Tennessee (17-10 | 10-5 SEC) at #1 South Carolina (28-0 | 15-0 SEC)
Sunday, March 3rd, 2024 | 11:02pm CT / 12:02pm ET
Columbia, SC | Colonial Life Arena | TV: ESPN
Knoxville, TN – The Tennessee women’s basketball team (17-10, 10-5 SEC), which is receiving votes in the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll, closes out the regular season with a road contest at No. 1/1 South Carolina (28-0, 15-0 SEC) on Sunday afternoon in Columbia.
The Lady Vols and Gamecocks are slated to meet on Senior Day at Colonial Life Arena at 11:02pm CT in a contest televised by ESPN. UT and USC meet for the second time during the 2023-24 campaign, with Dawn Staley’s club recently fighting off a challenge from Kellie Harper‘s squad to prevail in Knoxville, 66-55, on February 15th.
Tennessee enters this bout in fourth place in the SEC standings and trying to secure a top-four seed for the league tournament in Greenville, SC. A Lady Vol win or Alabama loss would clinch it.
South Carolina, meanwhile, crushed Arkansas in Fayetteville, 98-61, on Thursday night. That win followed a 103-55 rout over Kentucky last Sunday.
Broadcast Details
Courtney Lyle (PxP) and Debbie Antonelli (Analyst) will have the call for the ESPN broadcast.
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. Jay Lifford is the studio host.
A link to the live audio stream can be found on the Hoops Central page or the schedule on UTSports.com.
For a list of Lady Vol Network affiliates, please click on the Fans tab at the top of UTSports.com, select Vol Network, and then select the Vol Network Affiliates tab.
Air time is typically 30 minutes before tip-off.
Season Reset
After functioning without All-America and SEC Player of the Year candidate Rickea Jackson for eight games from Nov. 13 to Dec. 10 and posting a 4-4 record during her absence, Tennessee has been a drastically different team since she was cleared following a lower leg injury.
The Lady Vols are 12-5 since Jackson returned to action and are currently fourth in the SEC standings and sitting at No. 36 in the NET after facing one of the nation’s most challenging schedules, including match-ups with No. 1/1 South Carolina twice and vs. No. 9/7 LSU in three of the last five games of the regular season.
As of March 1st, ESPN Women’s Bracketology has Tennessee as a No. 8 seed, facing No. 9 Iowa State in the first round in Los Angeles, in the Portland 4 Regional. The winner would play the victor of No. 1 seed UCLA vs. #16 Hawaii.
Among UT’s triumphs are top-66 NET victories over No. 25 Oklahoma, No. 42 Texas A&M, No. 45 Auburn, No. 46 Mississippi State, No. 56 Vanderbilt (twice), No. 59 Florida, and No. 66 Arkansas. The win over Oklahoma in November was without Rickea Jackson.
Tennessee led at the half and was tied after three quarters vs. No. 1/1 South Carolina on Feb. 15 in a game featuring 14 lead changes and 11 ties that USC ultimately won, 66-55, for its second narrowest margin of victory in SEC play this season.
UT also had a 75-60 setback vs. LSU, in which the Lady Vols trailed by one with 7:30 remaining in the game.
In addition to getting Jackson back in the lineup, Tennessee has been bolstered by the continued improvement of 6-foot-6 center Tamari Key. The school’s all-time leading shot blocker was sidelined after eight games a year ago due to blood clots in her lungs and understandably needed time to reacclimate to the rigors of the game.
Tennessee also has had to overcome the loss of reserve point guard Destinee Wells, who suffered a lower leg injury just prior to the Wofford game and is out for the season. Fifth-year standout Jasmine Powell impressively picked up more of the load, and junior Kaiya Wynn has stepped up and provided a spark off the bench on both ends of the floor.
With the players available for the past 17 contests stepping into and accepting their roles, the Lady Vols have competed cohesively as a team, with different players each game emerging to provide valuable contributions in starring and support capacities.
For the third week in a row, the Lady Vols are receiving votes in the USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll.
Familiar Faces
Tennessee guard Talaysia Cooper, who is redshirting this season, played her freshman year at South Carolina in 2022-23 before entering the transfer portal.
South Carolina assistant coach Jolette Law was an assistant at Tennessee on former head coach Holly Warlick’s staff from 2012-17 before moving to Columbia.
Lady Vols Rickea Jackson and Jewel Spear played on the silver medalist USA team at the 2023 FIBA Women’s AmeriCup in Leon, Mexico, July 1st-9th. So did South Carolina’s Raven Johnson.
During that tournament, the American side faced Brazil and South Carolina’s Kamilla Cardoso in Group A play and in the gold medal game, with Cardoso and a very seasoned Brazilian squad taking both contests against a U.S. contingent made up of exclusively college players.
Jackson led the USA in scoring (14.6 ppg.), Spear led her team in three-pointers made (10) during the tourney, and Cardoso contributed 10.9 ppg. and 8.3 rpg. to her country’s cause.
UT Lady Vol Standout Stats
Cheryl Miller Award and All-America candidate Rickea Jackson is the leading scorer among SEC players in all games at 19.2 ppg. and ranks third in league contests at 19.3 ppg.
Jackson has scored in double figures in 44 straight games as a Lady Volunteer and in 52 of her 54 contests as part of Tennessee’s program.
The fifth-year forward has 24 efforts with 20 or more points scored in those 54 games in only two seasons at UT. The Lady Vols are 21-3 in those contests.
UT is 16-1 during games in which it out-rebounds its opponent and 12-1 when it holds its opponent to 69 points or fewer. The losses in those cases were to Florida State and South Carolina, respectively.
Jasmine Powell, who has carded three straight seasons of 100+ dimes, enters Sunday’s game needing six assists to surpass last year’s career-best of 116.
Tamari Key shoots 56.8 pct. in SEC play, a number that would lead the league if she had enough field goal attempts.
Jewel Spear is fifth among SEC players this season at 1.96 threes made per game.
Milestone Watch
Rickea Jackson, who became the ninth Lady Vol to surpass 2,000 career points on Feb. 4 vs. Missouri, now has 2,121 (combining her time at Mississippi State and Tennessee) and passed Tamika Catchings (2,113, 1997-2001) to move into seventh on the all-time Lady Vol scorers list, including transfer players.
Jackson needs 17 points to eclipse sixth-place Candace Parker, who tallied 2,137 points from 2005-08.
In terms of Jackson’s points tallied at Tennessee, the 49th Lady Vol to reach 1K now has 1,036 and sits in 47th place after passing Diamond DeShields (1,018, 2015-17) and is 17 behind No. 46 Taber Spani (1,053, 2009-13) and 35 behind Isabelle Harrison (1,071, 2011-15).
Tamari Key became the 50th player to tally 1,000 career points for Tennessee, doing so against Texas A&M and pushing her total to 1,004. She is tied with Michelle Marciniak for 50th (1,004, 1993-96) and is 14 points behind Diamond DeShields in 49th (1,018, 2015-17).
Rickea Jackson’s 19.2 ppg. career average in two seasons at Tennessee is No. 5 in school history, with Candace Parker (19.4, 2005-08) just above of her at No. 4.
Tamari Key is in sole possession of sixth on the SEC all-time blocks list after passing South Carolina’s Aliyah Boston (330, 2019-23) with two vs. LSU. Key now has 332 swats and takes aim at Vanessa Hayden of Florida, who stands in fifth place with 357 from 2001-04.
On the glass, Tamari Key is five away (695) from registering 700 career rebounds and joining Jackson, who eclipsed 700 at Vanderbilt on February 18th.
Against Texas A&M, Tess Darby tied No. 5 Ariel Massengale (164, 2011-15) for three-pointers made in a career at UT. She needs one to claim fifth place for her own.
Darby currently ranks No. 8 in career three-pointers attempted at 434, standing behind No. 7 Brittany Jackson (443, 2001-05).
Kellie Harper has reached double digits in conference wins for the third straight season, fourth time in five years at Tennessee and ninth occasion in her past 10 campaigns as a head coach.
A win vs. South Carolina would be the second-highest SEC win total during her time at UT behind last year’s 13.
2024 Seniors Saluted
Just before the Texas A&M game on Feb. 29, UT honored five seniors mid-court, including three who have the option to return in 2024-25.
Fifth-year players Rickea Jackson and Jasmine Powell made their final regular-season home game appearances at Food City Center.
Tess Darby, Tamari Key, and Jewel Spear all have the option to return next year but are expected to wait until the season is complete before making decisions.
UT honored a record seven Lady Vols in 2022-23, with Jackson, Key and Powell opting to return this season.
The total of five honorees in 2023-24 ties for the second-most in program annals along with quintets recognized in 2011-12, 2007-08, 1983-84 and 1974-75.
Five 1K Scorers Set Record
Tamari Key entered the Texas A&M game with 995 points, needing just five to give Tennessee a program-record-tying five 1,000-point career scorers on the same team. She scored nine vs. the Aggies.
Key (1,004) joined Rickea Jackson (2,121), Jewel Spear (1,730), Destinee Wells (1,716) and Jasmine Powell (1,295) in that club.
UT has had three or more 1,000-point scorers at season’s end on 14 occasions and four or more three times after this year’s result.
The 2023-24 foursome of Jackson (1,756), Wells (1,613), Spear (1,385), and Powell (1,046) marked the first time Tennessee had entered a season with four 1,000-point scorers on its roster, the 10th time with two or more and the second time with three or more.
Recapping The Last Game
Five seniors were recognized in Senior Night festivities prior to Thursday’s contest, and all five contributed significantly as Tennessee won its final regular season home game, 75-66, over Texas A&M at Food City Center.
The Lady Vols (17-10, 10-5 SEC), who had fallen to the Aggies, 71-56, in College Station on Jan. 14, earned some closure over that setback and secured another solid NET win in the process over A&M (18-10, 6-9 SEC), which came in ranked No. 39.
Forward Rickea Jackson led the Lady Vols with her eighth 20+ scoring effort of the campaign, connecting on nine of 14 shots from the field and eight of nine from the free throw line to finish with a game-high 27 points.
Jewel Spear enjoyed a 6-of-10 evening from the field, including 2-of-5 from long range, to net 16 points. Tamari Key chipped in nine points and seven rebounds, eclipsing 1,000 career points in the process, Tess Darby tallied seven points and six rebounds and Jasmine Powell dished out a game-high six assists.
Texas A&M was paced by Solé Williams, who tossed in 20 points. Janiah Barker and Sahara Jones also were in double figures with 12 and 10, respectively.
Postgame Notes vs. Texas A&M
TK Hits 1,000
With nine points vs. Texas A&M, Tamari Key (1,004 pts.) eclipsed 1,000 career points, becoming the 50th Lady Vol all-time to score that many for the Big Orange. She also became the fifth player on this year’s roster to personally reach 1,000 points, whether all at UT or with another program. That ties a program best also set by last year’s squad for most 1K scorers on the same squad.
Can’t Stop Kea
With 27 points vs. the Aggies, Rickea Jackson notched her eighth 20+ point contest this season and 24th in two seasons on Rocky Top, surpassing Rennia Davis to take sole possession of fifth on Tennessee’s career list for most 20-point games.
Jackson Rises On UT’s All-Time Scoring List
Rickea Jackson moved her career point total to 2,121 between her time at Mississippi State and Tennessee. With that sum, she moved past Tamika Catchings (2,113, 1997-2001) into seventh place among all-time Lady Vols, including transfers. Jackson stands 16 points shy of catching fifth-place Candace Parker (2,137, 2005-08).
Tess Moving Up
Hitting one three-pointer vs. the Aggies, Tess Darby is now tied for fifth place with Ariel Massengale on Tennessee’s career three-pointers list with 164. The senior has led UT in three pointers in a game on seven occasions in 2023-24, and she has hit a trey in 18 different games this season.
Jewel Shows Out vs. Aggies
Jewel Spear posted a stat-stuffing effort against Texas A&M, recording 16 points, five rebounds, three assists and a steal. Her 16 points marked her 17th game with double-digit scoring this season. She had a game-best two treys, notching her 13th contest leading the Lady Vols from deep and now has a team-high 53 in 2023-24.
Rebounding Success Continues
The Lady Vols posted an impressive performance on the glass, out-rebounding Texas A&M 44-28. That effort was the opposite of the 43-34 Aggie advantage in College Station the last time these teams met. UT is 16-1 in games when it outperforms its foes on the boards.
Getting Jazzy With It
Jasmine Powell led all players with six assists on Thursday night, upping her season total to 111. In her third straight year with more than 100 dimes delivered, Powell is just six away from tallying the best season total in her career. She is averaging 4.3 assists in all games and 5.1 in SEC contests in 2023-24.
Can’t Wait To See You Again, Lady Vol Nation
The Tennessee Lady Vols finished with a season attendance average of 8,880 fans per game, giving the program its highest number since averaging 9,184 during the 2016-17 campaign. Tennessee registered an 11-4 record at home during the 2023-24 regular season, including a 6-2 mark in conference play.
UT-USC Series Notes
Tennessee is 23-5 in Knoxville, 21-4 in Columbia and 7-5 at neutral sites vs. South Carolina.
The UT Lady Vols are 3-4 vs. USC in the SEC Tourney.
UT is 5-5 vs. USC in the postseason and is 1-0 in OT, taking a 79-73 extra-frame decision over the Gamecocks in the Palmetto State on February 15th, 1996.
Kellie Harper has a 2-9 record vs. USC as a head coach. She is 1-6 while at UT and was 0-1 at Western Carolina and 1-2 at NC State.
Harper was 5-0 vs. USC as a player, participating in the only OT game between these schools in 1996.
A Look At The Gamecocks
Kamilla Cardoso (14.0), MiLaysia Fulwiley (11.5) and Te-Hina Pao-Pao (11.4) fuel the nation’s third-highest scoring unit (87.4) and leader in scoring margin (+33.0).
Cardoso is tops (9.8) for a team ranked No. 3 in rebounds per game (46.71).
USC’s defense is ranked No. 1 in FG% defense (31.2).
About South Carolina Women’s Basketball Head Coach Dawn Staley
Dawn Staley is in her 16th season at South Carolina, forging a 430-106 mark there.
She guided the Gamecocks to NCAA titles in 2017 and 2022.
USC has won eight SEC regular season and seven postseason tournament titles under Staley.
Staley won three Olympic gold medals as a player and guided the USA to gold in 2020 as head coach.
South Carolina’s Most Recent Game
Ashlyn Watkins had 21 points and 11 rebounds to lead No. 1 South Carolina to a 98-61 road win over Arkansas on Thursday night in Fayetteville.
South Carolina (28-0, 15-0 SEC) and Watkins had scoring support from MiLaysia Fulwiley, (17), Tessa Johnson (12), Kamilla Cardoso (11) and Chloe Kitts (10).
The Gamecocks dominated on the inside, out-rebounding Arkansas, 53-21, and outscoring the Razorbacks in the paint, 56-22. South Carolina shot 61% from the field and limited Arkansas to 33%.
Maryam Dauda led the Razorbacks with 19 points.
Last UT/USC Contest
The Lady Vols pushed No. 1 South Carolina to the limit, taking a tie game into the fourth quarter before falling to the Gamecocks, 66-55, in front of a crowd of 11,073 at Food City Center on Feb. 15, 2024.
South Carolina (24-0, 11-0 SEC) was led by 6-foot-7 center Kamilla Cardoso, who notched a double-double effort of 18 points and 10 boards. Ashlyn Watkins also added a double-double, tallying 14 points and 10 caroms, while Raven Johnson hauled down a game-high 15 rebounds.
Last Time We Met In Columbia
Tamari Key turned in a double-double with 10 points and 10 blocks and two other Lady Vols were in double figures against No. 1/1 South Carolina, but No. 12/8 Tennessee fell in Columbia on Feb. 20, 2022, 67-53, the last time these teams met at CLA.
Senior Rae Burrell was the high scorer for UT (21-6, 10-4 SEC) with 14, and graduate Jordan Walker was also in double figures with 11 points.
Aliyah Boston led South Carolina (25-1, 13-1 SEC) with 16 points and 12 rebounds.
Next Up For UT Women’s Basketball
The Tennesee Lady Vols basketball team will head back to South Carolina next week, traveling to Greenville for the SEC Tournament at Bon Secours Wellness Arena.
If Tennessee earns a No. 4 seed, it will play the second game on Friday in the quarterfinal round at approximately 1:15pm CT.
If UT winds up as the No. 5 seed, it would play at the same time, only a day earlier on Thursday in the second round.
