Vols T logoBATON ROUGE, La. – Tennessee coach Holly Warlick hoped the 12th-ranked Lady Volunteers would prove last weekend’s lopsided loss at Missouri was a fluke.
It nearly looked more like the beginning of a pattern until Bashaara Graves strung together one clutch play after another in the final seconds of a thriller against longtime rival LSU.
Graves made a late steal and soon after scored inside with a second left to help Tennessee narrowly avert a second-straight upset with a 64-62 victory over the Lady Tigers on Thursday night.
Graves said afterward that her team still had a lot of work to do, but added, “This is a great statement game to let everyone know that Tennessee isn’t going to quit.”
Tennessee (18-5, 9-1 Southeastern Conference), which had lost 80-63 at Missouri, trailed LSU 62-59 after Theresa Plaisance’s baseline jumper put LSU (13-10, 4-6) in position to give coach Nikki Caldwell her first victory over her alma mater in four tries.