University of Tennessee Athletics
#13 Lady Vols Dominate #7 UK, 91-54
February 13, 2012 | Women's Basketball
Feb. 13, 2012
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KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - The No. 13 Lady Vols gained a measure of revenge on Monday night as they handed No. 7 Kentucky their largest defeat of the season as Tennessee routed the Wildcats 91-54 in front of 14,807 at Thompson-Boling Arena. The game served as the focal point for Live Pink, Bleed Orange an initiative as part of the "Play 4 Kay" raising awareness for breast cancer in honor of the late Kay Yow.
The win moved the Lady Vols record to 18-7 overall and 9-3 in the SEC. Kentucky dropped its second game in a row after losing to LSU last Sunday and stands at 21-4 overall and 10-2 in the league.
Meighan Simmons tallied a season-high 25 points. Shekinna Stricklen scored 18. Glory Johnson added 10 and grabbed seven rebounds.
The Lady Vols shot a sensational 59.0 from the floor and held Kentucky to just 33.3 from the floor. Tennessee outrebouned UK, 45-27.
Back on Jan. 12, Kentucky edged the Lady Vols, 61-60 in Lexington to take the lead in the SEC. Tennessee inched back to within a game of the league lead with Monday's victory.
Kentucky's leading scorer A'dia Mathies tallied 12. Back in January, she netted a career-high 34. The Cats' top scorer on Monday was Bria Goss, who had 15.
The Lady Vols' lead expanded to 28 on a putback layup by Johnson with 11:51 left in the game as the onslaught continued. The lead ballooned to 40 on a Kamiko Williams jumper with 4:32 left in the game.
Tennessee dominated the first half, leading 46-28 at intermission behind 12 points apiece from Simmons and Stricklen. The Lady Vols shot 60 percent from the floor while holding the Wildcats to 30.3 from the floor and 1-10 from 3-point range.
The Lady Vols went on a 14-0 run over 2:12 late in the first half to build a 39-18 advantage with 4:39 left in the first half. Vicki Baugh, Simmons and Williams each had four points in the spurt.
After being down by 12, Kentucky cut the deficit to five at 21-16 on a give-and-go lay-up from Bernisha Pinkett with 9:20 left. But the Lady Vols responded.
Tennessee came out strong building an 18-6 lead after an Ariel Massengale lay-up with 13:36 left in the first half. The Lady Vols made eight of their first 10 shots including Stricklen starting 3-of-3. Kentucky began the game just 2-of-16 from the floor.
The Lady Vols return to action on Thursday night as Tennessee plays at Mississippi State at 9 p.m. The game will air on CSS and can be heard on the Lady Vol Network.
