Tennessee Lady Vols score big on 3-pointers in win over Long Beach State

Tennessee took aim from long distance and expanded its scoring range on Sunday.

The Lady Vols set a season high with 12 3-pointers in scoring a 90-61 women's basketball victory over Long Beach State at the Walter Pyramid in Long Beach, Calif.

Meme Jackson and Anastasia Hayes each scored a team-high 15 points for No. 7 Tennessee (11-0). Jackson set a career single-game high for 3-pointers with five. Overall, UT was 12-for-29 from long range (41 percent).

Ma'Qhi Berry led Long Beach State (2-9) with 19 points.

The game was Tennessee's first since an 82-75 victory over then-No. 2 Texas on Dec. 10.

More:Lady Vols hope success, trends travel with them to first true road games

"May have been a little concerned after the Texas game," UT coach Holly Warlick said in a postgame interview on the Lady Vols radio network. "... This team, they're really together. They're fun to coach. I'm sure they're fun to watch."    

Tennessee's 27-16 lead after one quarter was predictable. The Lady Vols had outscored the opposition 232-125 in the first 10 minutes during their first 10 games. How they built the lead was unusual, however.

UT, which was averaging 5.2 3-pointers per game, hit six in the opening quarter against Long Beach State's zone defense. By quarter's end, Jackson had surpassed her previous career single-game high of three 3s.

Jackson said that Warlick and assistant Bridgette Gordon, who prepared the scouting report, had told the Lady Vols "how the zone was going to have open gaps and stuff like that." 

Warlick took note of Jackson's entire stat line, which included seven rebounds, four assists and just one turnover.

More:Lady Vols' Meme Jackson trying to be better about consistency

"I love how she's playing," Warlick said. "When she plays hard, great things happen."

Overall, no UT player logged more than Evina Westbrook's 30 playing minutes. The Lady Vols outrebounded Long Beach State 62-30. They also had 22 assists on 31 baskets. Perhaps their most unusual statistic was being whistled for just six team fouls. The 49ers didn't attempt a free throw until the third quarter.

More:Tennessee Lady Vols freshmen mostly living up to the hype of a No. 1 class

Turnovers amounted to the Lady Vols' biggest problem. They committed nine in the first half, which corresponded with 17 Long Beach State points. The final tally was 17 turnovers, which helped lead to 22 points by the 49ers. 

Alumni gathering

Former Tennessee players Chamique Holdsclaw, Loree Moore and Jordan Reynolds attended Sunday's game. Former Lady Vols track coach Terry Crawford also attended. She led the track team to the women's program's first national championship in 1981.

"Terry was instrumental in the growth of just the whole Lady Vol brand," Warlick said. "I hadn't seen her in a long time. So I was excited to see her."

Up next

Tennessee plays its annual game against Stanford on Thursday (9 p.m. ET, Pac-12 Network) in Stanford, Calif.

The No. 17 Cardinal (6-4) returned from a 13-day break for exams Saturday with a 74-33 victory over UNLV. Freshman guard Kiana Williams made her first career start and scored a team-leading 14 points. Fellow freshman Maya Dodson, a high school teammate of Lady Vol Kasi Kushkituah, scored 11 points.

Senior guard Brittany McPhee, who has been out with a foot injury, did not play.

Stanford hosts Western Illinois on Monday.