Tennessee Lady Vols too much for MTSU

KNOXVILLE — Tennessee’s Lady Vols may be young, but they’re not lacking in confidence.

Feshman point guard Briana Bass seemed to channel that swagger following Thursday night’s 81-52 victory over Middle Tennessee State before a crowd of 14,327 at Thompson-Boling Arena.

“I think we as a team are about to shock the world,” the 5-foot-2 Bass chirped when asked about the potential of this year’s team, which includes six true freshmen. “Even though we’re young, we’re about to bring some heat. They better get ready for us.”

In her first career start Thursday, Bass comprised part of the youngest starting lineup in Lady Vols history — three freshmen and two sophomores. Still, coach Pat Summitt isn’t encouraging cockiness among her young players.

“What I told our basketball team in the locker room after the game is they are defining right now their roles,” she said. “Tonight we had some people who came off the bench who didn’t sprint the floor as well as they had to, didn’t have the toughness on the defensive end that they have to have.

“They will determine their minutes.”

Freshman Shekinna Stricklen led Tennessee with a career-high 20 points, followed by sophomore Angie Bjorklund with 16.

The Lady Vols (7-1) got a boost heading into halftime when Stricklen swished a 35-footer as time expired.

“I was suggesting that she get a little closer,” Summitt said with a smile afterward. “Just watching her in high school, she does have deep range. But we’re not going to practice that shot in practice very often.”

Forward Alysha Clark led MTSU (5-4) with 28 points and eight rebounds. Despite the size disparity, Clark, who stands at 5-10, scored in the paint with ease against much larger opponents.

“We knew she was going to tough defend,” Summitt said. “She’s a player that keeps them in the game.”

For a moment in the second half, Clark was trying to do just that. Her back-to-back layups ignited a 7-0 run that made it 55-44 with 8:50 left in the game.

But the Blue Raiders got no closer. The Lady Vols responded with an 8-0 spurt that sealed the victory.

“We won’t play anybody like Tennessee the rest of the year,” MTSU coach Rick Insell said. “They are also one of the youngest teams in the country. They played a lot better than what they’ve looked like on film, though.”

Insell said the glaring difference was improved shooting consistency from UT, which shot 31-for-60 (48.6 percent) on Thursday.

“It won’t surprise me to see them in the Final Four,” he said.

The Lady Vols play Sunday at Texas.