University of Tennessee Athletics
University of Tennessee
3-1
Penn State
3-1
Lady Vols Fall at Penn State, 70-56
November 20, 2016 | Women's Basketball
Box Score | Warlick Presser | Russell & Nared Presser | Photo Gallery 
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Redshirt junior Mercedes Russell and junior Jaime Nared both recorded double-doubles in No. 13/13 Tennessee's 70-56 loss on the road against Penn State at the Bryce Jordan Center on Sunday.
Russell finished with 19 points and 11 rebounds for the game. Nared accounted for 18 points and tied her career high in rebounds with 11 as the Lady Vols fell to 3-1 on the season.
Teniya Page led the Lady Lions (3-1) with 29 points on 10-of-21 shooting. She also had four rebounds, an assist and a steal.
Penn State jumped out to an early 13-6 lead midway through first quarter, but an 8-0 run put the Lady Vols in the lead. In the final minute, PSU scored to take a 15-14 advantage for the first period. Junior Kortney Dunbar had five points to lead UT in scoring for the quarter.
The Lady Lions controlled the second stanza, going on a 16-0 run to take a 33-20 lead into halftime. Tennessee's offense struggled in the first half, connecting on just 1-of-11 from behind the three-point line. Nared had four points, six rebounds, an assist and a steal in the half.
Nared caught fire during the third period, scoring 12 points on 5-of-6 shooting to go along with four rebounds. The Lady Vols used an 11-2 run to pull within two points before going into the fourth quarter down, 44-40.
Tennessee's momentum ran out in the final stanza, as Penn State outscored the Lady Vols, 26-16, to hand UT its first loss of the season.
The Lady Vols will head to Blacksburg, Va., next Sunday to face Virginia Tech at Cassell Coliseum for UT's fourth road game of the season. Tip-off is slated for 2 p.m. ET and will be broadcast online on ACC Network Extra.
Heating Up in the Second Half
- With UT down 13 at halftime, Jaime Nared and Mercedes Russell came out hot in the second half.
- The two combined for 29 of Tennessee's 36 points in the half. They also accounted for 12 of UT's 22 rebounds.
- Both players ended up recording double-doubles. Russell had 19 points and 11 rebounds. Nared finished with 18 points and tied a career-high with 11 rebounds, five of which were on the offensive end.
