Nov. 29, 2011

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Postgame Notes

Numbers of Interest
3: Three Lady Vols posted double-digit scoring efforts against Middle Tennessee: Massengale (14), Burdick (14) and Stricklen (12).

15: Tennessee posted its highest steal total of 15, almost doubling its previous best of eight vs. both ,Pepperdine and Virginia.

23.8: Tennessee held Middle Tennessee to 23.8 percent shooting from the floor, a season low for UT opponents. The previous low was 28.4% shooting by Pepperdine.

24: The Lady Vols took their largest lead of the season going into the break, leading MTSU by 24 points at the half. UT led the Blue Raiders, 48-24, at the half.

52: UT dominated the glass versus Middle Tennessee, collecting 52 rebounds as compared to MTSU's 30.

To Note
The Series
• Tennessee remains unbeaten in the series with Middle Tennessee with the win. The Lady Vols have won all 19 matchups.
• UT owns a 210-41-1 overall record against 18 schools from the state of Tennessee dating back to 1903.
• The Lady Vols move to 29-2 against opponents from the Sun Belt Conference.

For Starters
• Tonight's starters: redshirt senior Vicki Baugh, senior Glory Johnson, senior Shekinna Stricklen, junior Taber Spani and freshman Ariel Massengale.
• This is the fourth game in which the Lady Vols have taken to the court with this starting five. They now sport a 3-1 record with those five lining up for the opening tip.

Stricklen Start Streak
• Lady Vol senior Shekinna Stricklen has the nation's longest starting streak. Including today, Stricklen has started 109 consecutive games.

Technically Speaking...
• Three technical fouls were issued with 10 minutes remaining in the game -- one each to Tennessee's Isabelle Harrison and Vicki Baugh and one to MTSU's Janay Brinkley.

Righting the Ship
• The last time the Lady Vols opened the season with a 2-2 record was during the 1990-91 campaign. Tennessee went on to a 30-5 overall record and captured the 1991 National Championship.
• With the win, the Lady Vols put themselves back on course an avoid three consecutive losses, which has only happened twice in program history.

Ahead at the Half
• The Lady Vols led at halftime for the third time this season. They were tied at the break in the other two contests.
• UT lapped the Blue Raiders in the first half, taking a season-high 24-point lead into intermission (48-24).

Sharp Shooters
• The Big Orange, plagued by poor free throw shooting for much of the early going went 22-of-27 from the line, boasting a season-high 82.8 free throw percentage.

Sweet Swipes
• Tennessee also posted a season best with 15 steals against Middle Tennessee.
• UT's previous high was eight steals against both Pepperdine and Virginia.

Newcomers Make Noise
Ariel Massengale
• Freshman point guard Ariel Massengale scored 14 points for the Lady Vols, besting her previous career high of 11 points against Miami.
• She also tied her career high rebound total with four boards on the night. She previously collected four against Virginia.
• Massengale led UT in assists (5) for the fifth time in as many tries, while posting zero turnovers for the first time in her career.

Cierra Burdick
• Burdick also put up career numbers versus the Blue Raiders, seeing 26 minutes.
• With 14 points and 10 boards, both career highs, the freshman recorded her first career double-double.

AutoZone Player of the Game
• Ariel Massengale was named AutoZone Player of the Game for her 14-point, five-assist performance.

Bench Scoring
• Tennessee had its biggest advantage of the season from its second unit, outscoring the Blue Raider bench, 37-4.

On the Horizon
Approaching 1,100 Wins
• Twenty-six more wins will put Pat Summitt at her next victory milestone: 1,100 Ws.

Elite Company
• Glory's rebounds - Glory Johnson needs 90 rebounds to reach the 1,000 career boards plateau, making her the fourth in school history to tally 1,000 pts. and 1,000 reb.

Up Next
• The Lady Vols will next play host to #21/22 Texas on Sunday, Dec. 4, at 2 p.m. ET.
• Texas is 5-1 on the season and does not play again before traveling to Knoxville to take on the Lady Vols.