KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) – Tennessee coach Holly Warlick believes the issues that caused the Lady Volunteers to tumble out of the Top 25 for the first time since 1985 can still be corrected.
“There has not been a towel thrown in on this court,” Warlick said. “We’re still battling. We’re still trying to correct things. We’re still getting better. That’s all we know to do – just keep working. We’re going to continue to work like we always have.”
But they’re running out of time.
Tennessee (16-11, 7-7 SEC) has dropped three of its last five games heading into Thursday’s matchup at Alabama (14-13, 3-11), which has lost 42 straight meetings in this series since beating the Lady Vols in the 1984 SEC Tournament. Tennessee, which already has matched a school single-season record for losses, closes the regular season Sunday by hosting Georgia (20-7, 8-6).
When Tennessee fell out of the rankings Monday to end a string of 565 consecutive weeks in the Top 25, it marked only the 10th time that a team has ever fallen out of the poll after starting the season in the top five. Tennessee was fourth in the preseason rankings.