No. 25 Lady Vols fall at home to No. 16 Texas A&M

Fortunes for Tennessee basketball have not been kind to either program as of late, and Sunday was the latest example of that reality.

Only this time, it was the Lady Vols’ turn to take the gut-punch.

Rae Burrell scored a team-high 19 points me grabbed seven rebounds and Rennia Davis added 18 points while dishing out six assists, but 25th-ranked Tennessee was unable to overcome Texas A&M at home, falling 73-71.

The loss marks the Lady Vols’ fourth in a row following a stretch in which they won six of seven games.

Chennedy Carter led the Aggies (20-5, 8-4 SEC) with a game-high 37 points in her first game back from an ankle injury.

Despite the onslaught by Carter, the ultimate undoing for Tennessee (17-8, 7-5 SEC) was its disadvantage at the free-throw line.

The Lady Vols led by three following a closely-contested first period before Texas A&M caught fire in the second.

The Aggies outscored UT 24-15 during the second period and led by six heading into the locker room.

Tennessee’s fortunes would fair better in the second half, but it wouldn’t be enough to carry it over the finish line.

Texas A&M and UT both scored 17 points in the third quarter, setting up for a close finish to start the fourth.

The Lady Vols pulled within three following a 3-pointer from Jordan Hairston with 32.3 seconds left, but the Aggies took advantage of their free-throw opportunities and remained out of reach.

A late basket by Jazmine Massengill cut the lead to 72-69 with four seconds to play and Texas A&M’s Ciera Johnson sealed it by connecting on one of two foul shots.

Tennessee returns to action on Thursday against Arkansas in Fayetteville.

Photo courtesy of Tennessee Athletics

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