Tennessee’s return to Food City Center on Tuesday night wasn’t exactly clean, but it was convincing. The Lady Vols shook off a rough stretch early and rolled past New Haven, 83-40, after a game that featured plenty of missed chances before Tennessee finally pulled away.
The opening minutes were choppy. It took more than a minute for the Lady Vols to score, and Kennedy Fauntleroy helped get things moving by attacking the rim and knocking down a three for five of Tennessee’s first eight points. Naomi White added a three, and Kaylene Smikle followed with one of her own to push the Lady Vols ahead 11-3.
From there, though, the offense stalled. Tennessee went through a long drought, and the game got messy in a hurry. The Lady Vols piled up fouls on defense, which helped New Haven stay within reach, while the offense struggled to find rhythm and at times forced difficult drives deep in the paint.
Free throws didn’t provide much relief early, either. Tennessee began 0-for-6 at the line before Fats Janneh finally got one of two to fall, making it 12-7. Jada Eads later buried a three, and Aaliyah Moore added a pair of free throws to send Tennessee into the first quarter break up 17-10.
The second quarter followed a similar script for a while. Riley Makalusky came off the bench and hit a three to make it 21-11 with 8:22 left in the half, and after New Haven’s Tearia Kelley answered, Smikle drilled her second triple of the night.
By that point, nearly all of Tennessee’s scoring had come from either beyond the arc or the foul line. The Lady Vols opened 1-for-7 on layups and still hadn’t found much of anything in the midrange.
New Haven kept hanging around because it was competitive on the glass and made Tennessee work defensively. The Chargers also found some success getting into the lane, finishing 5-of-7 on layups in the first half. Makalusky hit another three late in the period, and Smikle added another basket to give Tennessee a 37-27 lead at the break.
Even with the lead, the numbers told the story of a shaky first half. Tennessee shot 28.6% over the opening 20 minutes, went 10-of-21 at the free-throw line, and was beaten 14-6 in the paint.
The third quarter started with more of the same resistance from New Haven, but Tennessee eventually cracked it open. Eads drilled a three from the top of the key at the 8:02 mark to make it 40-24, and Gabby Minus then finished in the paint for just the third made layup of the night for the Lady Vols.
Minus was one of the bright spots all night. The true freshman defended well, crashed the boards, and finished with 13 points, eight rebounds, and six steals. Tennessee was plus-25 with her on the floor.
Aaliyah Moore supplied seven points in the third quarter, while Minus added five and Eads and Janneh chipped in three apiece. Tennessee’s defense tightened, holding New Haven to nine points in the period, and the Lady Vols added five points off six turnovers.
The fourth quarter turned into a steady separation. New Haven didn’t score until Carla Ramirez finally broke through at the 3:45 mark, and Tennessee’s defense held the Chargers to single digits again. The Lady Vols also turned defense into offense, scoring 14 points off turnovers in the quarter and finishing with 29 points off 26 New Haven giveaways.
Rylie Theuerkauf got on the board with 2:27 remaining to make it 75-37, and Nya Robertson knocked down two threes late as Tennessee closed on a 28-7 run in the fourth and a 46-16 edge in the second half.
Moore led Tennessee with 14 points and seven rebounds. Fauntleroy added 11 points, five rebounds, and two steals. As a team, the Lady Vols shot 16-of-28 from the free-throw line and 15-of-40 from three-point range.
In Other News...
Tennessee Gets One Break But Another Loss Just Got Much Tougher
Tennessee got a small bit of good news in its first injury update of the week ahead of Texas A&M, with tight end DaSaahn Brame not appearing on the availability report after leaving the previous game. For a team trying to steady itself late in the season, any healthy return matters, especially when the offense is juggling bodies and the margin for error keeps shrinking.
The harder blow came on the other side of the ball, where sack leader Tyree Weathersby was ruled out for the year with a knee injury. He became the eighth Tennessee player to suffer a season-ending injury this season, and the list does not stop there, with six other players already sidelined for multiple games. For a defense that has leaned on depth all year, the latest update only adds to the challenge of getting through a demanding stretch. [Read more 🡒]
Tennessee Gets Encouraging DaSaahn Brame News Before Texas A&M
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Josh Heupel confirmed the review and sounded confident Brame would be ready for the matchup. For Tennessee, getting one of its young tight ends back in the mix matters as the Vols turn the page to a tough SEC test and keep sorting out their passing-game options heading into Saturday. [Read more 🡒]
Tennessee Just Made A Strong New Push For Four-Star DL RJ Wyms
Tennessees latest home win gave RJ Wyms a first-hand look at what the program can do on a big stage. The four-star defensive lineman was at Neyland Stadium for his first Tennessee football game day and saw the Volunteers handle Kentucky by 28 points, smothering the Wildcats early and never letting them find much room to breathe. For a recruit weighing his next steps, it was the kind of atmosphere that can leave a mark.
Wyms has already been in contact with Tennessee defensive line coach Rodney Garner, and the visit gave him another chance to size up the staff in person. He came away with positive impressions of the defense and the coaching around it, while still considering trips to other schools as his recruitment moves forward. For Tennessee, the timing of that strong showing could hardly have been better. [Read more 🡒]