Tennessee didn’t win the national championship in women’s basketball this past season, but the Lady Vols were the last to defeat the team that ultimately earned the crown.
There will no banner-raising ceremony inside Thompson-Boling Arena to commemorate the 69-67 topping of LSU in the Southeastern Conference tournament semifinals, but the triumph does serve as the latest promising result for a program with eight national championships but with none since 2008. There was undoubtedly a stabilizing effect during Kellie Harper’s fourth season at the helm of her alma mater, as Tennessee combated a brutally challenging schedule with 25 wins and 13 SEC victories, which were the most in league play since the 2014-15 season.
“Obviously we want to progress each year,” Harper said late Monday afternoon before her appearance at the Big Orange Caravan inside the Chattanooga Convention Center. “The Sweet 16 is not a bad result, but at Tennessee you want more. We like the consistency of competing at an elite level, and our record in the SEC was better. I thought we were more consistent, and I think we were able to grow throughout the season.
“I think our players understand what we’re about. I just think consistency is really important for us moving forward.”
Harper is 88-39 through four years in Knoxville, with 50 of those wins having occurred the past two seasons. She took over for Holly Warlick, who had the task of replacing the legendary Pat Summitt and experienced immediate successes that included an SEC championship in 2012-13, an SEC tournament title in 2013-14, and a 30-win season in 2014-15 that included a share of the league crown.