Tuesday, March 13Tennessee gets 'easiest' draw
By Dan Fleser
Scripps Howard News Service
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- Tennessee took a defensive stance about its itinerary for the NCAA women's basketball tournament. The Lady Vols received the No. 1 seed in the Mideast Regional and will host a four-team sub-regional, beginning with a doubleheader Friday at Thompson-Boling Arena. Tennessee will play Austin Peay while Texas plays St. Mary's (Calif.). The winners will meet on Sunday for a spot in the regional semifinals on March 24 in Birmingham, Ala. Sub-regional game times have not been announced. The ultimate destination is the Final Four which will be played in St. Louis on March 30 and April 1. Tennessee's seeding wasn't a point of contention. The Lady Vols have been a No. 1 seed in 13 of the last 14 years. It's placement in the Mideast was expected. But the regional's perceived weakness drew a pointed comment. The other top seeds are Texas Tech at No. 2, Purdue at No. 3 and Xavier at No. 4. "I happen to think (coach) Pat Summitt is really smiling right now," television analyst Nancy Lieberman-Cline said on the ESPN Selection Show. "I think it's the easiest region." Summitt watched the bracket unveiling at her home along with the players, assistant coaches and other school officials. "I don't have a problem with Nancy saying that," Summitt said. "Obviously she's not coaching or she wouldn't have dared make that comment." The Mideast lineup didn't stack up on a bracket sheet with some of the other regionals. Defending national champion Connecticut and Georgia, a prime candidate for a top seed, were tabbed the top two seeds in the East. The regional also included Louisiana Tech. Summitt speculated that the Mideast teams were determined by Tennessee (29-2) being the tournament's top overall seed, which was the case. "If we were, in fact, the No. 1 seed in the country, we deserve that," Summitt said. "That doesn't mean it's an easy regional. "Does that mean we're going to St. Louis? No. Does that mean anything is guaranteed or given? No." UT players took a similar stance about the route laid before them. "I don't really put a lot of credence in what people say on those shows," guard Kara Lawson said. "Every team is going to come with a do-or-die attitude. We know we're going to have to fight to make the Final Four." "The political statement would be it's not that easy," senior forward Semeka Randall said. "But we have to take it one game at a time. That's the bottom line." The first game will require some homework. Although Austin Peay (17-13) is located in the middle Tennessee town of Clarksville, there's little history between the two schools. None of it is recent either. They have played just four times, with three of the games occurring in the mid 1970s. They last met on Nov. 15, 1996, in the first round of the preseason women's NIT. UT won 80-59. That game was Susie Gardner's first as Austin Peay's coach. She said the Lady Governors were "shocked" by the pairing. Copies of Austin Peay's statistics and roster were circulating around Summitt's living room shortly after the pairing was announced. The Lady Govs won the Ohio Valley Conference tournament by beating Tennessee Tech. Former Lady Vol Rochone Dilligard is an assistant coach on the Lady Govs' staff. The Lady Vols know even less about St. Mary's (Calif.), one of the other sub-regional guests. St. Mary's won the West Coast Conference. Texas, on the other hand, is very familiar. The fourth sub-regional team plays Tennessee every season. The teams played on Dec. 22 in Austin, Texas, with Tennessee winning 67-59.
Send this story to a friend | Most sent stories
| GO TO REGION | |
| GO TO REGION | |
| GO TO REGION | |
| GO TO REGION |
 | ||
|
Players, coaches know softer side of Summitt They're No. 1: UConn, Notre Dame, Tennessee, Duke | ||
