If you are having a bad day, things seem like they not getting better, but you know God is able…then praise HIM right now. This new song from James Fortune & Fiya new CD Identity, It Could Be Worse features Sunday Best Winner LeAndria Johnson & Zarcardi. If you don’t know the words to say, just listen. Whew..you got to thank HIM in advance, cause weeping my endure through the night, but joy comes in the morning.
LadyvolsNation stand up…our beloved team is sitting at 10-1, after playing 6 ranked teams in those 11 games. I am very happy about how we have started off this season. The teams chemistry on the court is very evident this year…although I’m still not sure about a couple of players, who seems to not be able to play off each other. I’m hoping to see Johnson and Stricklen really get there act together on the court. Everytime I watch them on the floor together, there seems to be no “interaction” between the two. But nonetheless, our once “babyvols” are maturing into champions. When we got the #1 recruiting class in 2004, I know we all believed that winning would come right then, yet it took that group 2 years to get it together. I believe we are seeing the same thing with this group, only the final four is definitely in this groups future (if you remember we lost in the elite 8 with that Candace Parker group).
So what will it take to become champions this season? When it looks as if Uconn is invincible. Our “test” against Stanford, we failed miserably…and I know Pat said Stanford just played great defense, and though they defense wasn’t “bad”, but what I seen was more of us not hitting open shots. I watch Shekinna and others miss chippies around the rim, open jumpers, and it went on and on. And yet after that loss I didn’t have that feeling from last year…you know the one that made you doubt the “commitment” level of this team. Instead I was more like, come March we are going to be incredible! I am convinced that our #3 ranking is very legit…and by the time we meet up with Stanford again, perhaps in the final four, the outcome will be different.
Everyone has their own opinions about how this will happen, but mine is spoken in two words: KAMIKO WILLIAMS. Back when I did my Intro to Kamiko Williams, I was saying then that Kamiko is going to be a beast for the LadyVols. She has all the tools that we have been missing for a long time. She don’s a 5-11 inch frame, the fact that she is left-handed is a bonus, she rebounds and blocks shots, and I love her energy on the floor. Even though when I’m watching her with the ball in her hands it looks like she is moving in slow motion..lol. Pat gave her the opportunity to display her skills against USF, and she had 14pts/8rbs/4stls/3ast/2blks. LadyvolsNation we have a player right here, and she will allow Shekinna to play in her “natural” position. Honestly I need a great 6th woman…and don’t hate me right now..lol, but when Williams is truly ready…PG Williams,SG Bjorklund SF Stricklen PF Johnson C Cain…ok let me explain. Taking Taber out of this starting lineup allows her to be more aggressive with the second unit. It also gives Kamiko the experience she will need for March.
The Road To Redemption is in full effect…next stop Old Dominion!
LadyVolnation stand up!!! I know I haven’t given you guys anything to read about our Ladyvols, but I was just waiting to get to this game, now here we are. I want to start by getting you guys to really look at the picture..you see the look on “The Enforcer’s” face? Glory Johnson is focused guys, and this bodes well for our LadyVols team.
Tonight’s opponent was the Texas Longhorns, who defeated our lady vols 73-59, and I just remember the looks on the longhorns faces…ARROGANCE…NO PITY…looking like beating them was nothing. Kat Nash in particular was quoted as saying “we knew we could win, if we played our hardest, we would win!” Well tonight that look from “The Enforcer” was pin pointed on Kat Nash..and the results were different. Kat Nash scored 5 points. The lock down defense played by Glory was just exceptional.
Angie Bjorklund has really begun to crank it up against the smaller defenders. Remember that has been my only “knock” against Angie’s game..she wouldn’t pull up against the smaller defenders and take her shot. Well in the past two games she has been doing just that, and the results are great for the team. She had 15pts tonight. And I don’t know what else to say about “double s” Shekinna Strickly Sickly..is going to be the first one to get a triple double in a Lady Vols uniform. She definitely has played to a first team caliber. I am most impressed with her double digit rebounding…now if we can get those assists up, she will be unstoppable, which makes our team a “nightmare” for the opponent.
All I’m saying is if we can keep our intensity up..the road to redemption will give us a date with the Uconn Huskies, and the nation what it’s been waiting for since 2006.
Associated Press
This time, Alyssia Brewer delivered with Kelley Cain sidelined by another injury.
Brewer scored a career-high 23 points, Glory Johnson had 16 points and 12 rebounds and No. 6 Tennessee beat George Washington 93-53 on Tuesday night.
Cain missed much of the Lady Volunteers’ loss to Ball State in the opening round of the NCAA tournament last season after she hurt her knee. Brewer struggled in that one as Tennessee slipped to its worst postseason finish in history.
Cain suffered a concussion Saturday against UCLA, leaving the Lady Vols without their starting center against the Colonials. But Brewer finished with a strong effort, helping Tennessee (6-0) dominate inside.
“Last year it was the same scenario against Ball State, and I didn’t step up like I needed to,” Brewer said. “It’s all in my hands if I carry it over or not. I plan on doing that, but I need to stay consistent.”
Brewer got an earful from coach Pat Summitt regularly during practice last season as Tennessee struggled and was pushed hard during the team’s physical offseason conditioning program.
“I think she needed this game,” Johnson said. “Just watching her struggle in practice — sometimes she’ll do good things in practice, but she’ll dwell on the negatives.”
Johnson had a double-double by halftime and rested for much of the second half when Brewer took over. Shekinna Stricklen had 17 points.
“If we can rely on that, along with Kelley and Glory and Taber [Spani] doing some good things in the mix, I feel better about our post game,” Summitt said.
Tennessee led 54-24 at the break and finished with 54 points in the paint.
Kay-Kay Allums led George Washington (2-4) with 16 points. Tiana Myers and Megan Nipe both had 11.
The Colonials dropped to 0-10 against Tennessee, but Allums thought it was a good experience for her team.
“I love playing against the best. To be the best, you’ve got to beat them,” she said. Like Tennessee, George Washington has been forced to deal with injuries early in the season. The Colonials lost starting point guard Danni Jackson on Friday when she broke her left leg in a 78-47 loss to Michigan State.
“They lose a player, they replace her with another high school All-American,” coach Mike Bozeman said. “I’m proud of the class that my young group came in here and played with.”
SAN ANTONIO — Returning to San Antonio likely won’t be this easy for Tennessee.
Taber Spani scored 18 points and Glory Johnson added 17 as the Lady Vols (No. 5 ESPN/USA Today, No. 6 AP) crushed Texas Tech 91-53 on Tuesday night in what Tennessee hopes will be the first of two trips to the Final Four city this season.
The road back is bound to be tougher: Tennessee opened the second half on a 32-4 run, held Texas Tech to 30 percent shooting and handed the game over to Spani and the rest of the Lady Vols bench early.
About the only thing giving the game a Final Four feel was defending national champion Connecticut watching nearby, waiting to play Texas (No. 13 ESPN/USA Today, No. 10 AP) in the second game of a doubleheader.
“It gives [the players] a taste of what it’s all about,” Tennessee coach Pat Summitt said about playing in the San Antonio showcase. “Clearly, we all want to be back. It kind of whets your whistle a little bit.”
Shekinna Stricklen scored 16 points for the Tennessee and Angie Bjorklund sank four 3-pointers to finish with 14. The mostly burnt-orange crowd here for the Longhorns took in a dominating preview of Tennessee, which will face Texas at home Dec. 6.
Kierra Mallard scored 15 points and was the only player in double figures for Texas Tech. The Lady Raiders have never beaten the Lady Vols in six tries.
Tennessee flirted with holding Texas Tech to a single-game school record for poor field percentage before the Lady Raiders scored 21 of their points in the final 10 minutes. Before then, Texas Tech was shooting just under 24 percent from the floor.
Like the three other teams in the AT&T Center for the doubleheader, Texas Tech was once a Final Four contender before longtime coach Marsha Sharp retired after the 2005-06 season. Coach Kristy Curry has been trying to get Texas Tech back on track since.
“This does not define our season,” Curry said. “When you’re called for this opportunity, do you turn it down? No. You know this is the right step to take to get Tech back to where we want to be.”
The Lady Vols have now opened the year with two wins over Big 12 teams after beating Baylor (No. 9 ESPN/USA Today, No. 8 AP) on Sunday. They’ll play another pair of ranked teams starting Sunday at Virginia (No. 17 ESPN/USA Today, No. 12 AP) and then Nov. 25 at Middle Tennessee (No. 24 AP).
Stricklen just wants to be back in Texas come April.
“As a team that’s our main goal — to come back here,” Stricklen said. “Being here for the first time we really enjoyed it and we want to be back. We know what it takes to come back.”
Hello ladyvolnation! Well the two exhibition game are over and done with..defeating Carson Newman by 90, and then defeating Delta State by 33. We all watched how potent our offense can be, when Angie Bjorklund is hitting shots. She was 9-14 for 21pts, and the freshman phenom, Taber Spani…oooh the girl has a shot that is just beautiful, but what I love most is her “nose” for the ball. She has managed to grab 19 rebounds in her first two games as a Lady Vol, with 14 of those being offensive boards. With those two hitting on the perimeter, it opened up the inside game, and we watched Kelly Cain and Glory Johnson go to work against Carson Newman. However against Delta St. Glory was hampered by foul trouble, and at times what looked like fatigue. Without Vicki Baugh on the floor, Glory has to be a presence, no excuse me, Glory must be the ENFORCER. Don’t forget, she was ranked #2 in the country when she came in last season. She is very capable of wreaking havoc on the boards, and scoring in the post.
That brings me to the reason I spoke of “pride” of our LadyVols…last year this team manage to “fail” at almost everything possible. Yeah it was extremely hard for me to type that sentence, but unfortunately it’s true. Last season, teams really believed they could come into the Summit and beat them..and that happened way too much then, but this can be an embarrassment on a whole other level. The last dunks to come in womens basketball all belong to LadyVols, except for the one dunk Sylvia Fowles got in her last season at LSU. Michelle Snow, and Candace Parker have both dunked in games on other opponents floor, most notable Parker in Connecticut. No opponent has dunked on a LadyVol team…EVER! We know Brittney Griner is “itching” to be the first to ever do that…but Kelly Cain has a different thought towards that…NOT IN OUR HOUSE! Kelly is playing great, but most importantly, she looks healthy. She stands at 6’6 and with Griner at 6’8, that battle in the post is going to be something. No matter what, and at ALL cost..there will not be a dunk by Brittney Griner at the expense of the “Big Orange” cause even if we win the game…sportscenter will show that dunk over and over. So memo to all of our post players…you have 5 fouls, use them.
The lineup that worked well together: Cain,Stricklen,Bjorklund,Spani, and Manning. Johnson seemed to flourish coming off the bench. Yet, no matter what 5 players start on Sunday, we should have our way with Baylor. Hopefully our ladys will strap that Orange on…and seek REDEMPTION. As far Cain and Griner…Cain when asked about the game Sunday said; “I’m ready for EVERY GAME”…I’m ready! Brittney get your weight up…your height is superior, but you don’t weigh enough.
Nov. 5, 2009
Lady Vols Media Relations
Six players reached double figures and No. 8 Tennessee defeated Carson-Newman 124-34 in an exhibition game Thursday night in Thompson-Boling Arena.
Sophomore Glory Johnson led the way with a game-high 22 points and 10 rebounds, and junior Angie Bjorklund scored 21 points on 9-of-14 shooting before making her exit midway through the second half.
At one point after halftime, Bjorklund had scored more points than Carson-Newman.
Freshman guard Taber Spani started and scored 17 points in her first game as a Lady Vol. Alicia Manning added 18 points, and Kelley Cain had 16 points. Shekinna Stricklen chipped in 12 points, 10 of which came in the first half.
No other freshmen played until forward Kamiko Williams, who scored two points on 1-of-2 shooting, entered with about 6:21 remaining in the game. Faith Dupree did not play.
For the game, Tennessee hit 62 percent of its shots from the field, including a 45-percent clip from beyond the 3-point line. Bjorklund and Spani both hit a team-high three 3-pointers.
The Lady Vols opened the game on a 16-3 run and cruised to a 64-18 lead at halftime, thanks in large part to 18 first-half turnovers by Carson-Newman.
Tennessee scored 22 points off turnovers in the opening half and used their considerable size advantage inside to outscore the Lady Eagles 34-8 inside over the same span.
|
procad(“http://ad.doubleclick.net/adj/CSTV.TENNW/SPORTS.WBASKBL.RECAPS;sect=wbaskbl;pos=story;sz=300×250;dcopt=ist;”,0); |
 |
The Lady Vols defeated Carson-Newman 135-55 in an exhibition game last year and have now scored more than 100 points in five of their last six exhibition games against the Division II school. Tennessee returns to the court Monday for its final exhibition game against Delta State at 7 p.m. in Thompson-Boling Arena.
The Lady Vols open the regular season at home against No. 7 Baylor on Nov. 15 as part of the State Farm Classic.
Visit UTTix.com to purchase tickets.
Pat Summitt sounds serious.
The warning issued by Tennessee’s women’s basketball coach to freshman Kamiko Williams last month evoked early winter, not late summer.
“We’re going to be a different team,” Summitt said. ” . . That’s why Kamiko better get in the picture real soon. I hate to see her get left out entirely.”
For Summitt, “different” means more attuned to defense and playing more like a typical Tennessee team.
“Just looking back, we were never committed to defense for 40 minutes a game,” she said. “It was more pick and choose when we’re going to play hard. We’re not going to be that team this year.”
If she’s really serious about that, it’ll take more than threatening a callow first-year player like Williams. With the Lady Vols beginning weekly full-team workouts on Thursday, it will take deploying sophomore Glory Johnson on the perimeter as Tennessee’s lead defender.
Johnson was used there some last season. The strategy was conceived as a way to utilize Johnson’s 6-foot-3 wingspan and her quickness.
The former Webb School star was the most athletic Lady Vol last season. Watching her dart around the court at Pratt Pavilion the past few weeks reinforces the distinction. Even Summitt conceded, “I have no doubt that she can guard anyone, anywhere on the court.”
Furthermore, Johnson’s physical talents have been enhanced by a season’s worth of experience. All of the sophomores are talking about an improved comfort level. Johnson described the difference in a defensive context.
“I don’t have to think about the way to play defense,” she said. “The way to close out, the way to deny – I don’t have to think about it anymore. It comes natural. It’s kind of comforting.”
What better time then to turn a strategic change-up into a staple. What better way to invigorate UT’s effort than casting Johnson in a role comparable to past stoppers Nikki McCray and Alexis Hornbuckle.
Summitt qualifies Johnson’s defensive potential with apprehension about discipline and Johnson’s tendency to foul.
“That’s the biggest hurdle we’ll have to get over with her,” Summitt said.
But that worry will follow Johnson all over the court, no matter whom she’s guarding or where she’s defending. Perhaps another concern should take priority – namely Johnson’s offensive game.
On the other end of the court, she remains a work in progress. She joked about the sleeve-like wrap she’s wearing to protect her left shoulder as it pertained to one of her more challenging shots.
“You have to find new ways to make a left-handed layup, which is rough for me already,” she said.
Johnson said that she spent the offseason working on her left-handed dribbling, her free throw shooting and her jump shot.
Listening to her brought to mind Hornbuckle and the offseasons she spent shooting countless jumpers. The best she could do in four years was become a streaky shooter.
Nobody will remember, however. Instead, Hornbuckle will be recalled as the Lady Vols’ all-time steals leader and a key contributor on back-to-back national championship teams.
Johnson could be afforded a similar opportunity. Even with forward Vicki Baugh still recovering from knee surgery and center Kelley Cain yet to complete a season because of knee and concussion problems, Tennessee remains plenty big with the addition of freshmen Faith Dupree and Taber Spani, who looks taller than her listed 6-1.
There appears to be enough height for Johnson to step out on the perimeter and create some serious havoc.
Dan Fleser covers the Lady Vols. He can be reached at 865-342-6288 or fleserd@knoxnews.com
Hello LadyVolNation! I’m going to start this introduction out with this video and then we will go from there.
Now the video I posted shows the Power and Intensity of forward Glory Johnson! The LadyVol team that has now been assembled would be lost without the physical and mental toughness of Glory. She shows the grit, and the “all do whatever” is necessary to help this team. She is simply the “ENFORCER”!
Now at the beginning of last season Glory started out with 10 (i think?)double doubles someone let me know about that. I do remember that in the game against Stanford when she went down was the end of that streak. I watched Glory “bully” her way to the basket and make a living at the freethrow line (even though she is going to have to work on that)…she always seemed to be at the right place at the right time. Yet her game began to change after she was accessed a technical foul in the game versus Virgina. I began to notice that she was not as aggressive when snagging rebounds are going to the basket. The plays that were being called her way, were now going against her, and it seemed as if she did not know how to adjust to that. Well I’m sure that this season we will begin to see who Glory Johnson the basketball player is. I’m going out on a limb here and saying that she will get a dunk this season…yea I said it! The girl use to long jump in high school, so we all know the hops are there, even evidenced in the video above, you see “where” she jumped from to block that shot?
Glory is physical, tough and bleeds orange. I was so afraid that she would end up somewhere else, because I knew she had to convince her dad that she really wanted to go to Tennessee. Now that we have her, let’s be sure to not take her for granted LVN, because this is another one, who we will be talking about for the ages. Personally, I believe that just like Nicky Anosike, Glory is no stranger to hard work. We see it on the court, night in and night out. I pray for her to stay focused on the task at hand. Her name speaks for what shall be revealed! Let’s Go Glory Johnson #25
Oh yea one more thing, I believe she will lead the team this year in offensive rebounds.
LadyVolNation when I say stand up, I mean get on your feet for this next introduction. Victoria Baugh deserves every bit of it! Let me start by saying I really love this kid right here. Being a LadyVol fan over 15yrs, I have been able to spot those who are truly passionate about the game, but also passionate about that “orange” on they chest, and this young lady epitomizes LadyVol basketball.
When I first watched Vicki play, I honestly began to think, “the next big thing” at Tennessee! Yes that was my first impression. That 6’4 lanky frame hit the court with one thing in mind: WIN! Vicki is a great post player, whether she is at the Center spot or down on the low block, she gives the opponents nightmares. In a game against LA Tech in the 07-08 season she had 6pts/16rbs/4blks/4asst…tell me that just don’t give you chills as a LadyVol fan. Vickie’s seasons have been cut short due to injury. She tore her acl in the national championship game versus Stanford, she had 8pts/4rbs in that game. I call her the HEART of the team because even on that team laden with Seniors, in the biggest game of their season, she screamed out “Let’s Go Ya’ll, Let’s Go” with tears streaming down her face, as she limped away in pain. I watched Nicky Anosike shed tears, and watched Candace Parker get this look on her face that said, we are not going to lose this game. Vickie got her leg wrapped up, and came back out on crutches to watch her teammates win their second national championship back to back. Nation when Vicki is on the floor, this high powered offense flows so smoothly, and the defense cranks up a notch. I truly believe Vicki loves blocking shots and rebounding more than any points she scores.
I know we have been spoiled and have at times taken for granted the “greatness” that has graced The Summit (Charles, Holdsclaw,Catchings, and Candace Parker), but when this one gets back on the court we have to show our appreciation! If you don’t believe me, just watch how this team flows with Vicki in the lineup, observe it for yourself, she is a fearless leader, and she loves everything about Tennessee! That’s what we want right?(imagine Baugh,Kain,Johnson, Bjorklund, and Stricklen as the starting 5)! One more time-standing ovation for Victoria Baugh.
GOD'S PLAN-MY SUCCESS 