Roman Tubner, the Lady Vols basketball assistant coach, is in the spotlight as he interviews for the head coaching position at Kennesaw State. The Owls wrapped up their season with a 13-17 record, including a 6-12 mark in Conference USA, which led to the dismissal of head coach Octavia Blue.
Tubner, who has just completed his second season with Tennessee, joined Kim Caldwell’s inaugural staff after a stint at Alabama under Kristy Curry. Curry recently moved on to take the head coaching job at USF. Tubner, known for his defensive prowess, served as the defensive coordinator for Alabama before bringing his talents to the Lady Vols.
This season, Tennessee posted a 16-14 record, going 8-8 in the SEC. They entered the SEC Tournament as the 6-seed but were ousted by Alabama in the second round. In the NCAA Tournament, the Lady Vols were a 10-seed but fell to NC State in the Round of 64 in Ann Arbor, Michigan.
The season's end was rough, with the team enduring an eight-game losing streak and dropping 11 of their final 13 contests. After their final game, head coach Kim Caldwell reflected on the season and her staff, stating, “Yeah, the staff is good.
It was a rough year all around and I think all of that stems from me. And I’ve built a staff around me where a majority of them have come from me, so when they have learned from you and I start to question me, then it’s a little bit hard there because that’s all we know.”
In the aftermath, Tennessee has seen four players enter the transfer portal, including freshmen Deniya Prawl and Lauren Hurst, along with Kaniya Boyd and Alyssa Latham. The Lady Vols are looking to regroup and rebuild as they face these changes.