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Tennessee women’s basketball aims to return to glory days in 2022 March Madness

By Scott Rogust

From left, Tennessee center Tamari Key (20), forward Alexus Dye (2), guard Jordan Walker (4), and guard/forward Rae Burrell (12) confer during a pause in the SEC Women's Basketball Tournament game against Kentucky in Nashville, Tenn. on Saturday, March 5, 2022.Sec Ut Ky
From left, Tennessee center Tamari Key (20), forward Alexus Dye (2), guard Jordan Walker (4), and guard/forward Rae Burrell (12) confer during a pause in the SEC Women's Basketball Tournament game against Kentucky in Nashville, Tenn. on Saturday, March 5, 2022.Sec Ut Ky /
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Can the Tennessee Volunteers return to prominence and make their first deep run in the NCAA tournament since 2016? Here is a preview ahead of the March Madness tournament.

The NCAA women’s basketball tournament officially begins on March 16. 68 teams will be battling for the right to make it to the Final Four in Minneapolis, MN with the chance to hoist the National Championship inside the Target Center.

The Tennessee Volunteers women’s basketball program has a prestigious history, but they have not had much success in recent years. But, as is the case every year, you can never rule out a magical run down the bracket. Here is a preview for Tennessee ahead of the big tournament.

Tennessee women’s basketball:1 player to watch – Tamari Key

When looking at who on the Volunteers roster can truly make a difference in the tournament, the one player to watch is junior center Tamari Key.

In 31 games, Key averaged 10.3 points, 8.1 rebounds, 3.7 blocks and 1 assist, all of which are career-highs. one number that sticks out is the average blocks per game. Key broke the single-season block record, previously held by Kelley Cain with 113. This season alone, Key had three games with 10 blocks recorded, all coming against ranked teams. Those teams included South Carolina (10), Texas A&M (11) and Texas (10).

Additionally, Key shot a team-high 60.4-percent from the field.

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The previous season, Key averaged 8.9 points, 5.6 rebounds and 2.9 blocks through 25 games played.

Key is a player to watch throughout Tennessee’s run in the NCAA tournament.

Tennessee women’s basketball: 1 reason Vols will cut down the nets

If there is one area that Tennessee excels at, it is securing rebounds.

When compared to all of Division I schools in the nation, the Volunteers have averaged 47.97 rebounds per game through 31 contests, which is the second-best in the entire country. The only team with a higher rebounds per game average is Troy with 50.88.

Tennessee also ranks second in the nation in defensive rebounds per game with 31.6. Again, Troy is the only team with a higher average with 31.9.

The Volunteers have three players who have recorded over 200 rebounds on the season, including Key (251), Alexus Dye (232) and Jordan Horston (216). Two other players reached the triple-digit rebound mark in Jordan Walker (126) and Sara Puckett (110).

Tennessee women’s basketball: Recent NCAA Tournament history

Tennessee has a rich history, as they have won the National Championship eight times, with their last arriving in 2008. But when looking back at the past five seasons, the program has not found much success.

In the 2016-17 season, the Volunteers finished fifth-place in the SEC and were eliminated in the first round of the SEC Tournament. They did make it to the NCAA Tournament, but their trip ended in the second round following a loss to Louisville.

In the 2017-18 season Tennessee tied for fourth in the conference and did not make it out of the second round of the SEC Tournament. Much like the previous campaign, Tennessee was sent packing in the second round, this time to Oregon State.

For the 2018-19 season, Tennessee finished in eighth-place in the conference and had an even worse finish in the NCAA Tournament, losing 89-77 in the first round by UCLA. Following their exit, head coach Holly Warlick was fired.

In Kellie Harper’s first year as head coach, the team had a 21-10 record and held third place in the SEC. The season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Last year, Tennessee went 17-8 and finished third in the conference. After defeating Middle Tennessee 87-62 in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament, Tennessee lost 70-55 to Michigan in the second round.

The last time Tennessee made it to the Final Four was in 2008 when they won the National Championship.

Is a deep run in the NCAA tournament in the cards for Tennessee. As is the case every year, you can never count out a team scoring some upset wins to make it to the Elite Eight or Final Four. We shall see if the Volunteers can make that very run.

If you’re still not sure who to root for in the Women’s NCAA Tournament, our Flavor Finder can help you find a new favorite.

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