All for Tennessee
Fansided

Tennessee Lady Vols destroy UNC Asheville: 3 takeaways from 73-46 win

By Caleb Calhoun

KNOXVILLE, TN - SEPTEMBER 15: Fans cheers for the Tennessee Volunteers during their game against the Florida Gators at Neyland Stadium on September 15, 2012 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by John Sommers II/Getty Images)
KNOXVILLE, TN - SEPTEMBER 15: Fans cheers for the Tennessee Volunteers during their game against the Florida Gators at Neyland Stadium on September 15, 2012 in Knoxville, Tennessee. (Photo by John Sommers II/Getty Images) /
facebooktwitterreddit

The Tennessee Lady Vols dominated the UNC Asheville Bulldogs to move to 2-0. Here are three takeaways from the women’s basketball Volunteers’ victory.

It wasn’t as dominant as their win over the Presbyterian Blue Hose, but the Tennessee Lady Vols were still pretty impressive in their second straight blowout win to open the season. Holly Warlick’s team jumped out to a 21-8 first quarter lead and never trailed in the game.

This was Tennessee’s second game in eight days, and their third game will be next Sunday against the Florida A&M Rattlers. Then they’ll head to The Bahamas for the Junkanoo Jam at Resorts World Bimini, which they’ll begin with a game against the Clemson Tigers at 3 p.m. E.T. on Thanksgiving.

But for now, they’re looking pretty good blowing out their lesser talent. Two straight blowouts, even against mediocre teams, is a solid start to the season. Here are three takeaways from the Tennessee Lady Vols’ 73-46 win over the UNC Asheville Bulldogs.

1. Offensive depth already looks much better than last year.

In their first game, the Tennessee Lady Vols had six players score in double-figures. There wasn’t much of a drop-off Wednesday, as five players reached double-figures and the bench had 23 points. Holly Warlick, at least early, is finally turning to more players to score. And the scoring is evenly distributed among the top scorers, as Meme Jackson led the team with only 13 points. It’s not like last year, where if Jaime Nared’s shot wasn’t falling, everything fell apart. That’s a great early sign.

2. Three-point shooting is still going strong.

They went 5-of-9 in their season-opening win. Against UNC Asheville, Tennessee’s three-point percentage went down, but they took and made more outside shots. And they’re still doing well on that front. The Lady Vols hit 7-of-18 attempts from beyond the arc, good for shooting 38.9 percent from three, which is a great number. Zaay Green didn’t replicate her red-hot night, as this time she went 0-for-4. But that’s fine when you consider that shooters shoot. And Jackson again made up for it by going 3-for-5 while Evina Westbrook went 2-for-2.

3. Perimeter defense is still dominant.

Tennessee’s production tapered off significantly on this front Wednesday, and it was still amazing. For the second straight game, the Lady Vols forced 20 turnovers. They forced 39 against the Blue Hose, and they weren’t going to reach that number. But in overall context, even against a mediocre team, forcing 59 turnovers through two games is a remarkable accomplishment. All the perimeter players are pitching in, and that bodes well for this team going forward.