KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Tennessee cruised to a midweek victory behind a historic offensive output Tuesday night at Lindsey Nelson Stadium, defeating Longwood, 28-2.
The Vols’ 28-run output marks the most runs in a single game by a Tennessee team since Feb. 14, 2004 when they defeated Morehead State, 29-1.
Tennessee (13-0) was balanced offensively, as eight Vols recorded two or more hits on the night. Freshman Jordan Beck led the Vols with three hits, including two doubles. Beck also drove in three runs.
Alerick Soularie and Zach Daniels, who homered in the first and sixth innings, respectively, had two hits and four RBI apiece. Daniels also had his first-career triple in the first inning.
Tennessee used six different pitchers over the course of the contest, with freshman Christian Delashmit being credited with his second win of the season after two shutout innings of work in which he gave up one hit and struck out four batters.
Freshman Mark McLaughlin got the start for the Vols, pitching two innings and recording three strikeouts before exiting the game. Kody Davidson, Will Mabrey, Kirby Connell and Ethan Anderson – all first-year players at UT – combined to pitch the final five innings, giving up no runs and just one total hit.
Longwood (3-10) starting pitcher Dillon Champagne was credited with the loss. The Lancers walked a total of 18 batters during the contest.
Notable Raining Homers
Tuesday’s two-home run outing was Tennessee’s 11th multi-homer game of the season and pushed the Vols’ nation-leading home run total to 24. Thirteen different Tennessee players have hit home runs, while six Vols have multiple homers.
Patient at the Plate
Tennessee drew 18 walks during Tuesday’s win over Longwood, bring its season total to 107 – a mark that leads the nation.
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Tennessee head coach Kellie Harper and junior forward Rennia Davis met with members of the media on Tuesday prior to the team’s departure for the SEC Tournament in Greenville, S.C.
This week, Davis received national player of the week honors from the U.S. Basketball Writers Association and both Southeastern Conference and College Sports Madness SEC Player of the Week accolades following back-to-back double-doubles against Ole Miss (19 pts./11 rbs.) and Auburn (22 pts./10 rbs.). She also was announced as a member of the Coaches’ All-SEC First Team on Tuesday. Davis answered questions about her recent honors and shared her thoughts on the Lady Vol squad as it heads into postseason play.
Harper discussed Tennessee’s potential matchups in the SEC Tournament as well as Davis and freshman Jordan Horston (SEC All-Freshman Team) receiving league recognition.
The sixth-seeded Lady Vols will face the winner of #14 Ole Miss vs. #11 Missouri on Thursday. The game will tip off 25 minutes following the conclusion of the 6 p.m. contest and is estimated to begin at 8:30 p.m. ET. The matchup will be televised by the SEC Network and broadcast on Lady Vol Network radio stations as well as on SiriusXM SEC Radio.
On Rennia Davis racking up honors recently:
“Well, first off, I am happy for her. She has been a competitive and a consistent basketball player for us all year. I think night in and night out she has come to play. We have needed that from her, and it has been good to see.”
On Jordan Horston being named to the SEC All-Freshman Team:
“She is competitive, and she can make plays. She can guard; she can rebound. She can do a lot of things on the court. She had a lot on her. Being a freshman, she had a big load. She did a really good job, and I am really happy for her.”
On the message to the team for the postseason:
“Right before the Auburn game, we talked about making it feel like a tournament game. At this point you have to scrap, claw, fight and find a way to win and advance. It doesn’t matter what it looks like. It doesn’t matter how many points you win by. If you advance, you keep moving. For us, we just have been talking about the little things that we need to do. It’s the execution, intensity and the urgency you have to play with in the tournament. We will keep hammering home those messages.”
On if winning three consecutive games brings confidence to the team entering the SEC Tournament:
“We had to grit out three wins. We didn’t have blowout wins. I think you can look at it a couple of different ways. I think these teams are better. I think we still found a way to win. I think we knew they were going to be tough to get. I’m proud of our team for getting them. That might actually help us more than a blowout win would have.”
On facing either Missouri or Ole Miss and if one is more favorable than the other:
“No. At this point, I think everybody is going to be good. I think the things that those two teams could do similarly in their attack against us is shoot threes. I think Ole Miss’ approach for us, in this last game we had with them, was to shoot the ball behind the 3-point line. Looking back, obviously it’s been a while since we played Mizzou, they shot 29 threes. So, I think with either team we’re going to have to guard behind the 3-point line. We’re coming off a game where our post players defended terrifically on the block. Either of these matchups doesn’t really warrant that type of play. We’ve got to be able to get out on the perimeter and guard one-on-one.”
On “trusting the process” and where she feels like she’s at in her first season with the team:
“It takes time and everybody gets there at a different spot or a different time. Everybody improves, and your team moves. I think we’ve grown a lot. There are a lot of areas where our offense has grown this season, throughout the season. That’s been great to see. Our defense has grown throughout the season. I still think there are some things out there that we could be better at. I think we hit a dry spell there rebounding-wise and got back on the right end of that recently and have done a good job on the boards. I just think there are some things that we’ve done well. It just takes some time. I think it takes some adversity to be able to push you to a point where you’re challenged and you’re tested and you question. Then, you’re able to get through that. I’m hoping that the team, because of all those things, is in a good place going over to Greenville.”
On her play this season and what she is most proud of:
“I think I’ve been able to be a consistent player for this team and just give us a scoring option every night. So, I am most proud of that. I think the last couple years one of the things I have been working on most is being more consistent for this team, and this year I have been able to do that.”
On what element of her game has allowed her to be a consistent scorer:
“Just the mindset. Knowing every night that other teams are going to give me their best defensive game plan, but I still have to be able to produce for this team in order for us to be successful.”
On being named USBWA Player of the Week and what that means to her to have national recognition:
“It means a lot to me; all these recognitions and awards mean a lot. They are (the results of) things I have been working on and the things I have been doing to help this team.”
On the turnover issues for her team and how they can fix that heading into the postseason:
“The turnovers with this team have kind of been an issue all season, something we have been constantly working on. I do think the past few games we have been able to cut down on those turnovers, I think we had 12 and 14 turnovers in the two games before the Auburn game, which is pretty good for this team. I think we are taking care of the ball better than before, besides the Auburn game. Which, Auburn plays the defense where they get you to turn the ball over, so we just have to kind of look past that game and move forward as far as turnovers.”
On the potential matchups with Ole Miss or Missouri:
“Ole Miss and Missouri are both gritty and tough teams. I actually had one of my most fun games against Ole Miss when we played them here at home. I just thought it was fun playing against them. I know their coaching staff. They are all from Florida, and I used to play for a lot of them, so it was pretty fun playing against them.”
On the postseason and how she would describe playing in the SEC Tournament:
“Postseason basketball is fun to me. It’s one of the best parts. It’s one of the reasons you come to a school like Tennessee, to play in big postseason games. And every postseason game is big. Like I said before, everybody is 0-0, so I’m excited.”
On why consistency has been so important for her:
“I think it’s because in the past couple years I have been pretty inconsistent. I remember last year, I think there was a stretch where I averaged only like four or six points. And it’s not all about scoring; it’s being able to produce in some way every night. I may not shoot the ball well every night, but (I’m) consistently crashing the boards. (It’s) little things like that – communicating with my teammates, trying to consistently get defensive stops. It’s not just about scoring, it’s about the little things as well.”
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – The Lady Vols begin a seven-game homestand with a midweek outing on Wednesday at 5:30 p.m. ET against Lipscomb.
It marks the first matchup between the programs since 2016 and is a chance for Tennessee (9-7) to extend its series win streak to 12.
Broadcast Info
Andy Brock will have the call for Wednesday’s contest, which will be streamed on WatchESPN.com and the ESPN app. Fans can also listen to the action on UTsports.com with Brian Rice on the call.
Quick Hits
Double Down
Tennessee has recorded 13 double plays so far this season, with a single-game season high three against USF on Feb. 22 that ties for a program record. The achievement has only occurred on three occasions, the last time coming at Virginia Tech in 2015. The only other time a UT team had three double plays was in 1998 versus Kansas. The Lady Vols’ 0.81 double plays per game leads the SEC and ranks second in the nation.
Seggern Takes ‘Em for the Team
Senior Chelsea Seggern quickly jumped into another top-10 category early in the season, albeit a painful one. Recording eight hit-by-pitches so far, Seggern ranks seventh all-time in UT history after being pegged at the plate 27 times since she joined the Lady Vols family in 2017. The Thrall, Texas, native ranks second in the SEC and fifth in the nation in HBP per game (0.50). Seggern is also ranked 43rd in the nations with 0.554 on base percentage.
Freshmen’s First Dingers
Kiki Milloy and KK McCrary have stood out for their impressive play at the plate in the early 2020 season. Milloy who was the lead off hitter in the 2020 lid-lifter, was the first freshman to go yard in their first collegiate at-bat for the Lady Vols since at least 2012, while McCrary was the first of the eight freshmen to go yard at Sherri Parker Lee. McCrary blasted a 2-run homer through centerfield against UT Martin on Feb. 25 to become the first freshman to record a dinger in a home opener since Meghan Gregg hit two against Northern Iowa on March 6, 2015.
Hail Tennessee
Nearly half of the Lady Vols squad is made up of in-state talent. There are nine Tennessee natives on the 2020 roster, believed to be a record for the program. Seniors Treasuary Poindexter (Covington, Tenn.) and Cailin Hannon (Franklin, Tenn.) and sophomores Kaili Phillips (Ooltewah, Tenn.) and Ashley Rogers (Athens, Tenn.) are joined by freshmen Anna Fox (Columbia, Tenn.), KK McCrary (Murfreesboro, Tenn.), Josie Willingham (Medon, Tenn.), Anna Hazlewood (Martin, Tenn.) and Madison Webber (Sevierville, Tenn.).
25th Anniversary
On Feb. 23, 1996, Tennessee fielded its first softball team at the 10th Annual Louisiana Classics in Lafayette, La. A 1-0 loss to Baylor, a program that had been around since 1979, marked the beginning of what would become one of the Vols and Lady Vols premier athletic programs. The Lady Vols bounced back the following day to pick up the program’s first win, a 5-4 victory over the Bears and eventually took the series in a rubber match on Feb. 25, a 9-8, eight-inning victory. Fast forward to 2020 and 1,124 wins later, the Orange and White opens the programs 25th year in extant as the season commences on Feb. 8 in Tempe, Ariz., against Northwestern.
All-American Homecoming
In late January, Tennessee announced that it would host the U.S. Women’s National Team as part of Team USA’s “Stand Beside Her” Tour – a nationwide tour where the Red, White and Blue will face top Division I collegiate teams in preparation for the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. On April 8, the Lady Vols face off against the WNT at Sherri Parker Lee and will welcome back Tennessee great Monica Abbott, a four-time All-American (2004-07), three-time SEC Pitcher of the Year (2004, 05, 07), USA Softball National Collegiate Player of the Year trophy winner and NCAA/UT program record holder. Tickets for the event are currently sold out, but the game will be broadcast on ESPN2.
Scouting Report
Lipscomb
2020 record: 9-8, 0-0 ASUN
Series record: 11-0
Last outing: A 12th-ranked Tennessee won 10-2 in six innings in Knoxville on April 24, 2016.
Key player/stat: Megan Gray has been named ASUN Pitcher of the Week twice in three weeks, recently posting a career-high 17 strikeouts versus North Dakota State. She currently holds a 1.78 ERA. Offensively, Amy Vetula leads the team with a .387 batting average and 14 runs scored. The Lady Bison are on a two-game losing streak, but went toe-to-toe with Texas in 12-11 heartbreaker.
Next Up
The Lady Vols continue its homestand with the Tennessee Invitational on March. 6-8. UT will host ETSU at 3 p.m. and Stanford at 5:30 p.m. on Friday before opening Saturday at 12:30 p.m. against Toledo in a round-robin format that will peg the top-finishing team against the team with the fewest wins later Saturday. Consolation and championship rounds will be played on Sunday, with the Lady Vols playing at 12:30 p.m., regardless of finish.
Former Academic All-American Lang Wiseman has been selected as Tennessee’s Allstate SEC Basketball Legend and will represent the Volunteers at the SEC Tournament next month in Nashville.
Wiseman starred as a guard under Vols head coach Wade Houston from 1989-93. A native of Arlington, Tennessee, Wiseman finished his career as the program’s No. 24 all-time leading scorer, with 1,156 points, and now ranks 46th on Tennessee’s career scoring list.
A fantastic backcourt complement to the great Allan Houston, Wiseman averaged 9.4 points, 2.9 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 123 career games. Wiseman logged 82 starts and shot .435 from the field and .358 from 3-point range during his career.
As a sophomore in 1990-91, he averaged a career-best 13.2 points and 3.2 assists while earning 30 starts and playing 30.1 minutes per game. He led the Vols in steals as both his sophomore and junior seasons.
Also a standout academically, he stands as the most decorated scholar athlete in Tennessee basketball history. He earned third-team Academic All-America honors in 1991, followed by second-team status in 1992 and first-team laurels in 1993.
Wiseman also was the Anson Mount National Scholar-Athlete of the Year and the H. Boyd McWhorter SEC Male Scholar-Athlete of the Year in 1993.
He received a bachelor’s degree in business from Tennessee and then earned a law degree from Harvard Law School, where he graduated cum laude.
A former member of the UT Board of Trustees, Wiseman now serves his home state as Deputy to the Governor and Chief Counsel.
Joining Wiseman in this year’s Legends class is Jerry Harper (Alabama, 1953-56), Derek Hood (Arkansas, 1996-99), Layton Johns (Auburn, 1960-63), Chris Richard (Florida, 2003-07), Rod Cole (Georgia, 1987-91), Vernon Hatton (Kentucky, 1956-58), Collis Temple III (LSU, 1999-2003), Eric Laird (Ole Miss, 1982-85), Jerry Jenkins (Mississippi State, 1973-75), Steve Stipanovich (Missouri, 1979-83), Tre’ Kelley (South Carolina, 2003-07), David Britton (Texas A&M, 1978-1980) and Butch Feher (Vanderbilt, 1973-76).
TENNESSEE’S ALL-TIME SEC LEGENDS
1999 – Reggie Johnson
2000 – A.W. Davis
2001 – Ernie Grunfeld
2002 – Tony White
2003 – Tom Boerwinkle
2004 – Dale Ellis
2005 – Ron Widby
2006 – Bill Justus
2007 – Allan Houston
2008 – Bernard King
2009 – Paul “Lefty” Walther
2010 – Don DeVoe
2011 – Jimmy England
2012 – Gene Tormohlen
2013 – Len Kosmalski
2014 – Ed Wiener
2015 – Johnny Darden
2016 – Vincent Yarbrough
2017 – Ron Slay
2018 – Howard Wood
2019 – Mike Jackson
2020 – Lang Wiseman
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — University of Tennessee junior forward Rennia Davis has been named this season’s 16th and final U.S. Basketball Writers Association Ann Meyers Drysdale Women’s National Player of the Week.
The award follows Davis previously being named the SEC Women’s Basketball Player of the Week and the College Sports Madness SEC Player of the Week. This marks the first time Davis has been honored by the USBWA.
The newly-announced 2020 All-SEC First Team selection put together back-to-back double-double efforts last week to help the Lady Vols close out the regular season with three consecutive wins and record the program’s 43rd 20-win season in the past 44 years. The 20-9 overall record and 10-6 conference mark significantly improve the Lady Vols’ chances of receiving a bid to the NCAA Tournament for the 39th consecutive time.
The 6-foot-2 standout averaged 20.5 points, 10.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists in wins over Ole Miss and Auburn that helped UT forge a tie for third in the SEC standings after being picked to finish sixth by the media and seventh by the coaches. Davis shot 48.4 percent from the field (15-31), 33.3 percent from long range (2-6) and 81.8 from the free-throw line (9-11) en route to recording her 10th and 11th double-doubles of the season and her sixth 20+ point effort of the campaign. She now has scored in double figures in 26 straight games and has done so in 40 of her last 41 contests.
Davis was Tennessee’s only player in double figures in the regular season finale at Auburn on Sunday, connecting on nine of 18 shots and three of four attempts at the charity stripe to finish with a game-high 22 points and 10 rebounds to go along with three assists. She also was instrumental in a defensive effort that limited Auburn to 55 points just one game after the Tigers had scored 95 on the road at Missouri. She also helped the Lady Vols restrict AU double-double career leader Unique Thompson to six points and five rebounds on the afternoon.
Against Ole Miss last Thursday, Davis was good for 19 points, 11 rebounds and four assists as UT improved to 13-3 at home in 2019-20. The effort was one of 20 this season when the Jacksonville, Fla., native has paced UT in scoring and one of 13 as the team’s leading rebounder.
Davis and her teammates depart for Greenville, S.C., on Tuesday night and play in the SEC Tournament’s second round on Thursday at approximately 8:30 p.m. ET. UT, which received the No. 6 seed after the third-place tie was broken, will meet the winner of Wednesday’s tilt between No. 11 seed Missouri and No. 14 Ole Miss.
Rennie Davis & Jordan Horston – Lady Vols / Credit: UT Athletics
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – The Southeastern Conference women’s basketball coaches’ awards were announced on Tuesday, and University of Tennessee standouts Rennia Davis and Jordan Horston have been recognized for their performances during the 2019-20 season.
Davis, a 6-foot-2 junior forward from Jacksonville, Fla., was one of eight players chosen to the All-SEC First Team. Horston, a 6-2 freshman guard from Columbus, Ohio, was one of eight first-year performers chosen to SEC All-Freshman Team.
Davis, who began the year as a preseason All-SEC First Team player by the league’s coaches, appears on the postseason All-SEC First Team for the initial time. She was a second-team pick a year ago and made the SEC All-Freshman Team in 2017-18.
Tennessee’s leading scorer and rebounder, Davis is averaging career highs of 18.3 points and 8.3 rebounds this season, which rank third and sixth among conference players. That scoring average is the best by a Lady Vol since Candace Parker averaged 21.3 ppg. in 2007-08.
Davis is shooting 47.8 percent from the field (9th in SEC) and 81.0 percent from the free throw line (3rd in SEC), and she has hit a team-leading 33 three-pointers this season. Additionally, Davis is third on the team in assists (69) and steals (25).
A candidate for a bevy of postseason honors, including All-America accolades, Davis has recorded 11 double-doubles this season and six games of 20 or more points. Her double-double total ties her for seventh all-time among UT juniors, and her career total of 29 ties her for 10th in Lady Vol history. In terms of her games of 20+ points, Davis now has 13 for her career, which ties her for ninth in program history.
In her debut season as a Lady Vol, Horston has started 22 of 29 games for Tennessee, scoring in double figures 14 times and registering five or more assists on 17 occasions. She leads UT in assists (4.8 apg.) and steals (1.2 spg.) and ranks third in scoring (9.8 ppg.), rebounding (5.5 rpg.) and three-pointers made (23).
Horston has recorded the third-most assists ever by a Lady Vol freshman, dishing out 139. Only eight other players in program history have produced a season with that many dimes. Her average of 4.79, meanwhile, ranks second among all-time UT rookies behind only Ariel Massengale’s 4.91 effort in 2011-12. That assist average ranks third among all players in the SEC this season, and Horston is the only league freshman ranked in the top 15 in that statistical category.
Both players have joined their teammates in helping the Lady Vols finish the regular season with a 20-9 overall record and 10-6 mark in the SEC, good for a tie for third place. That placement came despite UT having only one returning starter available this season. The team had been picked to finish sixth by the media and seventh by the coaches.
In the wake of the tornadoes that ripped though Tennessee on March 3—killing at least 22 people and damaging hundreds of structures—many folks are wondering how to help. Find out how you can help here.
Tornadoes ripped across Tennessee in the early hours of March 3, including a direct hit in downtown Nashville around 12:40 a.m. Multiple deaths—at least 19 people have died in four counties (updated at 11:28 a.m.)—have been reported, as well as significant damage to hundreds of homes and buildings.
One of the hardest hit neighborhoods in Nashville was the historic Germantown area, which has a population of more than 2,700 people, including numerous industry execs, media members and country stars.
A number of country stars checked in via social media and other press outlets—including Carrie Underwood, Scotty McCreery, Kelsea Ballerini, Reba McEntire, Jake Owen, Maren Morris and more—to share updates and prayers.
My heart, thoughts and prayers go out to everyone in the Nashville area affected by the tornado last night. Even if the tornado didn’t hit our personal space, we are all affected because we are Nashvillians. My heart… https://t.co/S6dpfGfgg1
Our hometown of Hendersonville was spared by the awful band of storms last night but East Nashville Mt Juliet and much of Lebanon were hit hard by tornados … 9 dead thus far … huge damage … #PrayersForNashville#prayersforTN
My heart goes out to this wonderful city and community. I have lived here since 1987 and not seen this level of damage. Thinking and praying for all who were affected. #nashvillestronghttps://t.co/PuBsvkuoVT
I’m thankful for the well wishes here in Nashville from everyone. There are people that have lost loved ones and their homes. We as NASHVILLE will stand together and help anyone and everyone in need. That’s why I’m proud to live here and call it home.
So incredibly sad for our town. Sending prayers for all those impacted by this terrible storm. It’s so heartbreaking to see what we’re watching the news this morning. @ Franklin, Tennessee https://t.co/qWpZfsFSWd
Carrie Underwood via Today show: “[Mike] said he had to go upstairs at, like, 2 a.m. and grab the boys and take them down…we have like a little safe room in our house. I bet everybody was crying.”
Maren Morris via Twitter: “The tornado must have missed our block by an inch because we are alright but I am so depleted looking at the damage that has happened to our beautiful city. There are so many people in the streets helping already, though. Thinking of those who lost their loved ones + homes.”
Dierks Bentley via Twitter: “We ducked around this cell and landed at john tune airport around 11:30 last night. Glad we landed when we did. Wouldn’t have been good an hour later. It was the cell that turned into the tornado. Lot of people lost their homes. No one comes together as a city like Nashville does”
Kenny Chesney will release his 19th studio album, Here and Now, on May 1. Longtime collaborator Buddy Cannon co-produced the album, with additional production assistance from Ross Copperman.
“When you’re this far into a career, I think artists need to keep pushing themselves and the music without losing sight of who they are, or forgetting the people you make music for,” says Kenny. “No Shoes Nation is a very passionate place without borders. I get inspired every time I see and hear them. These are passionate people who work really hard. They make a difference in their community in all kinds of ways, giving back not so people think they’re good, but because that’s who they are and what they do. When they listen to music, they’re all in—and when they hear something they like, you can feel it in how they respond.”
Much of the album was written and recorded over the last 18 months, including the title track, which is currently No. 23 on Billboard’s Country Airplay chart after two weeks. Penned by Craig Wiseman, David Garcia and David Lee Murphy at a writing retreat Kenny set up in Malibu, the new tune beckons listeners to live in the present with a chorus that proclaims: “You and me, ain’t it good to be alive / Ain’t no better place, ain’t no better time / Than here and now.”
“You know, [the album is] going to have a high fun factor,” says Kenny. “People work hard, and need music that makes them smile, that kicks them into a happy place. There are also songs here that look at very specific people, that tell one person’s story, but it could be any of us. That’s the mark of a good song: let one person’s specific life say so much about a lot of people’s lives. And one of the things I really wanted (for Here and Now) was to bring a lot of my favorite writers together, not to do ‘writing camp,’ but just hang out and talk, remember when it was the stories and laughs that sparked songs, not sitting down to churn out something to cut.”
LEXINGTON, Ky. – The Tennessee men’s basketball team hits the road for a Tuesday night contest against sixth-ranked Kentucky inside Rupp Arena. Tipoff between the Vols and the Wildcats is set for 9 p.m. ET on ESPN.
Tuesday’s game can be seen on ESPN, online through WatchESPN, which can be accessed at espn.com/watch and on any mobile device through the ESPN App. Karl Ravech and Jimmy Dykes will have the call.
Fans can also listen in on their local Vol Network affiliate to hear Bob Kesling and Bert Bertlekamp describing the action.
Last time out, the Vols battled past SEC rival Florida, 63-58. UT was led by junior All-SEC candidate, John Fulkerson, who poured in a game-high 22 points, finishing 10-of-15 from the field, while knocking down his first career 3-point field goal.
Freshman Josiah-Jordan James was also incredibly productive, scoring 12 points, pulling in eight rebounds, dishing off a season-high-tying six assists, while rejecting two shot attempts and nabbing a steal on the defensive end.
The story of the day came from freshman Santiago Vescovi, who’s parents surprised him prior to tipoff. His parents and sister traveled through the night from Uruguay, arriving while Vescovi was completing his pregame routine.
A win on Tuesday night would be the Vols third triumph over an AP top-25 opponent this season and would mark the fifth victory for UT over a top-10 oppoenent during the Rick Barnes era. A victory would also be the Vols sixth ever win inside Rupp Arena and the second in the last three seasons.
Up next, the Vols return home to conclude their regular-season, with a home contest against Auburn. Saturday’s start time is slated for noon ET on either ESPN or ESPN2. Seniors Jordan Bowden and Lamonte Turner will be honored prior to tipoff as part of UT’s senior day ceremony.
THE SERIES
• Tennessee trails the all-time series with Kentucky, 156-73, dating to 1910.
• The Wildcats have a 91-17 edge when the series is played in Lexington.
• Overall, the Vols have won four of their last seven games vs. Kentucky.
• Kentucky posted a 77-64 win when these teams met in Knoxville on Feb. 8.
A WIN WOULD…
• Be Tennessee’s sixth victory in its last nine games against Kentucky.
• Be UT’s sixth all-time win at Rupp Arena.
• Give the Vols three wins this season over AP top 25 opponents.
• Be Tennessee’s fifth victory over a top-10 opponent during the Barnes era.
STORYLINES
• Through 16 SEC games, Tennessee and its opponents have both scored exactly 1,061 points.
• UT is 7-1 on Tuesdays this season.
• Senior shooting guard Jordan Bowden is Tennessee’s leading scorer in true road games, averaging a team-best 16.2 points per game while shooting .450 from the field.
• With 184 career 3-poiners, Jordan Bowden ranks tied for seventh on Tennessee’s all-time list.
• In Tennessee’s last five games, junior forward John Fulkerson is averaging a team-best 17.0 points while shooting .547 from the field.
• John Fulkerson also has drawn 37 fouls in UT’s last five games.
• During SEC play, freshmen account for 40.4 percent of Tennessee’s total minutes played.
• Tennessee freshman Drew Pember has missed UT’s last two games in concussion protocol and remains day-to-day.
LAYUP LINES
• During SEC play, Tennessee leads the league in blocks (5.9 bpg) and owns the conference’s best scoring defense (66.3 ppg).
• SEC Defensive Player of the Year candidate Yves Pons has blocked at least one shot in every game this season.
• Yves Pons leads the SEC and ranks 23rd nationally with 2.4 bpg. His 2.4 bpg during SEC play also leads the league.
• Barring injury or illness, senior guard Jordan Bowden will finish his career in the top five on Tennessee’s list for career games played. Tuesday will be the 131st game in which he’s appeared—tying him for sixth-most all-time.
• Tuesday will be Jordan Bowden’s 98th career start. Only 13 Vols have ever logged 100 starts.
• Tennessee ranks fourth nationally in average home attendance, drawing 18,854 fans per game this season.
ABOUT KENTUCKY
• Since losing on the road at then-16th-ranked Auburn on Feb. 1, Kentucky has ripped off eight consecutive SEC wins to bring home the 49th outright SEC championship in program history. The Wildcats currently sit at 24-5 overall and hold a league-best mark of 14-2 in SEC play.
• Sophomore guard Immanuel Quickley has been huge for the Wildcats, averaging 18.2 points per contest during their eight-game win streak. During this stretch of play, he’s eclipsed 20 points four times and scored a career-high 30 points on Tuesday night at Texas A&M. His 16.3 points per game overall leads UK and ranks eighth in the SEC.
• Big man Nick Richards has also been a massive bright spot for the Wildcats, ranking third on the team in scoring (13.9 ppg) and first in both rebounds (7.8 rpg) and blocks (2.2 bpg). His 7.8 boards per contest ranks third in the SEC and his 2.2 blocks per game trail only Tennessee’s Yves Pons for the most in the league.
• Kentucky also features the SEC’s leading assist man in Ashton Hagans. Hagans is currently averaging 6.4 helpers per game. Hagans also leads UK in steals, with 2.0 per game, a mark that ranks second in the SEC, trailing only Missouri’s Dru Smith.
• The University of Kentucky, founded in 1865, is one of just two land grant universities in the state of Kentucky. The other being NCAA Division II member Kentucky State. What was once the Agricultural and Mechanical College of Kentucky, UK now stands as the state’s largest university with an undergraduate enrollment of 22,136.
LAST TIME VS. KENTUCKY
• Tennessee had no answer for 15th-ranked Kentucky on Feb. 8, 2020, falling to the Wildcats, 77-64, at Thompson-Boling Arena.
• In his first-ever taste of the heated border rivalry, freshman Santiago Vescovi led the Vols offensively, tying his career-high for points with 18.
• Senior Jordan Bowden and junior John Fulkerson both added 16 points for the Big Orange, as Bowden finished with a team-high nine rebounds.
• Tennessee junior Yves Pons finished the game with four blocks, extending his streak of consecutive games with at least one block to 23.
• Immanuel Quickley led Kentucky with 18 points.
• In the first half, UK went on an 8-0 run to build an 11-point lead. The Vols responded with their own 5-0 scoring streak to make it a six-point game, 26-20.
• The Wildcats hung tough and built on their lead, but Fulkerson closed out the first half with a pair of free throws to cut Kentucky’s halftime lead to seven, 37-30.
• At the break, Fulkerson led the Vols with 12 points, eight of which came at the foul line. The junior also recorded four rebounds in the first 20 minutes.
• Coming out of the break, Fulkerson scored Tennessee’s first three points of the second half, and Vescovi followed with one of his four 3-pointers of the afternoon.
• With just more than nine minutes left in the contest, Vescovi hit his third triple of the half to bring the Vols within four points, but Kentucky had an answer for every charge Tennessee attempted to mount down the stretch.
MEMORABLE VOL PERFORMANCES AGAINST KENTUCKY
• Kevin Punter Jr.’s 27 points were the most scored by a Vol against the Kentucky in 10 years as Tennessee defeated the Wildcats, 84-77, Feb. 2, 2016, in Knoxville. The senior point guard made three 3-pointers and was 11-of-12 at the free-throw line.
• Chris Lofton reeled off 31 points, Major Wingate scored 12 and longtime NBA point guard C.J. Watson added 10 as No. 11 Tennessee beat Kentucky 75-67 at Rupp Arena on Feb. 7, 2006.
• Beating the Wildcats was three times as nice during the 1978-79 season. UT notched program win No. 900 in Lexington on Jan. 20, 66-55, before topping UK 101-84 in Knoxville on Feb. 17. Then the Vols won the 1979 SEC Tournament with a 75-69 win over UK in Birmingham, Alabama, on March 3. Current Vol Network radio analyst Bert Bertelkamp was a junior on that Tennessee team.
• As Bernard King walked off the court at Memorial Gym after a deflating 88-82 loss on Jan. 13, 1975, a Kentucky fan flipped a lit cigarette into the Tennessee legend’s hair. Outraged, King vowed he would never lose to Kentucky again. He vigorously carried out that promise, finishing his career 5-1 against the Wildcats.
SERIES HISTORY & NOTES
• The Kentucky series is UT’s oldest and most-played among SEC opponents. The Vols and Wildcats first met on Feb. 5, 1910, and have clashed 229 times over the years.
• On 14 different occasions—first in 1950 and most recently in 2017—an unranked Tennessee team has defeated a Kentucky team ranked in the AP top 10.
• No program in college basketball has logged more wins over Kentucky than Tennessee (73).
• The Vols have beaten the Wildcats just five times at Rupp Arena, posting victories in 1977, 1979, 1999, 2006 and 2018.
• Kentucky is one of only two SEC schools (along with Alabama) to lead its all-time series against the Volunteers.
• Four Tennessee All-Americans were Kentucky natives: Allan Houston, Chris Lofton, Danny Schultz and Paul “Lefty” Walther.
• Tennessee has 15 all-time wins over the Wildcats at Thompson-Boling Arena, including four straight between 2016-19.
SECOND TIME’S A CHARM
• Over the last three seasons, Rick Barnes and his staff guided the Volunteers to an 11-2 record in regular-season rematch games (SEC Tournament games not included).
• The lone losses came this season at South Carolina and Arkansas.
ROAD WARRIORS
• Dating to the start of the 2017-18 season, Tennessee has won more than half of its true road games, going 18-14 (.563).
• That includes victories at Kentucky, Iowa State, Georgia Tech, Wake Forest, Memphis, Alabama and Florida.
PONS RIDING BLOCK STREAK, APPROACHING UT SEASON RECORD
• Yves Pons, the SEC’s leading shot-blocker, has blocked at least one shot in every game this season.
• His streak of 29 straight games with at least one block is the longest such streak by a Vol since at least the 1988-89 season (research is ongoing).
• Pons has blocked three or more shots in 15 games this season, including a program-record-tying six-block effort against Jacksonville State on Dec. 21.
• With two regular-season games left to play, he already ranks second on UT’s single-season blocks list. The record is 73, by C.J. Black in 1997-98.
WINDICATORS
• Tennessee under Rick Barnes is 50-6 when holding its opponent below a .390 field-goal percentage.
• Tennessee under Rick Barnes is 45-3 when it takes a double-digit lead into halftime.
• The Vols are 10-1 this season when they total 16 or more assists as a team.
• The Vols are 6-2 during Josiah-Jordan James career when he records five or more assists.
• Tennessee is undefeated during John Fulkerson’s career in games in which he makes a 3-point shot.
