Kim Caldwell took over one of the most storied programs in women’s college basketball history, and in her first game as head coach of the Tennessee Lady Vols, her team managed to set an all-time school record for steals. In the process, UT beat the Samford Bulldogs 101-53 in a preview of what’s to come.
Rocky Top forced 37 turnovers and had 26 steals on the night, the latter of which shattered the old record of 20. Five players scored double figures, but Lazaria Spearman of all people led the way off the bench with 25 points. She also had two steals and six rebounds.
Three-point shooting was okay for the Tennessee Lady Vols, as they shot 10-of-34 from beyond the arc, but their scoring was largely due to what they did in transition. Talaysia Cooper had 19 points that way, as she came away with six steals on the night. Jewel Spear had 18 thanks to four steals and going 4-of-12 from three.
Ruby Whitehorn had three steals en route to 10 points, and Samara Spencer had one stela while going 2-of-3 from beyond the arc, which was part of her scoring 12 points. Sara Puckett was scoreless but had four steals, as she had an off-night shooting the ball. Tess Darby had six points thanks to two threes off the bench.
Taking all this into account, these Tennessee Lady Vols are going to be one of the most fun teams to watch in the nation and could at least be the most fun team to watch in program history. How many wins that translates to remins to be seen, but this was a heck of a start to the Caldwell era.
Could this mean that the program returns to prominence immediately? We don’t know, but the energy is back with the program. Up next for UT is a visit from the UT-Martin Skyhawks this Thursday. Samford, meanwhile, will visit the Central Arkansas Sugar Bears on Friday.
