Takeaways from Lady Vols basketball’s first win under Kim Caldwell

On November 8, 2024By Littum

It looked like Samford would have the final shot of the third quarter with just 15 seconds left.

But Lady Vols basketball set up its press and forced a turnover. Point guard Samara Spencer found Jewel Spear with seconds left on the clock and she drained her fourth 3-pointer of the game. Spear didn’t have the best start, but her teammates told her to keep shooting, so she did.

She led the Lady Vols (1-0) in 3-point shooting in their 101-53 win over Samford (0-1) in the season opener Tuesday at the Food City Center at Thompson-Boiling Arena. Kim Caldwell was happy to get her first game as coach of the Lady Vols out of the way.

“It wasn’t the prettiest. I thought we had some really good spurts where we looked good, exactly how we needed to look for most of the game,” Caldwell said. “And then I think we had some moments where we looked like a whole new team.”

Jewel Spear ‘priceless’ for Lady Vols

Spear was consistently in the right spot on defense and made the right rotation. Early in the third quarter, that resulted in a block and the senior guard went coast-to-coast for a layup to give Tennessee a 27-point lead.

Spear finished with two blocks and four steals in addition to his 18 points, six rebounds and two assists. Her defense was emphasized in the offseason, both on and off the ball. Spears’ communication allows her to be in the right spots and make the right rotations, which leads to her production.

“This defense that Coach Kim has put us in has helped with all of that and it forces you to be aggressive,” Spear said. “So it just allows me to thrive on defense.”

Caldwell called Spear “invaluable” as their captain and leader because she does a little bit of everything for the team.

Zee Spearman explodes in the fourth quarter

Zee Spearman had a solid outing — and she scored 15 of Tennessee’s 23 points in the fourth quarter.

Spearman looked comfortable and was one of the most consistent rebounders. The junior forward was also efficient, shooting 10-for-12 for a game-high 25 points. She added six rebounds and two steals in 19 minutes.

Caldwell said Spearman is “very capable” of being one of their top players.

“She’s probably one of the most improved players we have,” Caldwell said. “When she first got here, it was just too fast for her. And she’s learned to settle in and play on two feet and grab rebounds and she’s kind of filling up the stat sheet as well.”

When the full court press worked best

Tennessee didn’t have much success with the full court press early on. Samford got into the ball too easily, but when the Lady Vols picked up the pressure, they began to force turnovers.

In the second quarter, Tennessee forced two straight 10-second fouls with Talaysia Cooper and Kaniya Boyd at the top of the press. The length of the guards and ball pressure made it difficult for Samford to make longer passes. When that happened, the players could skip the passes.

Cooper stuffed the stat sheet in addition to his 19 points, adding seven steals, five assists, five rebounds and two blocks.

Caldwell said when the Lady Vols played hard, they looked good. When someone on the field takes their foot off the gas, things fall apart.

“So (it’s) they just understand that sometimes I know it’s hard to play hard, but it’s so much more fun if you just go and play hard all the time,” Caldwell said. “Because when you take those breaks, we either turn it over, we give up wide-open shots.”

Tennessee finished with 37 forced turnovers for 50 points. It also committed 20 turnovers, but it only resulted in 14 points for Samford.

Cora Hall covers University of Tennessee women’s athletics. Email her at [email protected] and follow her on Twitter @corahall. If you enjoy Cora’s coverage, consider a digital subscription that gives you access to it all.