KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — The SEC released its women’s basketball awards Tuesday on the eve of the postseason tournament, and five Lady Vols received recognition in voting from the league’s coaches.
Seniors Jaime Nared and Mercedes Russell were named to the eight-player All-SEC First Team, freshman Anastasia Hayes was chosen as 6th Woman of the Year and her classmates Rennia Davis and Evina Westbrook were selected for the eight-person SEC All-Freshman Team.
Nared and Russell picked up Coaches All-SEC accolades for the second time in their careers, but they made the first team in 2018 after earning second-team honors a year ago. It marked the fourth time during the Holly Warlick era UT had two on the coaches’ first team. Cierra Burdick and Isabelle Harrison had that distinction in 2015, while Meighan Simmons and Harrison made the cut in 2014 and Simmons and Bashaara Graves did so in 2013.
Hayes is Tennessee’s second-ever 6th Woman of the Year, following in the footsteps of Alyssia Brewer in 2010. Davis and Westbrook, meanwhile, are the fourth and fifth members of the SEC All-Freshman Team during the past six seasons. It marked the seventh time in history UT has had two players on that squad in the same year.
Nared, a 6-foot-2 guard/forward from Portland, Ore., is the Lady Vols’ leading scorer at 17.2 points per game and is third in rebounding at 7.7. She shoots a team-leading.827 from the free throw line and is first on the squad in steals (64) and third in assists (70) and blocks (19). She has recorded nine double-doubles this season and has scored 20 or more points on 11 occasions. She is among the nation’s leaders and single-season pace-setters at UT in free throws made (153) and attempted (185).
A 6-6 center from Springfield, Ore., Russell is averaging 15.5 points and 7.7 rebounds per game while shooting .601 from the field to rank among the nation’s leaders and UT’s all-time single-season leaders. She has blocked a team-leading 41 shots and has tallied 31 steals and 26 assists as well. After setting a Lady Vol junior record with 19 double-doubles a year ago, Russell has a senior-record-tying 14 and counting this season. She became only the sixth player in UT annals to eclipse 1,500 points and 1,000 rebounds during a career, standing at 1,542 and 1,046 entering the SEC Tournament.
Hayes, a 5-7 guard from Murfreesboro, has been UT’s top performer off the bench all season long, averaging 9.1 points per game to rank fourth on the squad. She also averages 24.5 minutes, 3.4 assists, 2.7 rebounds and 1.2 steals per game. She has scored in double figures 16 times and led UT in assists on nine occasions, posting career highs of 17 points vs. ETSU and nine assists vs. Troy and Arkansas. Like Nared, she has been a frequent visitor to the free throw line, making 92 of 131 attempts (.702).
UT’s third-leading scorer and rebounder, Davis averages 12.1 points and 7.6 caroms per contest, starting 27 of 28 games this season. The 6-2 forward from Jacksonville, Fla., is third on the team in steals (33) and fifth in assists (51) while shooting .489 from the field, .333 from the three-point arc and .718 from the charity stripe. She has scored in double figures 17 times and has carded eight double-doubles to stand sixth all-time among UT freshmen. Her rebound average currently ranks sixth as well.
A 6-0 freshman guard from Salem, Ore., Westbrook has handled the starting point guard role in every game, averaging 8.6 points, 4.4 assists and 2.7 rebounds per contest. She has led the team in assists on 18 occasions and scored in double figures 11 times. Her 129 assists are the third most of any freshman in school history, and her 4.4 average is second by any UT rookie. She ranks second on the team in three-pointers made (27) and is tops among regulars at .355 percent on long-range attempts.
AP ANNOUNCES ALL-SEC TEAM: Jaime Nared and Mercedes Russell also were named to the Associated Press All-SEC Team which was released on Tuesday morning. Russell was a second-team honoree last season as well.
