Lady Vols prepare for redemption tour in Seattle

Tennessee rolls into Seattle playing its best basketball of the season.

Tennessee head coach Kellie Harper took a gamble when she made the Lady Vols’ schedule. She loaded it with ranked opponents and top matchups.

Now, Tennessee is seeing the result of the tough road.

After a rout of No. 12 seed Toledo in the round of 32, the Lady Vols earned a trip to the Sweet 16. It’s their first back-to-back trip since 2015 and 2016. It is also Tennessee’s 36th Sweet 16 appearance, the most of any men’s or women’s team in the NCAA.

The Lady Vols (24-11) draw the No. 1 Virginia Tech (29-4), which beat them in ThompsonBoling Arena by three on Dec. 4. When the Lady Vols faced Virginia Tech in December, they didn’t have their full lineup. Now, Tennessee can get revenge.

“We love a rematch,” guard Jordan Horston said. “We came up short in the first game, but we’re going to do everything in our power to make sure we don’t make those same mistakes and pull out a win.”

In the first matchup with Virginia Tech, Rickea Jackson did not play due to a coach’s decision. Two of Tennessee’s three current posts, Jillian Hollingshead and Jasmine Franklin, didn’t play either as they were hurt. Center Tamari Key was still on the court for the Lady Vols as well.

Tennessee has come a long way since the first matchup.

“We played them pretty early on when we were still trying to figure out who we were,” Horston said. “Our chemistry wasn’t as good as it is now, our defense wasn’t as good as it is now. We’re a completely different team. It’s like night and day.”

Horston led the way in the first matchup, finishing with a double-double of 26 points and 11 rebounds. The next closest player had 11 for the Lady Vols.

With the Lady Vols’ first two victories over Toledo and Saint Louis in the NCAA Tournament, they became just the fourth team to beat their first two opponents by 45 points or more. UConn did it the other three times, making the Final Four two out of the three.

After successful runs in both the SEC Tournament and the NCAA Tournament so far,

“We can’t wait to play Virginia Tech,” guard Jasmine Powell said. “They’re big, they want to rebound, they want to offensive press. If we continue to rebound, continue to play in transition, continue to feed off our defense, it’s going to be huge.”

If Tennessee gets past Virginia Tech, they will face the winner of No. 2 UConn and No. 3 Ohio State. The Lady Vols played, and lost to both teams already.

For Tennessee to get to its first Elite Eight in seven years, it would take two redemption wins in Seattle.

“When you get to the Sweet 16 you’re clawing and fighting,” Harper said. “But our players remember that game and would love to have an opportunity to get that one back. I think both teams are different than we were earlier in the year.”

Virginia Tech is also hot going into the Sweet 16. The Hokies beat their first two opponents by a combined margin of 37 and capped off their season with an ACC Title.

Tennessee has played on big stages against the best teams, and they will do so again on Saturday at 6 p.m. ET.

“It really all paid off for us,” guard Jordan Walker said. “Obviously, we had goals since the season started, and when you go through adversity you have to remember those goals. I’m just proud of this team for keeping those at the forefront and continuing to push every day in practice.”