For the second time this season, a Tennessee basketball coach has thrown their players under the bus following a disappointing loss. While it was the men's leader, Rick Barnes, last time. This time around, it was Lady Vols' head coach Kim Caldwell placing the blame on her team.
Over the weekend, the Lady Vols were obliterated by the South Carolina Gamecocks, suffering a 93-50 loss at the hands of Dawn Staley and her crew.
During the postgame press conference, Caldwell showed no signs of holding back her frustrations with her players' performances.
"I have a team that will quit on (you), and you can’t do that in big games... or any time in the SEC. But you certainly can’t do that in this program," Caldwell said.
Lady Vols may have deserved Kim Caldwell's anger after 43-point loss
Now, her message was undeniably harsh; there's no denying that fact. However, the 43-point loss to the Gamecocks was the worst defeat in Tennessee women's basketball history.
No, it's never ideal to have your head coach not shoulder any of the blame and instead place it on the young players. However, Tennessee shot an abysmal 28 percent from the field and an even worse 23 percent from beyond the arc.
The Lady Volunteers committed 19 fouls, gave up 18 turnovers, and only made four of their five free throw attempts. Not to mention, they only brought down 24 total rebounds as South Carolina snagged 32 rebounds off the defensive glass alone.
At a program like Tennessee, which was shaped into a perennial powerhouse by legendary head coach Pat Summitt, that kind of thing simply isn't acceptable. So, maybe Caldwell's harsh message was called for to some extent.
“I have a team that will quit on (you), and you can’t do that in big games—or any time in the SEC. But you certainly can’t do that in this program.”
— Elijah Nixon (@ElijahNixon18) February 8, 2026
—Kim Caldwell after the Lady Vols’ 43-point loss to South Carolina, the worst loss in program history. @wbir https://t.co/DeFXiUuN7w pic.twitter.com/HSY3XFYRng
There was undeniably a better way for Caldwell to deliver the message she was trying to share, but at the end of the day, there is only so much a head coach can do once the players are on the court and committing errors at seemingly every turn.
Up next, Caldwell and the No. 22 Lady Vols will face the Missouri Tigers before hosting the No. 4 Texas Longhorns.
Tennessee and Mizzou are scheduled to tip off at 6:30 p.m. ET on Thursday, Feb. 12, and the game will be broadcast on the SEC Network+.