Davis, Horston’s First Half Dominance Propels No. 23 Tennessee past Stetson 73-46
Jordan Horston and Rennia Davis have become quite the duo for Tennessee to start the season and that trend continued to manifest itself on Tuesday.
Only this time, it did not come at the expense of the Lady Vols’ success early on.
Davis scored 15 points, all of them following the first period and Horston added 14 points while knocking down four 3-pointers as Tennessee routed Stetson 73-46 at Thompson-Boling Arena
Jazmine Massengill tallied 12 points and six rebounds and Kasiyahna Kushkituah added 11 points for the Lady Vols (5-0) as they finished with five players in double figures while extending their season-opening win streak to five games.
“I thought our team performed better than we performed last week and that growth was great to see,” Harper said. “Our practices leading up to this game, I felt like were better, they were sharper...and it showed in our play.”
If the final score tells the story, the first half has to be the lead.
Only one player that took the court for the Lady Vols failed to score, but it was the performances of Horston and Davis during the opening 20 minutes that ultimately set the tone.
That all began with Horston’s first quarter shooting.
The Columbus, Ohio native knocked down three 3-pointers during that span, setting the tone for Tennessee as it notched its first 18 points from beyond the arc. UT would go on to finish the period 6-of-9 form long distance on its way to a nine-point lead.
It may have looked smooth on the court, but Horston’s ability to stretch the defense took time and patience.
“That’s something I really took pride in and wanted to get better at,” Horston said. “I put a lot of time into extra shooting.”
Like last week, it was the start of the second period that lit a fire under Davis.
After going scoreless in the first quarter, the senior forward came out firing to begin the second. Feeling an extra spring in her step, Davis was in a zone to end the first half.
She connected on 5-of-7 shots during that span and at one point, looked as if she was going to record her first career dunk. While that didn’t happen, Davis was able to extend Tennessee’s lead, which only kept growing from there.
“I honestly could have dunked that one...but the game was kind of close right now so let me just try to get these easy two points,” Davis said. “I possibly could have missed the dunk, so I just wanted the easy two.”
From that point, it was smooth-sailing for Tennessee and pure frustration for Stetson (2-3).
Davis may not have rattled the rim, but her impact on the scoreboard went far beyond any brief moment of jubilation that would have resulted from a highlight-reel type play.
The Lady Vols’ lead never got below 15 points in the second half, with Davis and Horston going on to share the wealth with their teammates, something that Harper praised following the game.
“It’s good to get production from multiple people, I think it gives us options,” Harper said. “I like to see us share the basketball...and different people are contributing in more than just the points category.”
Harper’s satisfaction revolved around the effort plays her team was making, an aspect that she feels will benefit Tennessee long-term.
“We’ve got a lot of folks making little plays as well and that’s good to see.”
The Lady Vols will remain home for a matchup against Arkansas-Pine Bluff on Nov. 26 at 7 p.m. ET. The game will be broadcasted on SEC Network+.
Photo Courtesy of Tennessee Athletics