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Tennessee Lady Vols: Team awards for 2021-2022 women’s basketball season

By Caleb Calhoun

From left, Tennessee guard/forward Rae Burrell (12), guard Jordan Horston (25), center Tamari Key (20), guard Jordan Walker (4), and forward/center Keyen Green (13) talk during a time in in the NCAA basketball game between the Tennessee Lady Vols and Kentucky Wildcats in Knoxville, Tenn. on Sunday, January 16, 2022.Kns Lady Hoops Kentucky
From left, Tennessee guard/forward Rae Burrell (12), guard Jordan Horston (25), center Tamari Key (20), guard Jordan Walker (4), and forward/center Keyen Green (13) talk during a time in in the NCAA basketball game between the Tennessee Lady Vols and Kentucky Wildcats in Knoxville, Tenn. on Sunday, January 16, 2022.Kns Lady Hoops Kentucky /
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Tennessee guard/forward Tess Darby (21) with a 3-point shot against Louisville during the NCAA tournament Sweet 16 basketball game on Saturday, March 26, 2022. in Wichita, KS.Lady Vols Louisville Ncaa
Tennessee guard/forward Tess Darby (21) with a 3-point shot against Louisville during the NCAA tournament Sweet 16 basketball game on Saturday, March 26, 2022. in Wichita, KS.Lady Vols Louisville Ncaa /

Most Improved Player: Tess Darby

This is an award that almost certainly would have gone to Marta Suarez had she not suffered a season-ending injury at the beginning of the year. Instead, it goes to Tess Darby. A 6’1″, Darby entered her sophomore year with only 10 games playing experience. She was not expected to move past Jessie Rennie as the Tennessee Lady Vols’ three-point specialist.

However, that’s exactly what she did. Darby started 30 of 33 games and, while only averaging just under five and a half points per game, finally gave Kellie Harper a consistent three-point threat to build her inside-out game. Sara Puckett deserves credit for adding that threat too, but Darby did it much more effectively.

For the year, Darby shot 38.3 percent from the three-point line, hitting nearly one and a half a game. She also averaged nearly two and a half rebounds and over one assist per game, so it’s safe to say she did a lot for Rocky Top. If she improves at the same rate next year, she could be a star.

Runner-up: Tamari Key

We’ll get to this on a later slide, but Tamari Key stepped her already elite defensive game up a notch this past year. She also averaged double figures for the first time, scoring 10.5 points a game, and her rebounding and assists numbers all improved. Becoming a reliable threat in the post puts her on here.