Sweet 16 Preview: Texas tries to defeat Tennessee for second time this year

In the Sweet 16 on March 29, the first-seeded Texas Longhorns will face off against the 5th-seeded Tennessee Volunteers in an SEC rematch. The winner of today’s 2:30 tip will play in the Elite 8 against the winner of the TCU-Notre Dame game. 

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Tennessee is a good team, and has had a very good season, with some big wins, and a few tough losses. 

Important Wins:

Florida State (79-77) – Tennessee was able to outlast the Seminoles and the nation’s leading scorer, Ta’Niya Latson, by two points early in the season. Florida State has gone on to finish 5th in the ACC and received a 6 seed in the NCAA Tournament. 

Iowa (78-68) – After the loss of Caitlin Clark, Iowa took a pretty big step back. But, they still were good enough to also receive a 6 seed. After a back and forth game, Tennessee pulled away late to win by 10. 

UConn (80-76) – The Huskies are a great team, arguably deserving a one seed but landing as a two. The Volunteers were one of only three teams to beat UConn, a very impressive win, and showed they can play with the best teams in the country. 

Alabama (88-80) – Tennessee controlled the game with their rival for the most part, keeping a decently sized lead for the majority of the game. The Crimson Tide are another very good team, proving once again Tennessee should not be overlooked. 

Tough Losses:

LSU (89-87 & 82-77) – Tennessee lost two close games to the Tigers this season, turning the ball over too much in one game and getting out rebounded in both. Tennessee was still able to keep both games close, showing their competence. 

Texas (80-76) – Texas already faced off against the Tennessee Volunteers once this season, narrowly escaping on the back of Madison Booker’s 26 point performance. The Horns had 15 more rebounds than the Lady Vols, but Tennessee made 8 more threes, making it a close game. If Texas wants to win this game, they will have to play better outside defense and be able to create a positive turnover margin. 

South Carolina (70-63) – Tennessee also was unable to beat South Carolina. They only lost by 7, but the game was only really close early, with South Carolina eventually taking over and managing to push their lead to 22. The Vols actually outrebounded the Gamecocks, but were unable to make a shot, shooting just over 30% for the game, leading to their eventual loss. 

Statistical Profile:

Record: 24-9, 8-8 in SEC

Quad 1 Record: 6-8

Net Ranking: 14

Season Stats: 87.2 ppg (many lopsided wins over lesser comp), 40.7 rpg, 15.6 apg, 11.4 spg, 2.9 bpg, 14.4 to

Shooting %s: 43.8% from the floor, 68.9% from FT, 32.6% from 3

Impactful Players:

Tennessee does not rely on one scorer for all their points, with five players in double digits, but here are a few of the most important ones. 

Talaysia Cooper – G

Cooper is the Vols leading scorer, with 16.8 ppg, and also is their second-leading rebounder, giving Tennessee 5.7 boards a game. On defense, Cooper is disruptive, averaging over 3 steals per game. However, she also turns it over an average of 3.5 times every outing. 

Zee Spearman – F

Spearman leads Tennessee in rebounds, with 6 rpg, and adds an additional 11.7 points a game, and 0.7 blocks, which leads the team. 

Samara Spencer – G

Spencer is the main distributor for Tennessee, leading the team in assists at 4.7 each game. Spencer only averages 2.1 turnovers a game, giving her a solid assist to turnover ratio of 2.3. 

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Texas is currently favored by 7.5 points, but needs to make sure they do not overlook the tough Volunteers. Tennessee has only lost by more than 8 once this season, to Kentucky, and is a tough team to pull away from.