The Lady Vols have been here before.
In fact, Tennessee is quite familiar with the locale, having been to the NCAA Final Four 16 overall times and for four consecutive years.
But just getting there isn’t the point.
This time around, UT wants to finish what it has begun and win the program’s seventh national title.
“Six years without a title is unacceptable,” senior guard Brittany Jackson said.
The last two steps for Tennessee (30-4) to secure a national championship for the first time since 1998 begin Sunday with a 9:30 p.m. semifinal matchup with Michigan State.
This year’s Final Four is ripe with storylines.
Michigan State, the winner of the Kansas City Regional, boasts an up-and-coming team with a coaching staff lined with Lady Vol ties. Assistant coach Al Brown was an assistant at UT from 1995 to 2002 and first-year assistant Semeka Randall played on Tennessee’s last national championship team in 1998.
The other side of the bracket holds two teams that Tennessee knocked out of the NCAA tournament last year. Top-seed overall LSU will take on the winner of the Tempe Regional, second-seeded Baylor.
In an infamous finish in last year’s regional semifinal, Tennessee guard Tasha Butts hit two free throws with .2 seconds remaining to complete a comeback win over Baylor. Two games later, a LaToya Davis layup following a steal from LSU guard Temeka Johnson gave the Lady Vols a last second victory over the Lady Tigers in the national semifinal.
Continuing towards the championship will require a Lady Vol victory over the Spartans.
In their regional final, Michigan State senior guard Kristin Haynie hit all four of her attempts from behind the 3-point arc and had 20 points overall. Her efforts, which also included seven assists and seven rebounds, earned her MVP honors for the region.
For the year, the Spartans are led by 6-1 junior forward Liz Shimek with 15 points and 9.1 rebounds per game. Junior guard Lindsay Bowen adds 13.5 points per game, but was limited to only two points in the regional final.
Michigan State, on a 16-game winning streak, is making its farthest trip into the championship. The Spartans had previously delved as far as the second round of NCAA action.
“It is great to show the whole country we are here to stay,” Bowen said. “You don’t count out Michigan State in any sport.”
Tennessee counters with a team that has evolved into one of its toughest ever. Since losing to LSU on Feb.10, the Lady Vols have picked up 12 consecutive wins, including the program’s first SEC tournament title since 2000.
But Tennessee is intent on adding more hardware this season. Further incentive is in the cards for UT senior forward Shyra Ely and junior guard Shanna Zolman. Ely, from Indianapolis, and Zolman, from Syracuse, both return to their home state for a chance at a title.
“I don’t think I could have dreamt a better ending,” Ely said. “It would definitely be the icing on the cake to go back to Indy and finish my career where it started.”
Ely’s efforts will be of the utmost importance in the Final Four. She forms the core of a talented post duo, combining with freshman center Nicky Anosike inside. Meanwhile, Zolman chimes in from long-range, adding a perimeter presence to the Lady Vol attack.
“I could not be more pleased for these two (Zolman and Ely) to win and go back home for the Final Four,” UT coach Pat Summitt said. “They certainly played a big role in getting us there.”
Now they want to play a role in finishing off the season on a high note.
“We’ve won this year in every way possible,” Ely said. “Our schedule has prepared us to be able to face whatever is in front of us, in every type of game.
“That will be key in helping us to win a championship.”
