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December 28, 2011
Knoxville, TN 7:00 PM EST TV: SportSouth / ESPN3* Internet Audio: Lady Vols Network Live Stats: GameTracker |
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3-9 |
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7-3 |
Remember when this game used to mean something? The Lady Monarchs weren't always so bad; heck, they have a NCAA title to their credit from way back in '85. They were nationally relevant for years, along with Louisiana Tech in the fallen powers of women's basketball yore. Regardless, the team that comes into TBA tonight isn't a shadow of the dominant Lady Monarch teams of the past, and that's for shame.
That's how it goes sometimes, though, and it's for our credit that we're going to witness ...erm, this. Which won't be pretty. At all. Your starters are Ariel Massengale (who's back after an injury that rendered her mostly ineffective against Stanford), Meighan SImmons (who gets the start over Taber Spani; color me surprised, but she earned it with her West Coast performance), Shekinna Stricklen (of course), Glory Johnson (sure), and Vicki Baugh (superfluous tonight, but go carnage!). The bench is still the usual suspects; no Kamiko Williams in sight.
I could talk about the different avenues that the Ladies could use here to win, but it's not going to matter. This is going to be ugly. There's simply too much talent in one direction and not nearly enough in another, and I'm not sure ODU has an answer for Simmons, let alone Stricklen, Glory, Baugh, or Massengale. 94-55 Ladies, and if anything that might not be harsh enough; a Lady Vol team worse than the one that'll take the court tonight won by 30 against a better ODU squad last year at Old Dominion. Briana Bass sees action before the under-8 of the first half - let's say 8:45 for completeness' sake.
Come for the carnage. Stay for the free chips and dip. (It's like an Orange Nation appreciation party in here!)