The Tennessee Lady Volunteers barreled into the 2023-24 NCAA regular season Tuesday night with a 93-64 win against Florida A&M.
With two impressive exhibition showings and this season-opening victory, the road ahead looks especially promising for the No. 11 Lady Vols.
Lady Vols Win Season Opener VS Florida A&M
After serving Carson Newman a 105-79 loss in the first exhibition of the season, the USA Basketball Women’s National Team served Tennessee a loss of its own last Sunday. While it might not have been a win on paper, the night was a victory for the Lady Vols. Tennessee’s trials and tribulations against the nation’s top pro basketball players ultimately prepared the team for a successful season opener against Florida A&M.
Although it took Tennessee the better half of the first quarter to find its groove, the ball really started rolling once Kaiya Wynn sunk a graceful two-pointer and followed it up with an icy blocked throw-in.
By halftime, senior transfer Jewel Spear had the entire Food City Center crowd roaring in celebration. Spear drained four three-pointers during the first two quarters, extending Tennessee’s lead to 16 points.
Lady Vols fans who were previously unfamiliar with hooper Karoline Striplin certainly know her after Tuesday’s showing. The junior forward was an integral factor in the success of this game, ultimately logging 20 points and 7 rebounds during her 19 minutes on the court. Striplin tied Spear in top points for the night, and only Jillian Hollingshead bested her in rebounds.
Hollingshead celebrated the first start of her Lady Vol career during this matchup, contributing 12 rebounds and 5 points to the night.
Rickea Jackson was another driving force in Tennessee’s season-opening victory. She limited FAMU scoring by collecting 7 rebounds and contributed to Tennessee’s widening lead by adding 13 points to the scoreboard.
Tennessee was ahead by as much as 28 points in the third quarter. By the time the final buzzer came around, the Lady Vols had extended that gap to 29 points.
Florida A&M Puts Up Strong Effort Against Tennessee
Despite ultimately losing to Tennessee, the Rattlers greeted Tennessee with an impressive effort. This should come as no surprise, though, as the team is coached by none other than former Lady Vol player Bridgette Gordon.
FAMU turned the game into a shootout early on, with Ahriahna Grizzle scoring seven of the Rattler’s first 15 points. Grizzle went on to log 16 points during her 37 minutes of play.
Olivia Delancey gave Florida A&M its first glimmer of hope with a steal and a jumper, followed by another quick three-pointer. This put FAMU up for the first time, with a five-point lead before the Lady Vols could respond with a trey of its own.
Next Up On The Lady Vols Schedule
The Lady Vols travel to Tallahassee on Thursday to face Florida State. Fans can tune into ESPN2 to catch tipoff at 6 p.m. ET. The Seminoles beat out Charleston Southern 99-63 in a season opener this past Monday night, and are slightly favored to win this matchup.
Tennessee returns home on Nov. 13 to welcome the Memphis Tigers to Food City Center for a 6:30 p.m. game. The Tigers, under the guidance of new head coach Alex Simmons, are coming off a 47-67 opening loss to Middle Tennessee State. Despite being the heavy underdog, Memphis looks to rally for Monday’s showing against the Lady Vols.
