Tennessee Lady Vols suffer close 67-61 loss to No. 3 UConn: Three takeaways

Despite leading at the end of each of the first three quarters, the Tennessee Lady Vols could not close the deal. In the process, they came oh so close but failed to upset the No. 3/5 ranked UConn Huskies in the second year of this rivalry being renewed, losing 67-61 in Knoxville Tenn. at Thompson-Boling Arena.

UT led 49-45 heading into the fourth quarter, but UConn then went on a 16-3 run, including a 9-0 run after it was tied at 52 that was helped by two three-pointers from former Lady Vols Evina Westbrook. Rocky Top cut it back to two with just under a minute to go, but a three-pointer by Paige Bueckers as the shot clock expired put UConn in control 66-61 with 28 seconds left.

With the loss, Kellie Harper’s team, still ranked No. 25 in the AP Poll, falls to 9-3 on the year. Geno Auriemma, meanwhile, moved two games ahead of Pat Summitt on the all-time wins list as his team improved to 9-0 on the year. Up next for UT is a Sunday matchup with the No. 12 ranked Kentucky Wildcats. Here are three things we learned from the Tennessee Lady Vols’ heartbreaker.

1. Poor shooting from UConn kept this close.

Let’s keep it real. The UConn Huskies were having a rough night shooting the ball from any sort of distance. They were 7-of-25 from the three-point line, going only 28 percent. You could chalk that up to better perimeter defense from Rocky Top, but UConn does shoot 35.8 percent from three on the year, and when those shots fell a bit more in the fourth quarter, UT had no answer.

At the same time, UConn also went 10-of-21 from the free throw line. Now, the Lady Vols only went 6-of-10 from the foul line, but that’s much better. Given the fact that UConn shoots 72 percent from the line on the year, yes, UT got a break, and that kept it close.

2. Shot selection was questionable inside the arc.

Going 7-of-20 from the three-point line and 6-of-10 from the free throw line helped the Tennessee Lady Vols stay in this game given how much the Huskies struggled shooting the ball from distance. However, UConn’s defense was much too tough for UT to handle inside the arc, so this team’s scoring wasn’t efficient. They were 24-of-65, or 36.9 percent on the night.

Sure, Rae Burrell had 18 points. But she was 3-of-5 from the three-point line. Outside of three-pointers, she was 4-of-12. Rennia Davis was 4-of-12 from the field with 11 points. Jordan Horston was a dismal 1-for-11, and Jordan Walker was 1-for-9. Only Marta Suarez and Tamari Key, who had 10 points each, were efficient, going 4-of-7 and 5-of-7 respectively.

3. Tennessee was able to compete down low.

This is where Kellie Harper’s arrival has made a huge difference. She has the program back to defense and rebounding down low, the way Pat Summitt coached, and it showed in this one. Against the elite Huskies, UT won the boards 42-38 and had 14 offensive rebounds, three more than UConn did.

We already mentioned Key’s success. Despite still struggling not to foul, she continues to truly develop. In addition to 10 points, she had nine rebounds and three blocks. If she continues to be aggressive like that, the Tennessee Lady Vols will be in good shape.