 |
January 25, 2009 |
 |
|
12-5 (3-1)
NR (AP) NR (USA Today) |
15-3 (5-0)
No. 22 (AP) No. 24 (USA Today) |
| Tennessee |
Ht.
|
Wt.
|
Yr.
|
PPG
|
RPG
|
APG
|
|
| G | 5 Angie Bjorklund |
6-0
|
-
|
So.
|
12.5
|
3.2
|
2.5
|
| F | 25 Glory Johnson |
6-3
|
-
|
Fr.
|
12.0
|
7.2
|
0.9
|
| F |
40 Shekinna Stricklen |
6-2
|
-
|
Fr.
|
13.4
|
5.9
|
2.8
|
| F/C | 44 Alexis Fuller |
6-3
|
-
|
Sr.
|
6.4
|
5.6
|
1.1
|
| G | 1 Brianna Bass |
5-2
|
-
|
Fr.
|
4.9
|
1.6
|
2.1
|
| Auburn |
Ht.
|
Wt.
|
Yr.
|
PPG
|
RPG
|
APG
|
|
| F | 24 DeWanna Bonner |
6-4
|
-
|
Sr.
|
20.2
|
8.6
|
1.6
|
| F | 22 Reneisha Hobbs |
5-11
|
-
|
Jr.
|
12.7
|
4.7
|
1.1
|
| G | 5 Alli Smalley |
5-8
|
-
|
So.
|
12.6
|
2.6
|
2.3
|
| G | 44 Whitney Boddie |
5-9
|
-
|
Sr.
|
10.0
|
4.2
|
8.0
|
| F | 1 Trevesha Jackson |
6-0
|
-
|
Sr.
|
7.1
|
5.0
|
0.4
|
Short Summary:
- Never tell a lady's weight! Finding weight stats on the gals wasn't intuitive; none of the major sites list it like they do for the guys. And I wasn't going to go digging too far for it.
- Auburn can score. Five of the Auburn starters have double-figure PPG averages. That means it'll take a full-team defense for all 40 minutes to keep the Auburn scoring machine in check.
- When Auburn is on offense, watch Boddie. Note the Assists/Game for her: 8.0. Yikes. She's the pivot of their offense; whoever draws her as the defensive assignment has a lot of work to do today.
- Box out! Auburn's leading rebounder, Bonner, is 6'4" tall. To limit her boards, the Lady Vols will have to adhere very strictly to Summitt's emphasis on defense and rebounding, and keep her boxed out at all times.
- There will be no fooling Auburn. UT is the team with the lack of experience, while Auburn starts 3 seniors, a junior and a sophomore. UT won't be able to trick Auburn; they'll have to beat them straight-up by outworking them and staying focused.
- Watch the first 10 minutes. Tennessee has made a living of strong finishes this year, which has masked their slow starts. If they can hit the deck running today, they can be confident in their endgame play. If they fall behind early, Auburn is good enough to keep them out of the game for the rest of regulation.
- The advantage is Auburn's. It's in Auburn. They have the experience. They have the better statistics. They have the better team chemistry. I would still assert that the Lady Vols have the potential to be the better team by March, but that amounts to nothing if they don't play to their potential today.
Go Ladies! Bring home 999!