No. 15/13 Tennessee (3-1) faces its fourth straight opponent from the Volunteer State, traveling to Murfreesboro to take on Middle Tennessee (2-2) at 6:30 p.m. CT (7:30 p.m. ET) on Thursday at the Murphy Center.
The game will be broadcast by ESPN+ and carried on the Lady Vol Radio Network and SiriusXM Satellite Radio (Channel 390).
The Lady Vols carry a three-game winning streak into Thursday, defeating ETSU, 97-47, on Nov. 7, winning at UT Martin on Nov. 9, 72-61, and holding off Belmont, 68-58, in Knoxville on Nov. 13. MTSU, meanwhile, has dropped its last two contests after opening the year at 2-0, falling in its most recent match-up at Rice, 66-59, on Saturday.
The Lady Vols and Bruins will meet for the 25th time, with Tennessee possessing a 23-1 lead in the series. UT won last season in Knoxville, 89-75, after MTSU picked up its only series win on Dec. 6, 2023, 73-62, in Huntsville, Ala.
The teams meet in 2026-27 in Knoxville for the finale of a four-game agreement.
BROADCAST DETAILS
- Jake Rose (play-by-play), Alysha Clark (analyst) and Dylan Simmons (reporter) will describe the action for the ESPN+ broadcast.
- All of the games included in the ESPN package (ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU) will be available through WatchESPN, accessible online at WatchESPN.com, on smartphones and tablets via the WatchESPN app, and streamed on televisions through Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, Chromecast, Roku, Xbox 360 or Xbox One to fans who receive their video subscription from an affiliated provider.
- The contest also can be heard on Lady Vol Network stations and by audio stream, with Brian Rice providing play-by-play and Jay Lifford serving as studio host.
- A link to the live audio stream can be found on the WBB Preview page or the schedule on UTSports.com.
- For a list of Lady Vol Network affiliates, please click the Fans tab at the top of UTSports.com, select Vol Network and then click on the Vol Network Affiliates tab.
- Air-time generally occurs 30 minutes prior to tip-off.
- The Lady Vol Network broadcast also will be available on SiriusXM Satellite Radio channels 390.
LAST TIME OUT
- A 10-0 fourth-quarter run enabled No. 12/12 Tennessee to outscore Belmont 22-9 in the final frame and secure a 68-58 victory in front of a crowd of 10,043 last Thursday night at Food City Center.
- The Lady Vols (3-1) got six points each from redshirt sophomore guard Kaniya Boyd and freshman guard Mia Pauldo in the fourth quarter to overcome a five-point deficit early in the period and wrestle back momentum after the visitors outscored the hosts, 38-21, over the middle two quarters. Boyd hit a pair of key three-pointers, and Pauldo added a trey of her own and three free throws to help the Big Orange fight back the Bruins (1-2) for their third straight win, all over in-state foes.
- Redshirt junior guard Talaysia Cooper led all scorers with 22 points and pulled down a career-high 14 rebounds for UT. Senior forwards Janiah Barker and Zee Spearman also were in double figures with 11 and 10 points, respectively.
- Avery Strickland paced BU with 14 points, while Jailyn Banks and Hilary Fuller chipped in 13 and 10, respectively.
A LOOK AT THE LADY VOLS
- The Lady Vols take a three-game winning streak to Murfreesboro, attempting to make it four straight, all vs. in-state foes.
- UT is led by the talented trio of 6-0 redshirt junior guard Talaysia Cooper (18.3 ppg., 8.0 rpg., 9 3FGs) and 6-4 senior forwards Janiah Barker (13.0 ppg., 4.8 rpg.) and Zee Spearman (11.5 ppg., 7.8 rpg.).
- Freshman guards Mia Pauldo (9.5 ppg., 2.8 rpg., 1.8 apg., 1.8 spg., 8 3FGs) and Jaida Civil (9.0 ppg., 3.3 rpg., 1.8 apg., 1.0 spg.) and have been immediate contributors, starting three contests each.
- Over the past three games, UT has averaged 14.0 steals, forced 23.0 turnovers and scored 27.7 points off those miscues.
- Tennessee is holding foes to 37.7 field goal shooting through four games, compared to 46.3 a year ago in that span.
- The Lady Vols are getting 26.3 points per contest from their reserves, including a season-best 34-12 margin vs. Belmont.
- UT ranks No. 25 nationally by gathering 17.8 offensive rebounds per game and has a 17.0 to 9.0 edge in second chance points vs. foes after outworking Belmont in that category, 19-6, last Thursday.
LADY VOLS VS. IN-STATE FOES
- The Tennessee women are 269-64-1 all-time vs. four-year college teams from the Volunteer State through the Belmont game.
- The Lady Vols, who are 3-0 this season vs. in-state foes, are in the midst of a four-game run vs. Tennessee schools, including East Tennessee State (Nov. 7 — W, 97-47), UT Martin (Nov. 9 — W, 72-61) and Belmont (Nov. 13 — W, 68-58) and on the road at Middle Tennessee (Nov. 20).
- They are also slated to entertain Vanderbilt on March 1 in the regular-season finale.
- The Lady Vols were 3-2 last season after beating UT Martin (Nov. 7) and MTSU (Nov. 12) at home and Memphis on the road (Dec. 18), and losing at Vandy (Jan. 19) and vs. Vandy in the SEC Tournament (Mar. 6).
- UT has won 41 of the last 45 over schools from within the state border, with the lone setbacks during that run being a 76-69 loss to Vanderbilt in Knoxville on Feb. 28, 2019, a 73-62 loss to Middle Tennessee in Huntsville, Ala., on Dec. 6, 2023, a 71-70 loss to Vandy in Nashville on Jan. 19, 2025, and an 84-76 defeat by Vanderbilt on March 6, 2025, at the SEC Tournament.
DOUBLE FIGURES DUO
- Talaysia Cooper and Janiah Barker have scored in double figures in every game this season.
- Cooper opened with 23 vs. No. 9 NC State and followed with 18 vs. ETSU, 10 vs. UT Martin and 22 vs. Belmont.
- Barker, meanwhile, produced 15 vs. NC State and ETSU, and she notched 11 each vs. UT Martin and Belmont.
- Jaida Civil (2), Mia Pauldo (2), Zee Spearman (2) and Nya Robertson (1) also have scored 10+ in games this season.
PICKING UP THE PACE
- The onboarding process for Kim Caldwell‘s system has historically taken a few games to perfect. At some point, usually in mid to late November, the switch will flip, and things will begin to take shape.
- With eight newcomers and most of them playing key roles, there had to be some teaching and understanding of what is expected. Add in the fact the team has played its first four games in a nine-day span, there wasn’t much time for anything outside of game prep.
- Tennessee’s defense is showing signs of strengthening, with the team holding foes to 37.7 shooting on the season and forcing the last three opponents to 20 or more turnovers per contest.
- UT has recorded 17, 12 and 13 steals over its last three contests.
- In the fourth quarter alone vs. Belmont, Tennessee had four steals and forced seven turnovers, outscoring the Bruins 22-9 in that frame to overcome a five-point deficit and win by 10, 68-58.
UT/MTSU SERIES NOTES
- Tennessee enters Thursday night’s game with a 23-1 series record vs. Middle Tennessee.
- The Lady Vols are 13-0 at home, 5-0 on the road and 5-1 at neutral sites vs. MTSU.
- UT is 2-0 vs. the Blue Raiders in the NCAA Tournament, including 1-0 at home and 1-0 at neutral sites.
- The Lady Vols are 61-19 all-time vs. teams currently in Conference USA after defeating Middle Tennessee and Liberty last season.
- Kim Caldwell stands 1-0 vs. MTSU after the Lady Vols defeated the Blue Raiders in Knoxville, 89-75, on Nov. 12, 2024.
A LOOK AT MIDDLE TENNESSEE
- The Blue Raiders feature three players averaging double-figure scoring, including Alayna Contreras (14.8), Blair Baugus (12.8) and Savannah Davis (11.0).
- Baugus is averaging a double-double, pulling down 10.5 caroms per contest and also leads the team in steals (11) and blocks (9).
- Davis is MTSU’s top shooter from distance, knocking down eight of 21 thus far (.381).
- Middle Tennessee has surpassed 60 points scoring only once in four games, but it also has held all four opponents to 66 points or fewer, including two at 55 or below.
ABOUT THE HEAD COACH
- Rick Insell owns a 491-167 career record in his 21st year at Middle Tennessee.
- He has guided teams to 20 consecutive postseason appearances, including 12 NCAA Tournaments.
- Insell is a four-time conference coach of the year.
- Coached from 1978-2005 at Shelbyville Central H.S., leading that program to 10 AAA state titles.
THE BLUE RAIDERS’ LAST GAME
- Middle Tennessee (2-2) faced a challenging road match-up on Saturday, falling at Rice (2–1), 66–59, despite shooting 50 percent in the fourth quarter.
- The Owls went 10 of 10 at the free throw line in the fourth quarter to outscore MTSU, 23-22, and secure the win in Houston.
- Blair Baugus led the Blue Raiders with 22 points and seven rebounds, while Savannah Davis hit three of five attempts beyond the arc to card 13 points.
LAST TIME UT & MTSU MET
- Tennessee narrowly missed a school record in draining 15 three-pointers to sink Middle Tennessee, 89-75, at Food City Center on Nov, 12, 2024.
- Redshirt sophomore guard Talaysia Cooper paced the Big Orange (3-0) on the evening, recording her first-ever double-double with 18 points and 10 rebounds on 8-of-16 shooting. She also added four rebounds, four steals and a block to her stat line.
- Joining her in double figures for points were senior guard Samara Spencer, with 17, followed by fifth-year guard/forward Tess Darby and senior forward Sara Puckett with 14 and 13, respectively.
- Middle Tennessee (2-1) was led by guard Courtney Blakely, who fired in a game-high 25 points.
LAST TIME WE PLAYED AT MTSU
- Tennessee fell behind by 14 points in the opening quarter and trailed by 10 at the half before outscoring Middle Tennessee, 45-23, over the final 20 minutes to claim a 67-57 season-opening victory on Nov. 8, 2013.
- Isabelle Harrison led four Lady Vols in double figures with 13 points, while Cierra Burdick pulled down 11 rebounds.
- MTSU’s Ebony Rowe led all scorers with 21 points.
NEXT UP
- Tennessee returns home to play host to Coppin State at on Sunday in Knoxville.
- The Lady Vols and Eagles will meet at 2 p.m. ET at Food City Center (21,678).
- The contest will be streamed on SECN+ and can be heard on Lady Vol Radio Network stations statewide and via live stream on UTSports.com as well as on SiriusXM Channel 389.
- Tennessee and CSU will meet for the first time.
- The Eagles, who call Baltimore home, hail from the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference, and UT is 3-0 all-time vs. schools from the MEAC.
