Lady Vols vs. Arkansas Postgame Quotes

Head Coach Kellie Harper

Opening Statement:
"I'm so proud of our team. I think we've shown a lot of resilience, but also a lot of focus to do what we've done – and not just the last week. Everybody talks about the quarantine, but they had a week off for the holiday. I'm just really proud of them. I think they've had a really good mindset. They're really on the same page with the coaching staff and understand what we're trying to do. This was a lot of fun, and it was really fun to watch the team really enjoy this victory."

On what it says about the team to defeat a top-15 opponent after an extended break:
"I think it says that we've got a talented team. We can win games. I think it also shows quite a bit of resilience and focus. Our team was ready to play. They have been ready to play. I think people can see that. If you watched that game, I think you can see that our players were excited to be out there."

On the team's success in the paint during Thursday's victory:
"We obviously had the advantage there (a height advantage). They knew it. We knew it. What I'm proud of is that our team executed it during the game. We practiced it and talked about where we could get the ball and maybe have that advantage. I'm really proud of our team for coming out really focused on the game plan. We stuck with it for the entire game. We looked very confident doing it."

On senior Kasiyahna Kushkituah's success:
"I think we just needed to get her back in the groove and back playing like she did early on this fall – and doing it in a game and feeling confident to do it in games. I think the last couple of games, she's had some really good opportunities to score. We felt good about it. We've been really pushing her in practice, trying to get her find those opportunities and score. I'm excited. Probably for the first time in two years, I thought down the stretch, she wanted the basketball. That matters. When you want the ball down there and you're confident, I think it matters. It gives your teammates confidence."

On how the team game-planned while separated due to COVID-19 protocols and if Tuesday's result was due more to executing the game plan or the fact that the team was eager to get back into action…
"I think it was a great combination of both of those, to be honest with you. We did not game plan for Arkansas until we came out of quarantine. Our first practice was Tuesday, so we practiced on Tuesday and Wednesday. We really didn't game plan for Arkansas until then. Everything we did prior to that was us. We worked on us. It's hard to work on us when you only have one person out there. There was a lot of individual attention, individual work and coaching from the balcony. It was unique; it was different. Our staff did an amazing job making sure that we were clear and ready to go. I do need to give credit to Tyler Watson, our strength and conditioning coach. We went into quarantine and I told Tyler, 'They have to be ready to play a game on Thursday.' He had them ready. They looked good out there, and I have to give him a lot of that credit."

On how senior Rennia Davis and junior Rae Burrell complement each other's game…
"I think they're both very dynamic. What makes them hard to guard is that a lot of people don't have enough big, athletic defenders to guard both of them. If they do, then a lot of times you have Jordan Horston as well. I think that initially helps them. They both play really aggressively. It looks different, but they play aggressively, and that's really good. You've got to account for both of them. They can shoot. They do a nice job in the paint. I think their styles are coming at you very differently, but because of their aggressiveness and their explosiveness, guarding both of them when they're playing like this is really hard."

Tennessee Junior Guard/Forward Rae Burrell

On what has made her be able to play more consistently game in and game out:
"It's just staying consistent, getting in the gym, and getting shots up and making sure my shot is consistent. Also, just doing what I'm able to do to help my team."

On how her and Rennia Davis complement each other on the floor:
"It's just finding her, and then her just crashing the boards, as well as me also crashing the boards. Like you said, we just complement each other without even having to try because we are just playing hard for the team."

On how much she likes playing fast like they did and how inspiring it is to see a teammate like Jordan Horston hustling to get the ball:
"It gives us a lot of energy when we see our teammates putting their body out there, or to go for the loose ball so we can have the advantage. It really just gives us a lot of energy and we feed off that."

Tennessee Senior Guard/Forward Rennia Davis

On what was going through her mind before the game and why she was so energetic out there tonight:
"I was just ready to play. We've been off for two games, we've been in quarantine, and doing workouts like it was preseason all over again, so I was just ready to be out there playing. Also, my teammates obviously contributed to that as they had great energy, and that just fed off on me."

On what this victory means for the team as a whole and how it sets the mood going into these SEC games:
"It's great to come out there after being off for a week and going out there to see that we've still got it as a team. It's just being able to get right back in it, especially a team like Arkansas who gets up and down so much. It's being able to push through it and push through an adverse week like we just had. It's great for our confidence going into the rest of the season getting our first (SEC) win."

On what it means for this team to be able to push through and get the win when it matters against a ranked opponent:
"It means a lot. And rankings don't mean that much, but it's everyone else's opinion. So, for us it is to come out there and just prove everyone else wrong, and that's what we just did. We already know we are a good team and know what we are capable of doing. We just wanted to prove everybody else wrong."

Arkansas Head Coach Mike Neighbors

On the rebounding mismatch:
"I thought there were times we just let them get too deep. We don't stand a chance when it's at nine feet. We don't stand a chance on those nine-foot ones. But those nine-inch ones we can do a lot about, and we didn't. And those were the too-easy ones you're talking about – on a free throw, after a tough contest and we're kind of there but we just don't get go it. So those are things, but I credit them. It was obviously a gameplan, and they executed it perfectly. It's always been a struggle when we face teams that have that kind of length and size, but I credit them for playing to it and playing to their strengths and not settling (for bad shots). They only shot seventeen threes, you know, so that's playing to your strengths. I thought they played to their strengths better than we did."

On the bench not scoring in points:
"It stung. It really stung because they'd played so well the other night. And it's not the no points, it was just as a collective group – and I'm not going to put Jailyn (Mason) in that mix, I thought she executed. Jailyn executed. I thought Jailyn gave us some things, she just didn't give us points. And then I'm going to give Oberg credit. She came in and gave us some stretch, but Erynn (Barnum) and Marquesha (Davis) didn't give us what they normally do, and we missed that. We can't go out there and play five verses how many every, or throw Jailyn in there and go six. We now have 13 games on our legs and we've got get some confidence going with those kids in league. I thought they had some confidence in the preseason, but we haven't gotten those kids any confidence in the SEC. That's going to be really important for Erynn and Marquesha to bounce back, because we're going to need them the rest of the way out."

On the difference Rae Burrell is making for Tennessee in combination with Rennia Davis:
"You can't be out of position on her for one second because she does make you pay now. And used to, you might be in the gap when you're guarding her and get in Rennia's space. Man, you can't do that at all now. I think as whole, when you've got those two type of explosive kids who can get it right to the rim and hurt you from the 3-point line and hurt you on the drive, there's just not a weak side. And I think their point guards are doing a heck of a job. I think Horston and Walker come in and do a great job of orchestrating what they're doing. But you're right, Rae Burrell, I think her emergence, it's the reason… I've been picking these guys in the Top-25 for the last three weeks, and they are a Top-25 team. I've watched them all. This is a really, really good Tennessee team, and one that has a lot of weapons now that you can't key on any one person."