Sunday, December 31
Lynchburg, Va.
2:00 PM ET
Liberty University
5-10,0-0CUSA
55
vs
90
Tennessee
7-5,0-0SEC
1
2
3
4
F
Tennessee
25
18
33
14
90
Liberty
9
15
19
12
55
Emma Hess scored a team-high 12 points on Sunday.
Liberty Falls to Tennessee, 90-55, in Non-Conference Finale
12/31/2023 5:38:00 PM | Women's Basketball
LYNCHBURG, Va. – Tennessee's first-ever visit to Liberty was a successful one, Sunday afternoon. The Lady Vols posted a 90-55 victory before a Liberty Arena women's basketball record crowd of 2,105 in both teams' final non-conference game of the season.
Liberty finishes a challenging non-conference slate at 5-10. The seventh 2023 NCAA Tournament qualifier the Lady Flames have faced this season, Tennessee forced 19 Liberty turnovers and outrebounded the home team, 52-43.
Tennessee led from start to finish, improving to 7-5. The Lady Vols got 21 points from Rickea Jackson in her fourth game of the season and 18 points on a Liberty Arena record-tying six triples from Tess Darby.
The previous Liberty Arena of 1,631 fans at the Lady Flames' Feb. 24, 2022 matchup with FGCU was shattered by nearly 500 on Sunday.
Liberty Individuals: Emma Hess – 12 points, 4 rebounds, 2-5 3FG; Asia Boone – 11 points, 5 rebounds, 3 steals; Jordan Hodges – 7 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists; Bella Smuda – 6 points, 9 rebounds, 3 blocks.
Tennessee Individuals: Jackson – 21 points, 7 rebounds, 2 steals; Darby – 18 points, 2 steals, 6-9 3FG; Kaiya Wynn – 12 points, 7 assists, 4 rebounds; Karoline Striplin – 10 points, 4 rebounds.
Key Team Stats: Tennessee shot 43.6 percent (34-of-78) from the field, including 40 percent (12-of-30) from three-point range. Conversely, Liberty ended at 31 percent (22-of-71) from the floor and 33.3 percent (8-of-24) from beyond the arc. The Lady Vols posted 22 assists to 13 turnovers and enjoyed significant advantages in points off turnovers (21-12), points in the paint (40-22), second-chance points (19-7) and bench points (44-16). Liberty blocked seven shots to Tennessee's five rejections.
Turning Point
Tennessee set the tone for the game with an impressive first 2:30 of the contest. The Lady Vols raced out to a quick 8-0 lead they never relinquished, aided by the first six of their 21 offensive rebounds and four Liberty turnovers.
Game Summary
First Quarter
Liberty will finish off a four-game homestand on Saturday with its first-ever Conference USA tilt. Tipoff against Western Kentucky (9-6) is scheduled for 2 p.m. inside Liberty Arena.
Liberty finishes a challenging non-conference slate at 5-10. The seventh 2023 NCAA Tournament qualifier the Lady Flames have faced this season, Tennessee forced 19 Liberty turnovers and outrebounded the home team, 52-43.
Tennessee led from start to finish, improving to 7-5. The Lady Vols got 21 points from Rickea Jackson in her fourth game of the season and 18 points on a Liberty Arena record-tying six triples from Tess Darby.
The previous Liberty Arena of 1,631 fans at the Lady Flames' Feb. 24, 2022 matchup with FGCU was shattered by nearly 500 on Sunday.
Box Score Highlights
Liberty Individuals: Emma Hess – 12 points, 4 rebounds, 2-5 3FG; Asia Boone – 11 points, 5 rebounds, 3 steals; Jordan Hodges – 7 points, 4 rebounds, 4 assists; Bella Smuda – 6 points, 9 rebounds, 3 blocks.
Tennessee Individuals: Jackson – 21 points, 7 rebounds, 2 steals; Darby – 18 points, 2 steals, 6-9 3FG; Kaiya Wynn – 12 points, 7 assists, 4 rebounds; Karoline Striplin – 10 points, 4 rebounds.
Key Team Stats: Tennessee shot 43.6 percent (34-of-78) from the field, including 40 percent (12-of-30) from three-point range. Conversely, Liberty ended at 31 percent (22-of-71) from the floor and 33.3 percent (8-of-24) from beyond the arc. The Lady Vols posted 22 assists to 13 turnovers and enjoyed significant advantages in points off turnovers (21-12), points in the paint (40-22), second-chance points (19-7) and bench points (44-16). Liberty blocked seven shots to Tennessee's five rejections.
Turning Point
Tennessee set the tone for the game with an impressive first 2:30 of the contest. The Lady Vols raced out to a quick 8-0 lead they never relinquished, aided by the first six of their 21 offensive rebounds and four Liberty turnovers.
Game Summary
First Quarter
- Tennessee opened the game on the previously mentioned 8-0 run and later scored nine straight points, building a 25-9 lead through the first 10 minutes of play.
- The Lady Vols hit four triples, outrebounded the Lady Flames 17-7 and forced seven Liberty turnovers to build the early advantage.
- Three-pointers by Emily Howard and Ella Wigal helped Liberty trim its deficit to 12 (30-18), 5:24 before halftime.
- Tess Darby countered with her third and fourth triples of the opening half, and Tennessee's advantage blossomed back to 19 (43-24) by the intermission.
- Emma Hess tallied 10 third-quarter points, but Liberty could not keep pace with the Lady Vols' 33-point onslaught. Tennessee shot 63.6 percent (14-of-22) and made five triples during the period, pushing out to a 76-43 lead.
- Both teams' offensive pace slowed during the final period, as Tennessee outscored Liberty by a 14-12 count.
Notes and Nuggets
- Hess scored 10 of her 12 points after halftime, reaching double figures for the 11th time in 15 games this season.
- Boone bounced back from the first scoreless game of her career, Friday vs. Randolph, to score 11 on Sunday.
- Emily Howard hit her first career three-pointer, one game after fellow center Smuda made her first triple.
- The Lady Flames are now 46-6 all-time at Liberty Arena but just 4-3 this season.
- Liberty falls to 0-3 all-time versus Tennessee.
- The Lady Flames are 1-22 all-time against SEC opponents, including 0-2 this season. Liberty has lost 21 straight SEC matchups since an 80-76 victory at Kentucky on Dec. 12, 1998.
- Tennessee became just the third SEC team ever to play at Liberty and the first in 15 years.
Liberty will finish off a four-game homestand on Saturday with its first-ever Conference USA tilt. Tipoff against Western Kentucky (9-6) is scheduled for 2 p.m. inside Liberty Arena.
Team Stats
UT
Lib
FG%
.436
.310
3FG%
.400
.333
FT%
.714
.500
RB
52
43
TO
13
19
STL
12
7
Game Leaders
Scoring
Pts
11
FGM
4
3FGM
1
FTM
2
Pts
7
FGM
3
3FGM
1
FTM
0
Pts
6
FGM
3
3FGM
0
FTM
0
Players Mentioned
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