Tennessee Lady Vols basketball vs. Texas A&M: Scouting report, score prediction

Cora Hall, Knoxville News Sentinel
·3 min read

The Tennessee Lady Vols are set to take on No.23 Texas A&M, their first ranked opponent since losing to Stanford in December.

The No. 8 Lady Vols (13-1, 2-0 SEC) have beaten Alabama and Arkansas in conference play. The Aggies (10-3, 0-1 SEC) lost to No. 16 LSU on Sunday after their SEC opener Thursday was postponed due to COVID-19 issues in Vanderbilt's program.

Here's what you need to know before Tennessee's third SEC matchup Thursday (6:30 p.m., SEC Network) in Thompson-Boling Arena.

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Sharp-shooting guards

The Aggies boast a starting lineup with four guards who shoot better than 40% from the field and from behind the arc. The team's collective 42.1% 3-point shooting leads the nation.

Leading scorer Kayla Wells averages 46.6% shooting and 53.1% from 3-point range. Wells averages 17.1 points, with Jordan Nixon (13.9) and Destiny Pitts (11.4) averaging double-digit scoring.

Texas A&M averages 75 points per game but was held to 66 points on 33% shooting in the loss Sunday to LSU. In their three losses this season, the Aggies shot poorly – by Texas A&M standards – from 3-point range, averaging 28.3% in the losses.

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Lady Vols at full strength (almost)

With Rae Burrell's long-awaited return Sunday and Jordan Horston's return from non-COVID illness, the Lady Vols are full strength with the exception of Marta Suárez, who is out this season due to injury.

Burrell is not back to 100%, but the senior starter played her first game minutes since November on Sunday. Burrell hit a near 3-pointer on her first shot attempt against Arkansas and played 12 minutes.

Horston and Burrell's return bodes well for Tennessee defensively against the Aggies, with height and length to guard the perimeter and limit Texas A&M's 3-point shooting.

Tennessee guard Jordan Horston (25) dribbles as Stanford guard Lexie Hull (12) defends during a game between Tennessee and Stanford at Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville, Tenn. on Saturday, Dec. 18, 2021.
Tennessee guard Jordan Horston (25) dribbles as Stanford guard Lexie Hull (12) defends during a game between Tennessee and Stanford at Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville, Tenn. on Saturday, Dec. 18, 2021.

Taking care of the ball

Tennessee has struggled with turnovers this season, averaging 17.1 per game. In Sunday's win at Arkansas, the Lady Vols had 20 turnovers. Seven of those were in the third quarter.

Texas A&M averages 6.9 steals per game and its opponents average 16.2 turnovers. Taking care of the ball will be key in securing a win. Turnovers have yet to keep Tennessee from winning, but at the pace the Lady Vols are turning the ball over, it won't be that way all season.

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Score prediction

Tennessee 75, Texas A&M 67: I think this will be a close, higher-scoring game, but I see Tennessee pulling out a win at home. The post players the Aggies' rotate heavily don't have the size to matchup with Tamari Key, and Tennessee's defense will be able to limit Texas A&M's 3-point opportunities.

Cora Hall: Covering UT women's athletics
Twitter | cora.hall@knoxnews.com
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This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Scouting report for Tennessee Lady Vols basketball vs. Texas A&M