Tonie Morgan will lead the UK offense against Tennessee tonight. (Vicky Graff Photo)
The No. 11/12 University of Kentucky women’s basketball program (17-3, 4-2 Southeastern Conference), who also is 11th in the latest NET rankings, will play No. 17/17 Tennessee (13-3, 5-0 SEC) at Thompson-Boling Arena at the Food City Center in Knoxville, Tennessee, tonight at 6:30 p.m.
It is the second game of a two-game road stretch before the team returns home for alumni day against Georgia on Sunday and a bye week thereafter.
Kentucky enters the game tied for fourth place in the league with Texas. Kentucky is 6-2 on the road after coming off a 71-59 loss at Mississippi State on Sunday.
The Wildcats have four players averaging double-digit scoring, while Amelia Hassett is close behind with 9.7. All-SEC junior center Clara Strack is leading the team with 16.1 points and 10.1 rebounds per game; She is the only player in the nation to have both those numbers with 3.0 blocks per game, a value that is ranked third in the nation.
Tonie Morgan is adding on 15 points and 8.6 assists per game. She is also the only player in the nation to have both of those numbers.
The Wildcats will play their fifth opponent ranked in the Associated Press poll in the Lady Vols. The Cats are 3-1 against opponents ranked. Two of those ranked wins came on the road, including at No. 21/19 Louisville in November and at No. 5/5 LSU this month.
UK is one of five teams nationwide with two wins over opponents ranked in the current AP Top 10 (at Louisville, at LSU), sharing that accomplishment with UConn (3), Vanderbilt (2), South Carolina (2) and Texas (2).
The Wildcats had starting forward Teonni Key for both performances at Louisville and at LSU, while they were without Key for their home win over then-No. 5/5 Oklahoma.
Kentucky trails the series with Tennessee, 61-17. UK also trails UT in games played in Knoxville 28-4. Those four wins came in 2018-19, 2013-14, 1984-85 and 1982-83.
No. 15 Kentucky defeated No. 11 Tennessee, 82-58, in Historic Memorial Coliseum on Feb. 27. It was the largest margin of victory ever for Kentucky over Tennessee, besting the 21-point win (86-65) the Cats had over the Lady Vols in the 2020 SEC Tournament.
Clara Strack had 23 points on a school-record, 11-of-11 from the field and also tied her then-career high with 15 rebounds. She added three blocked shots and two assists.
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Darren Headrick will have the radio call for UK Sports Network on 630 AM WLAP in Lexington and on 790 AM WKRD in Louisville. It also will be carried on SiriusXM channel 161 or 191 and on the SiriusXM App. Fans can watch the game on SEC Network, with Tiffany Greene and Carolyn Peck on the call for the third time this season.
