Lady Vols rally to beat Florida, 74-70
Tennessee saved senior night in dramatic fashion on Thursday.
Down seven points with three minutes left, the Lady Vols rallied for a 74-70 SEC women's basketball victory over Florida before a crowd of 9,968 at Thompson-Boling Arena.
Three underclassmen did the heavy lifting. Mercedes Russell scored 17 points and grabbed 10 rebounds. Diamond DeShields and Alexa Middleton each scored 15. DeShields, who sat out Sunday's game against Arkansas after colliding with an Alabama player last Thursday, also grabbed 10 rebounds and recorded nine assists.
Senior Schaquilla Nunn gave Tennessee (18-10, 9-6 SEC) the lead for good, converting a layup with 36.3 seconds left.
"It just felt like we were so determined," Middleton said. "We didn't want to send the seniors out like that. I think it was a team effort. We all came (up) clutch at certain times and in certain areas."
Middleton started the comeback with a driving layup with 2 minutes, 57 seconds left. It was Tennessee's first basket of the fourth quarter, during which they shot 3 for 14 from the floor (21.4 percent). DeShields struck for a conventional 3-point play 28 seconds later. Nunn preceded her decisive basket with a free throw with 1:09 left.
John Adams: DeShields takes charge late
After leading 68-61, Florida (13-15, 4-11) scored just two points in the final 3:58. The points came on Delicia Washington's driving layup with 3 seconds left. Ronni Williams, who scored a game-high 22 points, fouled out with 1:37 left.
With the Gators trailing by three inside the final 20 seconds, Middleton stuck with the quicker Washington until she missed a 3-pointer.
"I think that was the best defense I've ever played," Middleton said.
After the pregame festivities honoring UT seniors Nunn and Jordan Reynolds, the game was dominated by Williams, a Florida senior who had scored 31 points in the teams' first meeting, an 84-75 Lady Vols victory in Gainesville, Fla., on Jan. 26.
UT coach Holly Warlick presented Williams and fellow Florida senior Tyshara Fleming with flowers during the pregame introductions. Williams then scored eight first-quarter points as the Gators bolted to a 22-13 lead.
"Ronni Williams is just a special kid," Warlick said.
About all Tennessee accomplished in the first quarter was drawing two fouls on Williams. The 6-foot forward picked up her third with 6 minutes, 42 seconds left in the second quarter and sat for the rest of the half.
With Williams out, the Lady Vols converted a five-point deficit into a 35-32 halftime lead. But sketchy shooting kept the lead from being larger. Guards Reynolds and DeShields were a combined 4-for-15 from the floor. Meanwhile, Russell, who scored eight points in the first 10 minutes, didn't attempt a shot in the second quarter.
UT's Jamie Nared, who scored 11 points, got into foul trouble with one play in the third quarter. The Lady Vols junior forward was called for a blocking foul on Williams and then slammed down the ball in disgust, drawing a technical. The two fouls gave her three and limited her playing minutes and effectiveness thereafter.
Nared did contribute a free throw to the comeback, however.
"It all started with our defensive stops and getting defensive rebounds," Warlick said of the final rally. "I loved the fight of our kids at the end."
Brooklyn bound: All four of Tennessee's signees - Anastasia Hayes, Evina Westbrook, Rennia Davis and Kasiyahna Kushkituah - have been selected to play in the Jordan Brand Classic April 14 in Brooklyn, N.Y.