Tennessee: Rebels coup repelled

KNOXVILLE — Angie Bjorklund was just thinking about making the next shot.

That turned out to be the last.

With eight seconds left in the game and her team down two points Thursday night, the Tennessee sophomore sank an off-balance 3-pointer from the corner in front of the UT bench with two defenders swarming her. Ole Miss’s Bianca Thomas missed a desperation heave from near midcourt with time expiring.

It allowed the 13th-ranked Lady Vols to escape with a 60-59 Southeastern Conference win before an announced crowd of 13,283 at Thompson-Boling Arena.

“The whole time I was praying that it would go in, and it did,” said Bjorklund, who scored all of her team-high 13 points in the second half.

“As a shooter, you’ve got to keep thinking about the next shot. It does not matter how many shots you miss.”

That mentality paid off for the Lady Vols (16-4, 5-2), who extended their winning streak against the Rebels to 17 games.

“She didn’t have a good look, but she made a good shot,” Tennessee coach Pat Summitt said after her 999th all-time victory. “It tells you something about a shooter’s focus.”

Bjorklund’s shot was especially painful for the Rebels (13-8, 2-4), who led by as many as nine points in the second half.

“I’m heartbroken for a team that put forth that much effort,” said Ole Miss coach Renee Ladner.

Indeed, the Rebels seemingly had the game in hand. With just over three minutes left, they led 56-49.

Then something happened.

“We were up seven and we panicked,” Ladner said.

Ole Miss committed turnovers on its next three possessions.

But the miscues didn’t completely cripple the Rebels. Guard Shantell Black drained a 3 with 1:16 left to make it 59-54.

In response, Bjorklund hit a 15-footer with just a minute left to cut the deficit to two. On Tennessee’s subsequent possession, freshman Shekinna Stricklen drove to the basket and passed to Alex Fuller, but the senior mishandled the ball, leading to a turnover.

“We seemed over-anxious for the whole game,” Summitt said.

Even then, Black had the chance to seal the game at the free-throw line, but the guard missed the front end of a one-and-one with 26 seconds left. Fuller grabbed the rebound and found Bjorklund, who handled it the rest of the way.

“They found a way to win in the end,” Ladner said. “They hang in there and they fight.”

But getting there wasn’t pretty. The Lady Vols made only seven of 21 free throws and had 24 turnovers.

“It is what it is,” Summitt said. “It’s a win.”

Tennessee next plays second-ranked Oklahoma on Monday.