Postgame Notes: UT 72, UK 58

Feb. 15, 2015

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Number of Interest

Here are a few numbers of interest:

» Tennessee defeated the Wildcats by 14. In the three games prior to today, the games between the two teams were decided by five points combined.

» Ariel Massengale became the 41st Lady Vol to reach 1,000 career points at Tennessee.

488

» Tying her season-high four assists today, Massengale now has 488 career assists.

POSTGAME NOTES

THE SERIES

This marked the 62nd time the teams have met and the second this season. The Lady Vols defeated Kentucky in Lexington Jan. 29, 2015.
The Lady Vols are now 52-10 vs. the Wildcats. They hold a 23-3 mark at home against UK.
UT has lifted it's home record to 18-0 in Thompson-Boling Arena dating back to last year's contest with Auburn.
Tennessee has won seven games in a row since losing to Notre Dame on Jan. 19.
UT has won 19 straight games vs. SEC opponents.
Tennessee is 1-0 when tied at the half.
Kentucky was the first of three teams that UT will face more than once during the regular season.
Today's attendance marked a season-high with 16,013. Last season's largest crowd was also against Kentucky with 15,644 fans in Thompson-Boling Arena.

#LIVEPINKBLEEDORANGE BRINGS IN LARGEST CROWD

The special game drew in the largest crowd of the season with 16,013 fans. Last season's largest crowd was also against Kentucky with 15,644 in the stands.
The 16,013 fans this season marked the most since Feb. 26, 2012 when 18,563 fans attended the Lady Vols 75-69 win over Florida.
This marked the annual "pink" game for the Lady Vols. Last season, UT hosted Kentucky for the same occasion.
Former Lady Vol and breast cancer survivor Liza Graves presented the game ball to officials
Champions For A Cause charity group presented a check prior to the game worth $10,000 for breast cancer research.

VS. RANKED TEAMS

Kentucky is the seventh top-10, 10th top-20 opponent that they've seen this season.
Tennessee is 5-2 vs. top-10 opponents this season and are 4-0 at home.
UT is 8-2 vs. all ranked foes this season.

UT-UK STAFF CONNECTIONS

Tennessee head coach Holly Warlick is 11-3 vs. teams with former UT staff members coaching. She is now 3-2 vs. UK head coach Matthew Mitchell.
Lady Vol assistant coach Kyra Elzy is from LaGrange, Ky. and played at Tennessee from 1996-200. She was an assistant at Kentucky for four season with with Mitchell.
UK head coach Matthew Mitchell was a graduate assistant at Tennessee from 1999-2000 and first came to Knoxville to work Pat Summitt's basketball camps during the summer as a high school coach.
Elzy played at Tennessee while Mitchell was a graduate assistant.

FOR STARTERS

Today's starters: Bashaara Graves, Cierra Burdick, Isabelle Harrison, Andraya Carter, Jordan Reynolds.
Reynolds is the only player to start every game this season.
With this group, Tennessee is 13-1.
The jump ball was controlled by Tennessee for the 19th time this season.
The first points were scored by Isabelle Harrison with a lay-up.
Two starters, Harrison and Reynolds both went down with injuries during the game. The bench was heavily relied on thereafter.

OFF THE BENCH

Ariel Massengale was the first off the bench in for Jordan Reynolds.
Nia Moore entered the game for Isabelle Harrison.
Jaime Nared was next in the game with just under 16 minutes left to play in the first half.
With 12:21 left in the first half, Alexa Middleton made her game debut.
The UT bench outscored the Wildcats' bench 28-25.

MASSENGALE JOINS THE 1,000 POINT CLUB

Entering the game, Ariel Massengale needed eight points to reach 1,000 points.
In the three games prior to tonight, Massengale had just one point combined.
Massengale scored a total of 17 points to become the 41st Lady Vol to reach the milestone. She produced 15 of her points in the second half.
Isabelle Harrison and Bashaara Graves have already reached the feat this season.
With the addition of Massengale, it is just the tenth occasion where Tennessee has had three players with 1,000 points on the same team.

DEFENSE IS THE NAME OF THE GAME

In the first nine minutes of the game, Kentucky's leading scorer Makayla Epps was held scoreless. She had 42 points vs. Mississippi St. this past Thursday. She scored a total of 13 points vs. the Lady Vols.
Tennessee forced its eighth backcourt violation this season.
In the 12 SEC games played this season, Tennessee has allowed only nine teams to score more than 60 points in a game.

OFFENSIVELY SPEAKING

Tennessee has trailed at some point in nine of 12 SEC games and in 19 of the 25 total games this season.
Cierra Burdick, Ariel Massengale, Jaime Nared, Andraya Carter and Bashaara Graves each scored in double digits.
Burdick tallied 14 points, nine rebounds and an assist.
Along with a game-high 17 points, Massengale dished out four assists to match her season-high. She also had five rebounds.
Carter produced 11 points, four rebounds, three assists and two steals.
Nared played a personal SEC-high 28 minutes and tied her SEC-high points (10) while grabbing four rebounds and racking up two blocks and a steal.

AT THE HALF

The Lady Vols were tied up 31-31 at the half. It is the first time this season that UT has been tied at the half.
Tennessee shot 37.9 percent (11-29) vs. Kentucky's 35.5 percent (11-31).
The Lady Vols had a had a 14-6 points in the paint advantage over UK.
UT outrebounded UK 23-17.
At the half, Isabelle Harrison had six points and a game-high six rebounds. Massengale led the game with three assists.

UP NEXT

The Lady Vols will host their first of the final two home games of the regular season on Thursday, Feb. 19 at 7 p.m. vs. Alabama on Fox Sports Net.

University of Tennessee Athletics