The Tennessee women’s basketball team defeated East Tennessee State University 67-50 Tuesday night. The Lady Vols won their second consecutive game to open the season at 2-0, while ETSU fell to 1-1 on the year.
Tennessee’s win might be characterized as a somewhat sloppy one. The Lady Vols turned the ball over 24 times, and allowed the Buccaneers to cut into their lead several times. Senior Rennia Davis also found herself in foul trouble early on. She notched two fouls in the first four minutes of the game, and sat for the remainder of the first half. Tennessee managed to hold on against a scrappy ETSU team.
“I’m glad we won the game. Obviously, for us, it was a little sloppy at times. Our execution needs to be better,” head coach Kellie Harper said. “I think the good thing is that we got to see a feisty team, a team that’s athletic on the perimeter. Hopefully, that will help us in our next few games.”
The Lady Vols came out of the gate slow. They scored the first four points of the game on a Suárez layup and a Davis jumper, but allowed ETSU to tie the score at 9-9 with three minutes left in the quarter. Tennessee responded by going on a 9-2 run, led by four points from sophomore Tamari Key, to close the first quarter.
The two teams traded baskets to open the second quarter, before Tennessee went on another big run. Redshirt senior Keyen Green knocked down a layup to start a 10-two Lady Vol run that gave them a fifteen-point lead with four minutes left in the half. Junior Rae Burrell scored six points in the run, hitting three free throws and a three pointer.
Tennessee lost some of its momentum to close the first half. The Lady Vols led by as much as 16 points, but allowed ETSU to go on an eight-two run of its own to pull within 10 at halftime, 38-28.
The Lady Vols started fast after halftime. Davis, who had been on the bench since early in the first quarter, knocked down a jumper seven seconds into the half to start a 10-point run, and the Buccaneers were forced to take a timeout. Davis scored twice in the run, and sophomore Jordan Horston capped the run with a three pointer to give Tennessee a 20-point lead.
Following the timeout, ETSU got hot and outscored Tennessee 9-2 to cut their deficit to 13 with three minutes left in the third. Davis and Horston combined for five points in the final minute and a half to give the Lady Vols a 55-38 lead entering the fourth quarter.
At two different points in the fourth quarter, Tennessee held a 21-point lead, before allowing the Buccaneers to gain some ground. Three minutes in, thanks to scores from Davis, Burrell and Green, Tennessee led by 21.
ETSU battled back and pulled as close as 16 with five minutes remaining, before the Lady Vols increased their lead back to 21. They stumbled to the finish, allowing four straight Buccaneer points, but won the hard-fought game 67-50.
For the second consecutive game, Burrell led Tennessee in scoring, finishing the night with 20 points, hitting seven of eleven attempts.
“(Burrell)’s played so well. The difference for her is that she’s playing with so much confidence right now and making really good decisions,” Harper said. “However, she’s still playing aggressively. I think when you’re playing aggressively, and you’re making good decisions and finishing like she is, it leads to some pretty good play. I’m really proud of her, and it’s been fun to watch her.”
Davis and Horston were the only other Lady Vols to reach double digit points. Despite playing just 18 minutes, Davis scored 15 points, marking her 30th straight games of double-digit scoring. Horston, who started the game on the bench, scored 12 points and tabbed five steals.
“No matter if I’m starting or if I’m coming off the bench, I’m just glad to be here,” Horston said. “I’m glad to be in the game. When I get in, I’ve just got to make the most of it, play my game, play hard and just do what I got to do.”
Jakhyia Davis led ETSU in scoring, finishing with 11 points and six rebounds.
Tennessee’s next game is Sunday, Dec. 6 at West Virginia as a part of the SEC/Big 12 Challenge. Tipoff is set for 2 p.m. ET and will be broadcast on Big 12 Now/ESPN+.
