Tennessee (4-4) at Middle Tennessee (6-3)
Wednesday, December 6th, 2023 | 6:30pm CT/7:30pm ET
Huntsville, AL | Propst Arena
Knoxville, TN – The Tennessee Lady Vols basketball team (4-4), which is receiving votes in the AP and USA TODAY Sports/Coaches Top 25 Polls this week, meets in-state rival Middle Tennessee (6-3) in Huntsville, AL, on Wednesday night for a midweek neutral site showdown.
The Lady Vols and Lady Raiders will face off at 6:30pm CT (7:30pm ET) at Propst Arena at Von Braun Center in downtown Huntsville. The game will be streamed on ESPN+.
UT comes into the contest having dropped its last two games, falling to No. 18/14 Notre Dame on November 29th, 74-69, and losing a 78-58 decision to No. 16/13 Ohio State on Sunday, with both of those matchups coming at home. Tennessee has played its last four games against ranked teams and five of its first eight. It will now embark on a stretch of potentially seven games vs. teams currently not residing in the Top 25.
Middle Tennessee is coming off a 71-57 setback at Belmont on Sunday but had won four straight prior to that. The Lady Raiders’ only other losses are to Princeton (65-60) and Michigan (63-49).
Broadcast Information
Announcers Jake Rose (PxP) and Daron Park (Analyst) will have the call for the ESPN+ live stream.
All games included in the ESPN package (ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU) will be available through WatchESPN, accessible online at WatchESPN.com, on smartphones and tablets via the WatchESPN app, and streamed on televisions through Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, Chromecast, Roku, Xbox 360 or Xbox One to fans who receive their video subscription from an affiliated provider.
The contest can be heard on Lady Vol Network stations and by audio stream, with Brian Rice providing play-by-play.
A link to the live audio stream can be found on the Hoops Central page or the schedule on UTSports.com.
Air time is typically 30 minutes before tip.
The game also is available on SiriusXM channels 98 or 191 (SEC Channel).
Common Threads
Kellie (Jolly) Harper played for Middle Tennessee coach Rick Insell during her AAU basketball days, and her White County High School team faced the Shelbyville Central H.S. teams he coached.
While at SCHS, Rick Insell had five of his players sign with Pat Summitt at Tennessee, including Abby and Amanda Canon, Alex Fuller, Michelle Johnson and Tiffany Woosley.
Lady Raiders assistant coach Matt Insell has SEC ties. Insell was head coach at Ole Miss from 2013-19. He also was a long-time assistant at Kentucky for former Lady Vol graduate assistant Matthew Mitchell.
Middle Tennessee’s Gracie Dodgen hails from the same hometown and high school as UT head coach Kellie Harper. Dodgen is from Sparta, Tennessee, and a graduate of White County High School.
UT and MT each played Memphis this season. The Big Orange defeated UM, 84-74, in OT on November 13th. The Lady Raiders won at home, 67-47, on November 6th and at the Battle 4 Atlantis, 64-57, on November 20th.
Season Reset
Tennessee has taken on an extremely challenging schedule this season while playing the past six games without its best overall performer.
After she recorded a 31-point, 17-rebound double-double in a 92-91 road loss at No. 18/22 Florida State on Nov. 9, 6-foot-2 fifth-year forward Rickea Jackson (22.0 ppg., 12.0 rpg.) has been out of action due to a lower leg injury.
The Lady Vols have gone 3-3 during Jackson’s absence, dropping contests to No. 21/19 Indiana (71-57) in the Elevance Health Women’s Fort Myers Tip-Off and vs. No. 18/14 Notre Dame (74-69) and No. 16/13 Ohio State (78-58) at home.
During that stretch, UT won, 84-74, in overtime over Memphis and beat Troy, 100-73, at home, before knocking off No. 22/20 Oklahoma in Fort Myers, 76-73.
UT, which is now 1-4 vs. ranked teams in 2023-24, also has been biding its time while the school’s career leader in blocked shots and triple-doubles Tamari Key gradually works her way back into form after being sidelined a year ago by blood clots in her lungs.
Senior guard Destinee Wells (3.8 apg.) and junior forward Jillian Hollingshead (7.0) are tops in assists and rebounds, respectively.
Key, meanwhile, had her most productive game of the season vs. Ohio State, carding season highs in minutes (16), points (9), rebounds (4) and blocks (2). Her ability to provide that kind of presence would do wonders for UT on both ends of the court.
Recapping The Last Game
In its fourth straight matchup against a ranked opponent, No. 20/22 Tennessee couldn’t overcome No. 16/13 Ohio State, falling at Food City Center on Sunday, 78-58.
Senior Destinee Wells was the high scorer for Tennessee (4-4) with 11 points, and junior Sara Puckett was close behind with 10. Junior Jillian Hollingshead pulled down a team-high seven rebounds on the evening.
Cotie McMahon and Rebeka Mikulášiková led Ohio State (6-1) with 19 and 18, respectively. Celeste Taylor posted a double-double with 15 points and 12 rebounds, while Jacy Sheldon added 13 points.
Postgame Notes vs. Ohio State
TK Taking Steps
Tamari Key posted nine points, four rebounds, two blocks, an assist and a steal in 16 minutes vs. the Buckeyes, recording season highs in all categories. The 6-foot-6 redshirt senior played twice as many minutes vs. Ohio State as she has in any game all season.
That development provided evidence that the school’s all-time leader in blocked shots and triple-doubles is making progress in her return from being sidelined last season due to blood clots being discovered in her lungs.
Avery Hits First Tennessee Trey In Return
Avery Strickland returned to action after missing the last four games while in concussion protocol. The sophomore guard/forward from nearby Farragut High School recorded her first three-pointer as a Lady Vol in the final minute of the second quarter against Ohio State and finished with four points and two rebounds in 12 minutes of duty.
The 5-foot-10 Strickland, who joined UT from Pitt during the offseason, knocked down 39 treys with 33.9 percent accuracy as a freshman for the Panthers last year.
Lady Vol Fans Showing Support
Tennessee fans packed Food City Center against Ohio State with a season-high attendance of 8,723. It comes on the heels of a previous best of 8,211 fans supporting the Lady Vols vs. Notre Dame on Wednesday night in the ACC-SEC Challenge. Through five home games, UT is averaging 8,206 to rank No. 7 in the nation.
Milestone Watch
Tamari Key’s next blocked shot will be the 300th of her career, making her the ninth player in SEC history to hit that mark.
Destinee Wells’ next game will be her 100th college basketball game played and her next field goal will be the 600th in her career.
Jasmine Powell’s next free throw will be her 300th.
Jewel Spear is three games away from her 100th as a collegiate player.
Tess Darby needs six three-pointers to catch Taber Spani in ninth at 143 on UT’s career three-pointers list.
Kellie Harper is eight wins away from her 100th as head coach at Tennessee and 23 shy of 400 for her career.
Scoring Options
In eight games, six different players have led UT in scoring.
Jewel Spear (20), Rickea Jackson (31), Sara Puckett (24) Karoline Striplin (19) did so in games one through four.
Jasmine Powell had 19 vs. Oklahoma in game six, and Destinee Wells tossed in 11 vs. Ohio State in game eight.
Lady Vols vs. In-State Foes
The Tennessee women are 261-61-1 all-time vs. four-year college teams from the Volunteer State, and Kellie Harper is 17-0 in those matchups in her fifth season on Rocky Top through the Memphis game.
UT has won 17 in a row over schools from within the state border and 33 of the last 34, with the lone setback during that run being a 76-69 loss to Vanderbilt in Knoxville on Feb. 28, 2019.
Series Notes
Tennessee enters Wednesday night’s game with a 22-0 series record vs. Middle Tennessee, including 5-0 at neutral sites and 2-0 in the NCAA Tournament.
The last regular-season meeting occurred in 2013 in Murfreesboro, with UT winning, 67-57.
Kellie Harper is 3-3 all-time vs. Middle Tennessee and Rick Insell in her career, including 1-0 while at UT.
She was 2-1 vs. MT while at Western Carolina and 0-2 while at Missouri State, falling to the Lady Raiders during the 2015-16 and 2016-17 seasons in away and home games, respectively.
The UT Lady Vols are 57-18 all-time vs. teams currently in Conference USA.
A Look At Middle Tennessee
All five Middle Tennessee starters average double figures, led by Anastasiia Boldyreva, who is tops in scoring (14.8) and rebounding (7.6).
Savannah Wheeler has produced 45 assists, and Courtney Whitson has hit 23 three-pointers.
MTSU allows only 59.9 points per game.
About The Lady Raider Head Coach
Rick Insell is MT’s all-time winningest coach.
He is 439-154 in his 19th season.
He has led the Lady Raiders to 17 consecutive postseason appearances, including 11 NCAA Tournaments.
Middle Tennessee’s Most Recent Game
Middle Tennessee fell to Belmont, 71-57, on Sunday afternoon at the Bruins’ Curb Event Center.
Ta’Mia Scott led the Lady Raiders with 20 points. She was followed by Savannah Wheeler, who tallied 10 points, and Anastasiia Boldyreva with nine points and eight rebounds.
Last UT-MT Contest
The No. 3 seed Tennessee Lady Vols shot a scorching 52 percent from the floor to fend off in-state opponent and No. 14 seed Middle Tennessee in the NCAA First Round on March 21, 2021, winning 87-62 at the Frank Erwin Center in Austin, Texas.
Senior Rennia Davis led No. 13/15-ranked Tennessee (17-7) in scoring, posting a double-double with 24 points and 14 rebounds.
Junior Rae Burrell was close behind with 22 points, and sophomore Tamari Key and senior Kasiyahna Kushkituah also were in double figures with 13 and 10, respectively.
Redshirt junior Jordan Walker finished with nine points and a career-high 14 rebounds.
Next Up For UT Women’s Basketball
After facing Middle Tennessee, the Tennessee Lady Vols basketball team head home to prepare for two straight games at Food City Center.
Tennessee will play host to Eastern Kentucky on Sunday at 1:00pm CT and then welcome Wofford at next Tuesday at 5:30pm CT.
Both of those contests will be streamed on SECN+.
