According to Tennessee Athletics, The Lady Vols forced 43 turnovers on 30 steals, hit 19 three-pointers and eclipsed 30 points in every quarter en route to a 135-49 exhibition win over Carson-Newman in Kim Caldwell’s debut as Tennessee’s head coach. With an announced crowd of 9,613 looking on at Food City Center, the Big Orange tied for the second-highest exhibition game point total in program history.
Junior guard Ruby Whitehorn was sensational in leading six Big Orange players in double figures, firing in 29 points on 11-of-15 shooting. Fifth-year guard Jewel Spear and junior forward Zee Spearman contributed 17 each, while redshirt sophomore guard Talaysia Cooper, junior forward Sara Puckett and redshirt freshman Kaniya Boyd chipped in 16, 14 and 13, respectively. Spear finished five of 11 beyond the arc, while Whitehorn was four of six from deep.
The Lady Vols meet Samford for their regular-season opener on Tuesday evening at Food City Center. The contest is slated for a 5:30 p.m. tipoff with coverage on SECN+