After the record-breaking loss to South Carolina on Sunday, the sour feeling had affected Zee Spearman in an apparent way that bled into the Lady Vols basketball’s performance against Missouri on Thursday.
Tennessee head coach Kim Caldwell highlighted a key exchange with Spearman during Thursday’s game, reflecting her pride in Spearman’s ability to address her prior struggles and inspire the team. Caldwell also had reason to be satisfied with the overall performance, as the Lady Vols (16-6, 8-2 SEC) defeated Missouri (16-11, 4-8 SEC) 98-53 in what Caldwell considered one of their most complete games this season.
“Zee was really, really honest,” Caldwell said. “I think it was one of my proudest moments of Zee, her response to this. So that was good to see. (Talaysia Cooper) was really good, vocal, which was nice because I’ve wanted our returners to be more vocal all year.”
This wasn’t the first time Caldwell had asked publicly for more from her upperclassmen. After Sunday’s loss, Caldwell touched on how her freshmen have taken steps of maturity, but still desired more from her veteran players.
Spearman responded to the challenge, and while her contributions weren’t most visible in the statistics, her vocal leadership and accountability played a crucial role in shifting the team’s mindset.
“She’s the one who said, ‘This is what it looks like. This is what it looks like, whether you think you’re doing it or not, this is what it looks like,’” Caldwell said. “We have to quit doing it.’ And she thinks we quit, and it looks like we quit. We’re gonna have to fix it. And she had gone back, and she watched the game, and she took accountability for everything. And I think for her, it was a really big moment that everyone looked up to. And as her growth here on the floor has been great, but that moment for me was a great moment for her really to step up and say that, and say she wants to win as a senior down the stretch.”
Other upperclassmen also stepped in and made their own impact, especially with the injury to freshman Mia Pauldo. After a rough hit to the face on Sunday, the team was going to need help elsewhere.
Talaysia Cooper and Janiah Barker filled the gap nicely, combining for 39 points. Barker finished with 22 while Cooper had 17.
A storyline hard to miss from the matchup was the return of former Lady Vol head coach Kellie Harper. The Tigers’ coach noted obvious improvement from the team after their tough weekend.
“They did exactly what they needed to do today,” Harper said. “Tennessee did 100% what they needed to do, obviously, they played hard, they made shots, we didn’t make shots, so this was a good bounce-back win for them.”
To bounce back from a 43-point loss on Sunday, toward a 45-point win just four days later, is a step in the right direction, but now it’s about turning it into consistent results.
“We’re towards the end of it, so there’s a sense of urgency with all of us now,” Caldwell said. “And it’s not going to be perfect every single night, it’s not going to be perfect every single quarter, but being able to play through that together, I think, for us, is the most important thing.”
The schedule doesn’t get any easier for the Lady Vols; they face off against No. 4 Texas at home this coming Sunday, Feb. 15, in what will be another big test for this team.
