coach Holly Warlick, senior forward Cierra Burdick and junior forward Bashaara Graves visited with the media Wednesday about #5/7 Tennessee's Thursday SEC home game and "We Back Pat" contest vs. LSU at 7 p.m.
The SEC clash will match the Lady Vols, unbeaten in league play, vs. the Lady Tigers, a team that has gotten much more potent with the return of guard Danielle Ballard to the lineup over the last four games. She's helped LSU improve from 7-7 to 10-8 during that span.
The Lady Vols had to endure a loss to LSU in their SEC opener at Thompson-Boling Arena last Jan. 2, but UT bounced back to take the return game in Baton Rouge as well as a come-from-behind tilt in the SEC Tournament quarterfinals. UT enters the contest with a 46-13 series record as the teams meet for the 60th time.
Of course, the matchup will feature the return of LSU head coach Nikki Caldwell and assistant coach Tasha Butts, both former players coached by Warlick at Tennessee and co-workers with Warlick on the Lady Vol staff after their playing careers ended. Warlick has had the upper hand thus far, posting a 3-1 mark against Caldwell and Butts.
THE LADY TIGERS COME TO TOWN
Despite the Big Orange dropping its first contest since November on Monday night at Notre Dame, the Lady Vols look to regain their momentum when they return to conference action vs. LSU on Thursday evening.
The Tigers (10-8, 4-2 SEC) come to Knoxville owning a two-game win streak with wins over No. 15 Mississippi State and No. 10 Kentucky.
The Lady Vols (15-3, 5-0 SEC) look to stay undefeated in conference play and perfect on their home floor, where they are 10-0 this season and winners of their last 14.
When LSU takes the court, a familiar foe will direct LSU on the other end of Thompson-Boling Arena. LSU head coach Nikki Caldwell played under Pat Summitt and (then) assistant coach Holly Warlick from 1990 to 1994, winning the 1991 NCAA Championship under the legendary coach. She also served as a graduate assistant (1998-99) and assistant (2002-08) at Tennessee alongside Warlick. Caldwell also hails from nearby Oak Ridge, Tenn., where she was a prep standout.
Caldwell will be aided by assistant coach Tasha Butts, who played at Tennessee from 2000-04 and was a G.A. in 2004-05.
Although members of both staffs are friends, Warlick is not concerned about that impacting the game.
"Nikki and I are great friends, but when we compete against each other, we are on opposite ends," Warlick said. "It's not hard for us to compete. It's not hard to get our kids up for it." The styles of LSU and Tennessee are strikingly similar, which should come as no surprise since Warlick and Caldwell come from the same coaching tree. Summitt preached physicality, and forward Cierra Burdick mentioned that both of these teams exhibit just that.
"They are physical," Burdick said. "They're tough. It's always a gritty game. It's always extremely physical. Since my freshman year, it has been one of the most physical games of the season."
After missing the beginning of the season, LSU guard Danielle Ballard has been a weapon since her return on January 8. In the last two games, she is averaging 24.5 points per game. Warlick acknowledges what Ballard's return means to the Tigers.
"Danielle brings them a different dimension," Warlick said. "She's obviously a player that can score anytime. She brings them a lot of confidence. It is another body for them, another offensive threat. It gives underclassmen confidence to go out there and play."
Cierra Burdick realizes the significance of the game with it being the `We Back Pat' game and the homecoming of Caldwell, but she knows it will be 40 tough minutes.
"There will be a lot of love in the building, but there will be a lot of hate in the building as well."
SHOWING SUPPORT FOR COACH SUMMITT
Thursday's night game isn't just about the opportunity to defeat LSU, for UT to win its 13th straight game over an SEC opponent or to come back from a tough loss against Notre Dame. Thursday's game is for Pat Summitt.
Against LSU, the Lady Vols will host their annual "We Back Pat" game, serving as an opportunity to raise awareness for the Pat Summitt Foundation, an organization created to help the fight against Alzheimer's disease.
"Everyone knows Pat's success on the court," Warlick said. "I think her foundation, this awareness, steps outside of basketball. It shows the impact that Pat has on everybody, all over the country.
"Her courage to come out and say she had dementia and then she has her foundation for it. She keeps fighting every day. It's so powerful for all of us. To be able to come and kind of help her foundation is what it's all about. It really is about Pat and her not giving up."
Warlick is also excited that while the Lady Vols have the opportunity to support Summitt, another former player of Summitt's will also get the same opportunity to coach in front of her mentor.
"I'm excited that Nikki [Caldwell] is here," Warlick said. "She's obviously been through years with this program and is a huge part of our success here. It's great for me to know she'll get a chance to be here, and Pat is watching."
Knowing that this game is for Pat, the players are just as excited to play for the cause.
"It means a lot," junior Bashaara Graves said. "I committed under Pat when she was here. Knowing it helps that foundation out a lot. We look forward to it every year, supporting Pat and what she's done."
For senior Cierra Burdick, the "We Back Pat" initiative is far more than just a game.
"I think it can be summed up with the fact that Pat said she would give up her eight championships to be able to coach us again," Burdick said. "That's what sticks with me. I'm actually just finishing her book now, so everything is now settling in. I want to come out here and win this game for her. I want to continue to honor her with the gifts, talents and abilities that we've been blessed with and to just go out and play for her and give everything we have for this program and legacy that she has laid down."
Prior to every game that Summitt attends, Burdick makes sure to show her appreciation to the legendary coach for her continued support of the Lady Vols.
"It means the world," Burdick said. "Every home game, if she's here, before the introductions I go and give her a hug and tell her I love her. I think it's my way of saying thank you. Thanks for giving me the opportunity to wear Lady Vol across my chest and to wear orange and white and to continue this legacy that you have worked so hard for."
THE BEAST REDISCOVERS HER AGGRESSIVE SIDE
The Beast. Lady Vol fans have no problem recognizing who is being spoken about when those two words are used to reference a Tennessee basketball player. Bashaara Graves had her best game of the year vs. Notre Dame on Monday night, scoring a season-high 22 points, just one short of her career high.
Graves has struggled in some games, not performing to the expectation that the junior has for herself. Entering the Notre Dame game, Graves had a new mindset.
"Going into the Notre Dame game, I had the mindset that I was going to be aggressive," Graves said. "I definitely think it helps me going into conference play. I need to take that into every game for the rest of the season."
Even in a lull, Graves' teammates made sure to remind the former SEC Freshman of the Year of her capabilities.
"Bashaara Graves showed the beast that she is Monday night," senior Cierra Burdick said. "We've been waiting for that. I think she got away from being aggressive in a stretch down the season. We've been on her, because we want her taking those shots. We want her to be aggressive. We want her hounding the boards like she knows how to. That's the way Bash is capable of playing. Monday night was no surprise. That's how Bash plays."
Graves' appreciates her teammates support and their continuous talks during the season.
"My teammates were talking to me before the game," Graves said. "Ariel in particular told me I needed to be more aggressive. She took that leadership and had a one-on-one talk with me and that helped me a lot."
With a tough SEC slate ahead of the Lady Vols, Burdick and the rest of the team are hoping for Graves to unleash her aggressiveness for the remainder of the season.
"We tell her to continue being confident," Burdick said. "We're confident in her and her abilities. She's a beast. We haven't nicknamed her that for the heck of it. That's how we really feel. We feel like no one can match up with her in the paint, on the high post, in the mid post. There's not another four-player in the country who works as hard as Bash, or who is as physical or strong as Bash or can finish as well as Bash."
