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Adams: LSU was able to finish what Lady Vols started
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When Tennessee raced to a 21-2 lead in the first seven minutes Thursday night, LSU women’s basketball coach Van Chancellor might have yearned for his good old days as a courtside commentator.
As he put it, “TV, compared to coaching, is just like stealing. There’s no pressure in that job.”
The pressure mounted as quickly as UT’s lead at Thompson-Boling Arena.
How bad was it?
It was so bad that …
“I thought when the score was 21-2, I didn’t want to answer my cell phone,” said Chancellor, a 30-year head coach who spent last season as a full-time television commentator on women’s basketball. “I thought it might be the athletic director telling me I no longer had a job.”
It was so bad that …
“It might be like General Custer was that time with the Indians,” Chancellor said. “I thought it might be a massacre.”
But LSU star center Sylvia Fowles thought differently when the game was going all UT’s way.
“To tell you the truth, we actually kept our composure as a team,” Fowles said. “Nobody fussed at each other. Before we set foot in this gym, we knew it would be somewhat difficult.
“I kept thinking to myself, ‘We’re going to come back. Just keep your composure and let the game come to you in the second half.’ And that’s what we did.”
They did it with a vengeance. As dominant as UT was for seven minutes, LSU was just as dominant the rest of the game in a 78-62 victory.
Not only did the Lady Tigers overcome a 19-point deficit. They weathered a brilliant performance by UT All-American Candace Parker, who had 26 points, 10 rebounds, six assists and six steals.
LSU’s reward likely will be the SEC regular-season championship.
It’s not official yet. But it’s a mere formality unless LSU loses a key player to injury. The seventh-ranked Lady Tigers’ only remaining conference games are against Ole Miss, Kentucky and Arkansas at home and Mississippi State on the road.
LSU is 10-0 in SEC play, compared to UT’s 8-1 conference record. So the Lady Tigers have the lead and the head-to-head tiebreaker advantage.
The defeat continued a trend — but with a different twist at the end — for the Lady Vols, who have taken early leads before, then lost them before finishing with a winning flourish.
But LSU didn’t just overtake the Lady Vols. It finished what the Lady Vols started.
While UT failed to complement Parker, LSU supported Fowles in grand style. Aside from Fowles, who had 17 points and 14 rebounds, four other Lady Tigers scored in double figures. That included Allison Hightower, who came off the bench to score 10 points, including a pair of 3-pointers when LSU was struggling to gain momentum in the first half.
“I think she’s the best sixth player in the country,” Chancellor said. “When you have a sixth player, I don’t want someone to come in and be a defensive stopper. I don’t necessarily want a rebounder.
“I want instant offense. And Allison Hightower is instant offense.”
Quianna Chaney provided late offense. After missing 10 of her first 11 shots, Chaney hit four of her last five field-goal tries to finish with 14 points.
“Miss a lot of shots, then help us at the end — that’s one of the things she had not been doing in the past,” Chancellor said.
“Chaney’s thought process is this: ‘I’m gonna shoot when I’m hot;’ when I’m not hot, I’m gonna shoot till I get hot,’ ” Chancellor added.
He admittedly encourages that philosophy. Against the Lady Vols, his entire team played with a similarly resilient mindset after the wretched start.
The Lady Tigers were unshaken when they fell behind by 19 points. And they were unfazed when they couldn’t stop Parker early.
They responded by stopping everyone else.
Sports editor John Adams may be reached at 865-342-6284 or adamsj@knews.com.
© 2008, Knoxville News Sentinel Co.
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Posted by 02champs on February 15, 2008 at 12:39 a.m. (Suggest removal)
eeek..!!..bad headline..worse article...man, i miss pennington's drivel...(did I really say that..?)...ok..i admit it...miss pennington needs to shave his beard. Hmm..they're both named John...Let's let them sort it out..whew....even pennington wouldn't take credit for Adam's "observations".
Posted by dash727 on February 15, 2008 at 8:14 a.m. (Suggest removal)
John, you are so smug this morning. I bet you are giddy the Lady Vols choked and handed your beloved LSU another championship banner.
Posted by TurboFan on February 15, 2008 at 8:26 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Someone needs to tell KNS that the weblink to GoVolsXtra is being redirected to GeauxTigersXtra.
Posted by AlpharettaVol on February 15, 2008 at 8:43 a.m. (Suggest removal)
A "brilliant performance by Candace Parker?" It was the quietest 26 points in history. As the TV commentators pointed out, she went about half the game without a field goal. Her last six points came after the game was pretty much out of reach. She may be the best player in Tennesse history, but until she understands that she has to take control of the game when it is going down the drain, the LV will not make it to the Final 4, let alone win another title. Come on, Candace, step up! The Vol Nation is depending on you!
Posted by arkyvol on February 15, 2008 at 9:26 a.m. (Suggest removal)
i disagree. its not parker's game to win or lose. its a team game. i remember back in the nineties, when holtzclaw was carrying the team on her back (to three nc's), and everyone else was standing around letting her do it. ultimately, the fourth nc got away because of that mentality. every player out there has a scholarship as valuable as parkers--they need to show they deserve it.
Posted by arkyvol on February 15, 2008 at 9:37 a.m. (Suggest removal)
and by the way, with three nc's to her credit, chamika might have an argument about who is the "best player in tennessee history."
Posted by wewhite on February 15, 2008 at 9:38 a.m. (Suggest removal)
I wouldn't be too smug about the Lady Vols' loss, John. While I can't back this up with concrete examples, I believe that ugly late-season losses have been the "legacy" of many a national championship team. Better to let sleeping dogs (Blue Tick Hounds) lie. If LSU had left well enough alone, they (or any of several teams) might've jumped the Lady Vols in the SEC tourney or even the Big Dance. I think this loss will refocus the gals. Pat's probably glaring at them now, asking "How bad do you want it?!" There'll be no more loafing; Bjorkland and Bobbitt will start draining those tres again; Anosike and Auguste will be under the opponent's basket shagging rebounds; one or more of our bench players will secure their name in the Lady Vol legacy; and Parker will probably remove all doubt that she's the most dominant player to ever play the game. Woe be unto ye who have awakened a sleeping giant.
Posted by vol4jesus on February 15, 2008 at 9:57 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Yes, it is a team game and your ace needs to lead by example. What is Candace's work ethic? 100+% for duration of time in the game? Did they hangover from Rutgers? Even so national championship teams have to show up on tired nights and play their best. I believe Coach Summitt will tell them what they aren't doing right. The question is do they take ownership and apply themselves all the way to possible finals? Where is team leadership? Last year the ladies called Candace out in a team meeting and the results were good teamwise. She responded and so did her teammates by stepping up their game as well. Time will tell if this was more than a whupping of their psyche. I support them either way....but give it your all so if we lose we will know it was not due to a lack of total effort. GO LADY VOLS!!!
Posted by OhioVol13 on February 15, 2008 at 11:32 a.m. (Suggest removal)
Not worried. This is just one game. This will only make them stronger.
Posted by va_vol16 on February 15, 2008 at 11:45 a.m. (Suggest removal)
ha ha
Posted by Orangeblood13 on February 15, 2008 at 12:36 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Just another dig by our pointless newsriders. Those girls look beat up and tired, probably needed to lose to regain some focus. I don't see em losing another one down the stretch. Hang in their ladies. Don't listen to these jackasses that write these columns.
Posted by TommyJack on February 15, 2008 at 3:38 p.m. (Suggest removal)
I read the article 3 times. Just don't see the dissing that others see.
Posted by KnoxVolian23 on February 15, 2008 at 6:19 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Because its not there. Many posters take Adams non pro-UT articles as anti-UT articles. He is just being objective. The KNS doesn't work for the university
Posted by ORANGEAND2 on February 15, 2008 at 8:44 p.m. (Suggest removal)
whoa, looks like the lady's "heads"got a bit LARGE-- maybe this will wake them up to the fact others are more than willing to do what lsu did.they (the players) may now realize it's gonna take a WHOLE team effort for 40 minutes
Posted by b.skelton on February 15, 2008 at 11:24 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Lady Vols need to improve their outside shooting. Thay are tough inside, but mediocre outside.
Posted by jevolball7 on February 16, 2008 at 12:31 a.m. (Suggest removal)
They don't have what it takes this year. Not sure why but they don't. As usual Van took Pat to school. And please lose that jerk Dearstone! I used to pull for the ladys hardcore,until that jerk started rambling on. Let's get behind the guys,they are SPECIAL!!!
Posted by 98reax on February 16, 2008 at 1:10 a.m. (Suggest removal)
I heard it from a wise old former coach tonight: the problem with the Lady Vols last night was exhaustion, from the Rutgers stuff, they were running on empty, needed 2 or 3 days out of the gym to recover from the crap. Could be true. I know I haven't recovered from it yet. Arkyvol, I agree with you, CP3 is not up there with Holdsclaw yet. After TN wins the national championship, CP3 will need to come back next season and finish the quest. Until then, she will not measure up to Mique or Tuarasi in my book. Now before anybody jumps me for mentioning a Geno prodigy, just let me remind you what an awesome player DT was and is. I hated her guts because of the jersey she wore - BUT - the kid is a player. I cannot remember her ever taking plays off. She demands the ball, even now, and she knows what to do with it when she gets it. When her hands are on the ball, nine times out of 10, points go up by her #. Now you cannot argue with that stat. Mique had some off shooting nights but she was always giving her 120%, even when her shots were not falling. CP3, to me is oft times lackadaisical, I'm just not excited about that mentality. NO WAY has CP3 proven herself to be the best in LV history. NOT YET. No, I'm not a hater. I agree with orangeblood13, the ladies are a bit beaten up both physically and emotionally. I think that 21-point spurt against LSU simply drained them and they collapsed, unable to muster enough energy to muster any kind of comeback. Pat is the best coach in the nation. She will recognize the problem and she will do whatever needs to be done to help them recover the killer instinct. They will be ready for Vandy. Commodores aint no slouch. They can score some buckets and they are physical. Melanie Balcomb will take advantage of any weakness.
Posted by jevolball7 on February 16, 2008 at 1:17 a.m. (Suggest removal)
All this time I thought CP3 was a Star Wars character?! HUH
Posted by NickS4117 on February 16, 2008 at 1:15 p.m. (Suggest removal)
Yawn.....women's basketball.....who cares?
The worst men's team in the SEC would blow either of these teams out. Make it the 2nd string would at any men's Division III.
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