Lady Vols had no shot against A'ja Wilson, South Carolina

NASHVILLE – The biggest question before Friday night’s Tennessee-South Carolina game: Would Gamecocks All-American center A’ja Wilson be sidelined by vertigo?

The biggest question after the game: Was Tennessee’s entire team suffering from vertigo?

Wilson, who missed last Sunday’s game against UT, was just fine. She had 24 points, 12 rebounds and four blocked shots in a 73-62 quarterfinals victory in the SEC women’s basketball tournament.

Tennessee was OK until it shot the ball. It couldn’t have shot worse if the goals at Bridgestone Arena had been spinning.

The Lady Vols were at their worst in the first quarter when they made only two of 20 field-goal attempts. They never recovered.

More: A'ja Wilson, South Carolina outshine Lady Vols in SEC tournament victory

More: Lady Vols coach Holly Warlick criticized on Twitter after loss in SEC tournament

But it wasn’t for lack of effort. All-SEC guard Jaime Nared had 15 points, 13 rebounds, and three steals. Moreover, she played the full 40 minutes despite suffering a bruised hip in Tennessee’s tournament opener against Auburn on Thursday night.

Freshman guard Anatasia Hayes, who came off the bench to spark a short-lived comeback, played at a furious rate while scoring 17 points. She also had four assists and might have had four more if the Lady Vols had been able to convert a layup.

Tennessee missed from near and far, early and late. And the wayward shooting was widespread.

Often in losses, you can cite coaching strategy or question a team’s intensity. Neither one was a factor in this loss.

Hustle stats were in Tennessee’s favor. It had 13 more offensive rebounds than South Carolina and forced 27 turnovers.

“When we play hard and aggressive, we usually win the game,” Tennessee coach Holly Warlick said. “We missed so many layups and so many little shots.

“We missed 34 shots in the paint. Shots we normally get. It was just a rough night inside the paint. We had opportunities, but we just couldn’t finish.”

The Lady Vols might have overcome the wretched shooting if not for Wilson.

Wilson missed one regular-season game against Tennessee with an ankle injury. She missed Sunday’s regular-season finale in Knoxville with vertigo.

The Lady Vols won those games by a combined 35 points.

Although Wilson didn’t start Friday's game, she quickly made her mark. Not only did the 6-foot-5 senior dominate the matchup with Tennessee’s 6-6 All-SEC center Mercedes Russell, she opened up the court for South Carolina’s other shooters.

Fellow post players Herbert Harrigan and Alexis Jennings capitalized the most on Wilson’s return. They combined for 34 points on 14-for-21 shooting.

“She does a very good job of leading us on and off the court,” Jennings said. “I think we were just missing her presence (in Sunday’s game against Tennessee). “We were just fired up to play for her.”

Wilson’s return didn’t come with much practice. Doctors didn’t allow her to have any contact.

“I just kind of got my shots here and there,” Wilson said. “And just got my rest. That was the biggest thing.

“I knew I wasn’t going to be playing the minutes that I normally play. So the biggest thing was how can I still be me without a lot of minutes.

“I think I did a pretty good job of that.”

John Adams is a senior columnist. He may be reached at 865-342-6284 or john.adams@knoxnews.com. “ him at: Twitter.com/johnadamskns.