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Tennessee Lady Vols Lose First SEC Tournament Game to Alabama: 3 Takeaways

By Caleb Calhoun

Feb 12, 2017; Knoxville, TN, USA; Tennessee head coach Holly Warlick reacts during the game against the Texas A&M Aggies at Thompson-Boling Arena. Mandatory Credit: Saul Young/Knoxville News Sentinel via USA TODAY Sports
Feb 12, 2017; Knoxville, TN, USA; Tennessee head coach Holly Warlick reacts during the game against the Texas A&M Aggies at Thompson-Boling Arena. Mandatory Credit: Saul Young/Knoxville News Sentinel via USA TODAY Sports /
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The Tennessee Lady Volunteers lost the first game of the SEC Tournament to the Alabama Crimson Tide 72-64. Here are three takeaways.

Well that was quick. Coming off a huge road win over the Mississippi State Bulldogs to close out the regular season, the Tennessee Lady Vols lost their first game in the SEC Tournament to the Alabama Crimson Tide 72-64.

Tennessee blew a 34-24 third quarter lead before going on an offensive drought. They were the No. 5 seed in the tournament with a 19-10 overall record and 10-6 SEC record, while Alabama was the No. 12 seed with a 17-12 regular season record and 5-11 SEC record.

As a result, the Tide also had a game Wednesday against the Vanderbilt Commodores, whom they beat by 20 to move to 18-12.

Now, with this win, they improve to 19-12 overall while the Lady Vols fall to 19-11. And their chances of a Top 5 seed in the NCAA Tournament fell significantly as well.

Here are three takeaways from Tennessee’s NCAA Tournament loss.

1. Jaime Nared did not show up.

Mercedes Russell and Diamond DeShields are clearly the main scorers for the Tennessee Lady Vols, but they need Jaime Nared to be the third elite scorer for them to win. In this game, with DeShields having an off-night and in foul trouble along with the paint collapsing around Russell, her shot was not falling.

She did finish with 11 points and seven rebounds on 5-of-13 shooting, but she was not aggressive enough throughout spurts of the game. She needs to be as aggressive as DeShields from the perimeter, and while she was okay at it, she wasn’t good enough.

2. Jordan Reynolds and Alexa Middleton are too out of control at times. 

Has anybody ever taught Jordan Reynolds when and when not to play the transition game? Sure, she had 14 points and five assists on 5-of-14 shooting the ball, but down the stretch she too often was trying to push the ball when nothing was there.Twice she wasted a possession within the final two minutes by trying to force a shot up on four players with the rest of her team not back.

Meanwhile, Alexa Middleton had a horrific shooting day, and late in the game with the Lady Vols still in it, she forced a pass from the baseline to the perimeter that resulted in a turnover…after she missed Mercedes Russell wide open under the basket. She was also far too inconsistent and out of position on defense at times, something uncharacteristic of her. Both seniors made some of the worst decisions for the Lady Vols in this game, and that’s not a good thing heading into the tournament.

3. SEC Tournament loss a huge stain on Holly Warlick’s resume.

This is the first time the Tennessee Lady Vols have not won a game in the SEC Tournament since 1993. At the same time, they are entering the NCAA Tournament outside of the Top 25 for the second straight year…after 30 years in the Top 25.

Meanwhile, the Alabama Crimson Tide could not beat the Lady Vols for 32 years. They have now won three straight and swept them this year. All of this is terrible for the program, and the Final Four drought makes things worse. Luckily for Warlick, she still has the NCAA Tournament, a great recruiting class, and her best players on this team coming back next year to sell the fact that she should stick around.