Like every year since the tournament began, the Lady Vols have made the NCAA Tournament. Tennessee lands as a No. 4 seed in the Knoxville region and will host for the second consecutive year.
Staying home!#MarchMadness back on Rocky Top this weekend! pic.twitter.com/D3MzimxkMI
— Lady Vols Basketball (@LadyVol_Hoops) March 13, 2023
Tennessee’s region consists of No. 13 Saint Louis , No. 5 Iowa State and No. 12 Toledo. The Lady Vols will face Saint Louis in the first round on Saturday in Thompson-Boling Arena. If Tennessee wins, they will face the winner of Iowa State vs. Toledo in the second round.
Virginia Tech is the top seed in Tennessee’s quadrant. The Lady Vols lost to the Hokies, 59-56, in early December in Knoxville.
The Lady Vols are entering the tournament on a high note, having made the SEC Tournament Championship after defeating LSU in the tournament semifinals. Tennessee’s win over LSU is what likely catapulted the Lady Vols to a host team, as head coach Kellie Harper’s squad joins only undefeated South Carolina as the two teams to knock off the Tigers this season.
Tennessee’s 69-67 win over the Tigers was undoubtedly their best of the season and arguably the best win of Harper’s career.
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Tennessee struggled with a grueling non-conference schedule, losing seven games with five coming to ranked opponents.
However, Tennessee bulldozed through their SEC schedule, going 13-3 with their only losses coming to a pair of top-five teams in LSU (on the road) and South Carolina. Ten of their 13 SEC wins were by double digits, and three were by 20 or more points.
Tennessee did all their damage in SEC play without starting center Tamari Key, who was ruled out for the remainder of the 2022-2023 season in early December due to blood clots in her lungs.
A pair of seniors, Jordan Horston and Rickea Jackson, have led the Lady Vols in their impressive 14-5 record this calendar year. Jackson is averaging a stellar 19.6 points per game powered by a 55.2 field goal percentage while Horston averages 15.5 points per game shooting 43.6 percent from the field. Each also average over six rebounds per game, with Horston averaging 7.1 and Jackson 6.2.
The SEC runners up will look to build off their impressive conference tournament showing and try and do some damage in the March Madness bracket, starting in Knoxville.
The Lady Vols had a solid showing in 2022, making the Sweet Sixteen for the first time in six years and first time in the Kellie Harper era.
