KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – Tennessee women’s basketball standout Rennia Davis has been named in a vote by the media as a member of the Preseason All-SEC First Team, the league announced on Friday.

Joining Davis on the six-member squad are Unique Thompson, Auburn; Rhyne Howard, Kentucky; Rickea Jackson, Mississippi State; Aliyah Boston, South Carolina; and N’dea Jones, Texas A&M. Howard was the overwhelming choice for SEC Women’s Basketball Player of the Year. The 6-foot-2 Lady Vol guard/forward was a first-unit choice by the coaches earlier this week as well.

In the race for the SEC regular season championship, meanwhile, the Lady Vols were predicted to finish sixth in the league standings by the media for the second straight season. A year ago, during Kellie Harper‘s inaugural campaign at the helm of the Lady Vols, Tennessee fashioned a 21-10 overall record and 10-6 league mark, good for a tie for third in the standings. It was UT’s highest league finish since taking first in 2014-15.

South Carolina, ranked No. 1 in both the AP and USA TODAY Coaches Preseason Polls, is predicted to win the 2021 SEC women’s basketball championship. Behind the Gamecocks are No. 6/7 Mississippi State, No. 11/12 Kentucky, No. 13/13 Texas A&M, No. 14/14 Arkansas, Tennessee and LSU rounding out the top half of the league. Georgia, Alabama, Florida, Missouri, Vanderbilt, Auburn and Ole Miss complete the bottom half.

Tennessee returns four players who were regulars in the starting lineup at some point during the 2019-20 season. That group is headed by Davis, who is a two-time All-SEC and All-America honorable mention performer. The second-leading returning scorer in the SEC, she averaged 18.0 points, 8.2 rebounds and 2.5 assists per game in 2019-20 while shooting 46.9 percent from the field and 80.2 percent from the free throw line. In league play, Davis produced 19.9 ppg. and 8.0 rpg. while hitting 49.6% from the field and 82.8% at the charity stripe in 16 regular-season contests.

UT’s other players with significant starting experience include 6-1 junior guard/forward Rae Burrell (10.5 ppg., 5.5 rpg., 21 3FGs), 6-2 sophomore guard Jordan Horston (10.1 ppg., 5.5 rpg., 4.6 apg., SEC All-Freshman) and 6-5 sophomore center Tamari Key (7.3 ppg., 4.7 rpg., 2.8 bpg., 56% FG). Burrell was the team’s top reserve for the first 22 games before starting the final nine contests of the season. She averaged 12.3 ppg. and 5.7 rpg. during that end-of-year stint in the first five.

All told, UT returns five of its top six scorers and rebounders from 2019-20, including the top four in each category. Harper welcomes back 80.8 percent of her scoring, 76.4 percent of rebounds, 78.6 percent of blocks, 71.0 per­cent of steals and 64.8 percent of assists from a year ago. The Big Orange women also return 80.6 percent of their field goals, including 73.3 percent of their three-pointers, and 84.8 percent of free throws from last season.

In addition to returning Davis, Burrell, Key and Horston, the Lady Vols welcome back rotation regulars in 6-4 senior center Kasiyahna Kushkituah (5.4 ppg., 4.4 rpg., 49% FG, 31 games played), 5-8 sophomore guard Jessie Rennie (2.7 ppg., 25 3FGs, 46% 3FG, 30 games played) and 6-3 redshirt senior forward Jaiden McCoy (2.7 ppg., 1.8 rpg., 26 games played). Emily Saunders, a 6-5 sophomore center, saw action in only 10 games a year ago but averaged 3.7 ppg., 2.2 rpg. and 1.0 bpg. while shooting 71% on field goals.

Tennessee also welcomes a pair of highly-regarded graduate transfers in Keyen Green from Liberty and Jordan Walker from Western Michigan. Walker, an All-MAC guard with two seasons to play, brings experience, quickness and depth to the guard corps. The 5-8 redshirt junior averaged 16.0 ppg., 6.2 rpg., 2.5 apg. and 2.1 spg. while knocking down 66 three-pointers in 2019-20.

Green, meanwhile, is a 6-1 first-team All-ASUN forward/center who is expected to bolster UT’s inside presence. She averaged 13.9 ppg. and 7.5 rpg. last season and shot 59 percent from the field. ESPN ranked Green, who has one season to play, at No. 15 in its 2020-21 preseason Newcomer Impact Rankings.

UT’s three-member rookie class includes 6-0 guard Destiny Salary (four-star prospect, #57 by espnW HoopGurlz), 6-1 guard/forward Tess Darby (#86 by Blue Star Media, four-star prospect by ProspectsNation.com) and 6-2 guard/forward Marta Suárez (a four-star prospect by Blue Star Europe).

PRESEASON MEDIA PREDICTIONS

ORDER OF FINISH
1. South Carolina
2. Mississippi State
3. Kentucky
4. Texas A&M
5. Arkansas
6. Tennessee
7. LSU
8. Georgia
9. Alabama
10. Florida
11. Missouri
12. Vanderbilt
13. Auburn
14. Ole Miss

PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Rhyne Howard, Kentucky

ALL-SEC FIRST TEAM
Unique Thompson, Auburn
Rhyne Howard, Kentucky
Rickea Jackson, Mississippi State
Aliyah Boston, South Carolina
Rennia Davis, Tennessee
N’dea Jones, Texas A&M

-UT Athletics

AUBURN, Ala. –  Despite holding a two-possession lead in the second quarter and another stellar performance by sophomore running back Eric Gray, Tennessee was unable to deliver the upset at No. 23/21 Auburn, falling 30-17 to the Tigers on Saturday night.

Gray recorded a season-high 173 rushing yards on 22 attempts, marking the second consecutive outing that the Memphis, Tennessee, native surpassed the century mark and the fourth time this season. Gray added a touchdown on a 1-yard scamper late in the fourth quarter, but it would not be enough to turn the tide. The Vols outgained the Tigers 464-385 in total yards, but despite the offensive production the Vols missed scoring opportunities proved costly.

The Vols close out their 2020 road slate next Saturday at Vanderbilt with kickoff slated for 7:30 p.m. ET. The game can be viewed on the SEC Network alternate channel.

UT (2-5) struck first on its second offensive drive of the night with Guarantano capping a nine-play, 80-yard drive with a 9-yard rush – the longest rushing TD of his career. Gray exploded on a 33-yard rush on third-and-15 to set up the Vols first scoring drive and then caught a 16-yard pass to move Tennessee into Tigers territory. Freshman Jimmy Calloway caught a six-yard toss to keep the momentum going before classmate Jalin Hyatt hauled in a 15-yarder to move the chains for the third time during the series. Gray, who finished the opening frame with 88 total offensive yards, gained another six on the ground, before Guarantano found pay dirt.

Following UT’s scoring drive, junior defensive back Bryce Thompson picked off a pass in the end zone to stall an Auburn drive. It marked the second time that Thompson intercepted a pass against the Tigers in his career. Brent Cimaglia extended the Vols lead to 10-0 with 13:42 remaining in the half with a 47-yard field goal. Unfortunately, the senior struggled most of the night going 1-for-3, missing a 50-yard and 37-yard attempt.

The Tigers responded quickly in the second quarter, finding the end zone on a four-play drive as quarterback Bo Nix connected with receiver Anthony Schwartz, who slipped by UT’s secondary for a wide-open 54-yard touchdown catch. Auburn’s defense then forced a three-and-out and knotted things at 10-10 with a successful 25-yard field goal attempt from junior kicker Anders Carlson with 5:36 left in the half.

Tennessee was plagued by a third quarter shutout for the second consecutive outing as Auburn tacked on 10 unanswered points to lead by 10 heading into the final quarter. The Vols limited the Tigers to a field goal on their opening offensive possession in the second half that lasted 7:35 and gave Auburn its first lead of the night, 13-10.

The Tigers remained ahead for the remainder of the contest. Auburn extended its lead to 20-10 on a 100-yard pick six from Smoke Monday after the Vols had journeyed into the red zone. UT reached the Tigers 12-yard line and looked poised for another score before Monday picked off Guarantano’s pass intended for Josh Palmer.

The Tigers (5-2) added another TD on a nine-yard rush by sophomore D.J. Williams with 7:14 left in the game to put things out of reach for the Vols. Carlson connected on a 50-yard field goal with just under 1:30 to go to provide the final scoring margin.

Defensively, the Vols efforts were highlighted by linebacker Kivon Bennett, who set a new career high with three tackles for loss and also recorded 2.0 sacks to tie a season high, which he set in UT’s previous outing at Arkansas. Thompson, Deandre Johnson and Matthew Butler led the Vols with six tackles each, with Johnson adding 1.5 tackles for loss.

Freshman quarterback Harrison Bailey led Tennessee’s final two drives of the game and led his first-career scoring drive, orchestrating a nine-play, 75-yard drive that was punctuated by Gray’s lone touchdown of the night. Bailey finished the game 7-of-10 passing for 86 yards, both career bests.

Box Score (PDF) | Box Score (XML) | Postgame Notes | Download Photos 

-UT Athletics

Tennessee defensive end Matthew Butler spoke to the media after UT’s loss at the Auburn Tigers 30-17.