DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) Tennessee was down 14 points against 11th-seeded Kansas, a great unheralded bunch in which several although could test out the famous Lady Vols .
Feisty sophomore Meighan Simmons bought Tennessee the particular lift it necessary to make it through and move forward in order to one more thing regional final.
Simmons scored of sixteen associated with the girl twenty two tips off this along with inside the second 50 percent along with Tennessee rallied beyond this Jayhawks 84-73 Saturday as well as superior to help it's subsequent straight regional last and 25th around 31 years.
Glory Johnson included 18 details to the second-seeded Lady Vols (27-8), who'll connect with undefeated and also top-seeded Baylor upon Monday nights for your location in the Final Four.
It seemed to be this 1,098th earn to get Tennessee coach Pat Summitt, who proclaimed with August she'd also been determined using beginning onset dementia, Alzheimer's type, plus possesses yet to click with learning following season.
"The first 1 / 2 we are inclined to find ourselves in a hole, but we struggled back," mentioned Tennessee associate head guru Holly Warlick. "I believed some of our standard was outstanding."
The Lady Vols trailed 26-12 within the very first half, nonetheless structure the actual debt that will 35-30 simply by halftime. They went on your guide for good that has a 19-9 set you back wide open the 2nd half.
Angel Goodrich experienced a game-high 23 things and Aishah Sutherland acquired 19 with regard to Kansas (21-13), that droped to 0-3 in regional semifinals.
Simmons aided select up that out of it Lady Vols.
"She includes a scoring mentality. We've claimed she's in no way seen a result your lover decided not to like. But I inform you what, many people shots the lady will take she makes," Warlick said. "If we can learn coming from the woman's as well as realize that great items can happen if you have plenty of heart, we all is not going to acquire down of that ranking inside first half."
Tennessee could hardly accomplish nearly anything proper to get the 1st 11 minutes, decreasing behind with a Kansas team that concluded below .500 throughout this Big 12.
But there is certainly an excuse the Lady Vols generally sound like in the regional finals. The Jayhawks found within the opening units on the next half, as soon as Tennessee's top-quality level and athleticism simply weighed down this underdogs.
"The second-chance tips on the glass, the particular questionable rebounds, which can be what they have often been about," Kansas guru Bonnie Henrickson said. "They experienced us all from the unpleasant glass, they will found myself in people with transition. That's the best way they received your splitting up within the second half."
The Lady Vols eventually took the actual lead, 44-42, thanks mostly to be able to back-to-back 3s from Ariel Massengale, including a couple of free includes achieved it 53-46 Tennessee by using 11:07 to go.
Freshman posting gambler Chelsea Gardner have your girlfriend very best to maintain your Jayhawks close having 14 tips and eight rebounds. But Simmons hit a new layup off your give-and-go out of Baugh to present this Lady Vols their first double-digit lead, 63-53, together with 7:07 left.
Shekinna Stricklen had 16 points and seven rebounds intended for Tennessee, which will chance 51. some percent from the following half.
This appeared as if the best mismatch with the outset. Kansas ended up being trying to play in just it's third regional semifinal, while Tennessee appeared to be enjoying with its 30th and firing for just a record 19th Final Four.
But early on, the actual Jayhawks appeared ready pertaining to the overdue a . m . start.
Gardner bullied your ex way to get four inside buckets in the beginning several minutes, and back-to-back layups with the fresh paint by Goodrich presented Kansas a unexpected 18-10 lead. The Lady Vols identified as timeout with hard work to be able to quell the run, nevertheless Goodrich and Tania Jackson intered 3s to help drive this result in 14 points.
"The earliest number of moments all of us became available which has a lot of vitality on safeguard along with offense. We were hitting lots of shots," Gardner said. "We merely had great defense."
That's the sort of debts that will have anyone's attention. They Lady Vols arrived on the scene of your timeout with even more energy, reacting together with an effective 19-5 cost return inside of 31-29.
Kansas lost movie star Carolyn Davis to a knee injury final month, nonetheless rallied to bring in their primary regional semifinals berth considering that 1998 using upsets regarding Nebraska and also third-seeded Delaware.
Tennessee's more mature adults at this point are able in order to avoid being the very first four-year school in education record for you to miss the Final Four. They obtained it in significant aspect because of the do the job with Simmons. She assisted chip in 41 along with points, in contrast to eleven with regard to Kansas.
"Since it's actually a a single and also done sorts of thing, that merely produces which energy on the inside me. Seems including I have got which modify ego," Simmons said. "I need to go out there and verify your stage that I'm a lot better than what people believed associated with me. I would like our more mature adults to search to be able to the actual Final Four."
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