TODAY’S GAME TENNESSEE LADY VOLS Probable starters 5-Angie Bjorklund, G, 6-0, Sr., 17.3 ppg, 5.3 rpg 10-Meighan Simmons, G, 5-9, Fr., 20 ppg, 3.0 apg 25-Glory Johnson, F, 6-3, Jr., 5.7 ppg, 6.7 rpg 40-Shekinna Stricklen, G/F, Jr., 10.3 ppg, 5.3 rpg 52-Kelley Cain, C, 6-6, RS-Jr., 7.7 ppg, 6.0 rpg
ARIZONA STATE SUN DEVILS Probable starters 1 – Dymond Simon, G, 5-5, Sr., 16.5 ppg, 3.0 rpg 11 – Kali Bennett, F/C, 6-5, Jr., 6.5 ppg, 10.0 rpg 25 – Kimberly Brandon, G/F, 6-2, RS-Jr., 8.5 ppg, 5.5 rpg 32 – Becca Tobin, F, 6-5, Sr., 5.5 ppg, 7.5 rpg 35 – Tenaya Watson, G, 5-9, Sr., 8.5 ppg, 5.5 rpg
Today’s game marks the third straight home contest for the fourth-ranked Lady Vols. UT is coming off an 85-73 win over Virginia on Thursday. The Orange and White have a flawless record of 3-0, with all the victories coming by double-digits. The Lady Vols returned all five starters from last season’s team that went 32-3 and won the SEC regular season and tournament championships. Senior Angie Bjorklund and junior Shekinna Stricklen were both preseason AllSEC First Team honorees and named to the Wooden Award List.
Today’s contest will mark the first time Arizona State makes the trip to Thompson-Boling Arena to face the Lady Vols. The Sun Devils enter the game with a perfect 2-0 record with wins over Northern Arizona and UC Riverside. The team returned 10 letterwinners from a year ago, including four starters. Last season the Sun Devils compiled an 18-14 record and advanced to the second round of the WNIT. ASU was picked to finish second in both the preseason Pac10 women’s basketball coaches and media polls.
LADY VOL COACHING STAFF
SUN DEVIL COACHING STAFF
Pat Summitt, in her 37th year as head coach of the Lady Vols, has a remarkable overall career record of 1,040 wins and 196 losses and eight national championships. Summitt is joined on the sidelines by associate head coach Holly Warlick and assistant coaches Mickie DeMoss and Dean Lockwood.
Head Coach Charli Turner Thorne is in her 18th season as a head coach and 15th year at the helm of Arizona State. Turner Thorne holds a 271-168 (.617) record during her tenure at ASU and an overall record of 311-208 (.599). The winningest coach in Sun Devil history is assisted by Joseph Anders, Meg Sanders and Laura Hughes.
TENNESSEE LADY VOL TIDBITS
ARIZONA STATE SUN DEVIL TIDBITS
This will mark the third all-time meeting between Tennessee and Arizona State...UT holds a 2-0 series advantage over ASU, with the most recent matchup resulting in 83-74 triumph on Nov. 19, 2006 in Tempe, Ariz...The first contest was held outdoors in 2000 at the Bank One Ballpark in Phoenix, Ariz., where UT prevailed by a chilly score of 67-63...In UT’s most recent game (Virginia), senior Angie Bjorklund was the high scorer for the Big Orange with 26 points, hitting 6-of-10 threepointers...Bjorklund’s points total was her highest since Dec. 18 2008, when she dropped 29 against Old Dominion...The Lady Vols overcame a nine point deficit against the Cavaliers, as UVa made its first eight shots of the game...Meighan Simmons continues to shine in her freshman campaign, recording her third straight double-figure scoring game with 12 points against the Cavaliers...Redshirt junior Kelley Cain pulled down a team-high seven rebounds against Virginia and added eight points... Shekinna Stricklen, a junior, scored a season-high 15 points, making 6-of-9 shots and now has 900 points for her career...Coming off the bench, sophomore Taber Spani pitched in 14 points...By scoring doublefigures against Virginia, it marked the first time of Spani’s career that she scored double-digits in consecutive games, as she had 14 against Chattanooga...Sophomore Kamiko Williams added eight points, going a perfect six-of-six from the charity stripe...As a team the Lady Vols made all eight of their free throws in the final 1:39 of the game and held the Cavaliers scoreless for the first 5:21 of the second half.
Arizona State will be on the road for the second time this season when it invades Rocky Top...Just two years removed from an NCAA Elite Eight appearance, head coach Turner Thorne will look to guide the experienced group back to the NCAA tournament...The Sun Devils have been off for a week as their most recent game came last Sunday in a 58-47 winning effort at UC Riverside...Senior Dymond Simon was the only ASU player who recorded double-digits in scoring, with 15...A member of the All-Pac-10 Team in 2009, Simon also leads the team in scoring average with 16.5 ppg...Kali Bennett, a junior, grabbed a game-high 11 boards and averages 10.0 rebounds a game...Bennett also added three blocks in the game...Leading by three at the break, ASU used a 20-6 run over the first 8:15 of the second half to extend its lead to 17...The team held a superior advantage on the boards, outrebounding the Highlanders 50-23...ASU deafeat Northern Arizona, 81-46, on Nov. 12 to open the season...Simon again led the team in points with 18, while senior Becca Tobin and redshirt junior Kimberly Brandon each chipped in 10...In the game, ASU outrebounded NAU 56-38, led by sophomore Joy Burke with 10...The team was propelled by a 21-0 run in the first half and outscored the Lumberjacks 41-12 in the frame, holding NAU to only 4-of-23 shooting...For the season, the Sun Devils have only connected on one three-pointer, shooting 1-of-17...Freshman Adrianne Thomas holds the lone make, as she connected on her only trey attempt.
PASSION FOR THE LADY VOLS.
AMPLIFIED. Sign up for the Vols Connection and have the latest team news sent straight to your phone. Text “v” to “1400”. Standard text messaging rates apply. Coverage not available everywhere. © 2010 Verizon Wireless
2IILFLDO :LUHOHVV 3URYLGHU RI WKH 7HQQHVVHH /DG\ 9ROV