Five Fast Thoughts: Lady Vols Comeback to Get Crucial Home Victory in Overtime

KNOXVILLE, Tenn.– The Tennessee Lady Vols came into Monday night's SEC showdown against Arkansas after playing their worst game on Thursday in a loss to unranked Auburn.

But for the majority of the overtime thriller against Arkansas, the Lady Vols' performance against Auburn seemed like a game in the distant past, as Tennessee beat the Razorbacks in gripping fashion with an 86-83 overtime win.

Below are five fast thoughts from one of the most, if not the most, exciting game of the Lady Vols' season thus far.

Rae Burrell Sets a Season-High

Rae Burrell set a season-high 21 points in Tennessee's win over Arkansas. Burrell played 38 minutes at the three and delivered with several key plays to push Tennessee to victory, including a three-pointer when it was 77-77 and a triple to give the Lady Vols a 66-64 lead. Both makes were crucial to the Lady Vols' momentum in those instances, ultimately helping lead them to overtime despite trailing nine at halftime and 13 at one point in the third quarter.

Burrell's final stat line included 4-5 free throw makes and eight rebounds, making it a productive all-around night for the Las Vegas native.

Tennessee Second Chance Points: 27; Arkansas Second Chance Points: 6

Tennessee's MO as a women's college basketball program, especially under Kellie Harper, focuses on getting rebounds. The Lady Vols have out-rebounded every team this season except one: Stanford. Tonight, Tennessee had 60 boards to the Hogs' 40, leading to another stat that is telling to how the Lady Vols were able to pull off the resilient win.

Compared to the Razorbacks ' mere six, Tennessee had 27 points off of offensive rebounds. Even when the Lady Vols were struggling in the first half in shooting, the scrappiness they showed off the offensive glass shows this team's fight and want to win.

And rebounding works twofold, as the Hogs could only grab 11 offensive rebounds with 76 total field goals attempted. Tennessee's ability to attack the boards keeps them in games, and to have this rebounding performance without key post reserve Keyen Green is promising, leading to...

Sara Puckett Double-Double

Jordan Horston scored 24 points, and Rae Burrell scored 21, but Sara Puckett is just as big of a storyline in the Lady Vols' win. The true freshman racked up ten rebounds and scored 10 points while playing multiple positions all night long.

Kellie Harper: "We need to find Sara Puckett some more shots, but she plays with more poise. That's why she doesn't look like a freshman. Plus, I move her all over the place and she delivers everywhere."
— Jack Foster (@jackfostermedia) February 1, 2022

Puckett played the three, four, and five at points against Arkansas during her 34 total minutes. Kellie Harper incorporated some smaller sets without Tamari Key, Emily Saunders and Karoline Striplin (Striplin and Saunders received 0 minutes against Arkansas). Puckett delivered in the best way possible for the Lady Vols, serving as a game-changer in crunch time.

Tamari Key: 8-9 FT

Arkansas is fast. Really fast. Their shooting capabilities are through the roof, and Tennessee learned the hard way in the first half. In addition, their speed caused Tamari Key some trouble down low offensively.

Key did not make a field goal until the fourth quarter, and it was the only one she made in regulation (ended with three made). However, Key scored 14 points, and most of her production came at the line. Arkansas played the Tennessee junior with intense physicality the whole game, and even though Key did not get the whistle as many times as the Lady Vol faithful may have hoped for, she got to the line on five occasions. The North Carolina native drilled eight of nine attempts (89%) and helped the Lady Vols mightily down the stretch when the Razorbacks were fouling more as the Lady Vols hit their hot streak.

Tennessee 1Q Turnovers: 6, Tennessee Total Game Turnovers: 16

Against Georgia, Tennessee had 15 first-half turnovers but adjusted at halftime and ended the game with 21. While 15 first-half turnovers are problematic, the halftime adjustment was encouraging.

However, against Auburn, the Lady Vols committed turnovers at a high rate and ended with 22 turnovers, a big reason Tennessee lost.

Against Arkansas, the game took a similar path in the first quarter, as the Lady Vols committed six turnovers. However, as they did against Georgia, Tennessee played cleaner and committed ten total turnovers in the second, third and fourth quarters combined. The Lady Vols' ability to not go down that same road was a significant reason in Tennessee not letting the game get out of hand, especially considering how much success the Razorbacks' success from deep. To have multiple offensive mistakes meant to lose to the Razorbacks tonight with their shooters, but the Lady Vols ensured they would not let that number get out of hand.

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Up next for Tennessee is a road matchup in Gainesville against Florida on Thursday, followed by another road matchup against UConn on Sunday, meaning Monday night's home win was massive for Tennessee to build confidence and momentum after a tough loss heading into grueling road play.

Photo Credit: Tennessee Athletics