OXFORD, Miss. — In Tennessee's road loss to Ole Miss on Sunday, the Lady Vols' offensive charge didn't come from its typical leading scorer.

While Rickea Jackson fell victim to a second-half slump, Jewel Spear shouldered the load in the narrow loss. She would score a season-high 30 points on the afternoon on 11-for-17 shooting from the field and 4-for-8 shooting on 3-pointers.

This was just the second time a Tennessee player has recorded 30 or more points in a game this season after Jackson did so against Florida State. Spear's four 3-pointers were the most she's made against an SEC opponent but the third time she's made as much with the Lady Vols.

TALK ABOUT IT IN THE ROCKY TOP FORUM

For Spear, the recipe for success was simple. She was aggressive with the ball in her hands and took advantage of sets that called for her getting downhill.

"Just being aggressive, getting down hill," said Spear. "Coach would run a play for me to get downhill and make plays, not only for myself but for my teammates. I was able to see a couple layups go in, get to the free throw line and then a couple threes came in, too."

This style of play also resulted in four assists. This was the second most on the team behind just point guard Jasmine Powell who recorded six.

As the team's primary ball handler, Powell has a unique perspective on the other pieces of the offense. In the case of Spear's 30 points, she credited it to the aggression her backcourt counterpart showed and the confidence she built during the game.

"Jewel was aggressive," said Powell. "She drove to the paint a lot. She got easy buckets and she looked for her shot. She's an amazing shooter. We need her to shoot the ball. So, her confidence, she sees one go in and her confidence will grow. She did amazing tonight offensively. I just think her confidence is where it needs to be."

MORE FROM VOLREPORT: Lady Vols can't get past Ole Miss in road clash

While Spear is satisfied with her individual performance, she knows it doesn't matter without also grabbing the win.

However, she sees this as an opportunity to grow her confidence and continue to be an offensive threat for opposing teams.

"Obviously, you're always thinking about the team," said Spear. "You want to play good individually, and I'm glad I did, but we didn't come up with the win so you really can't be excited about that. But confidence wise, individually, just seeing my threes go in, get to the basket, knowing I can be an offensive threat. Teams are going to have to guard me and respect me. But as a team, we have a next tough opponent in Georgia, at Georgia, so we just have to be ready to lock in on the road."

Thursday's roadtrip to face the Bulldogs will be a chance to get back on track. Georgia sits at 10-10 on the year and has lost six straight games. It is 1-6 in conference play and 6-4 in Athens.

Spear has the chance to log a third straight game in double-figure scoring against an inconsistent Bulldog defense, as well.

–––––

– TALK ABOUT IT IN THE ROCKY TOP FORUM.

– ENJOY VOLREPORT WITH A PREMIUM SUBSCRIPTION.

– SUBSCRIBE TO THE VOLREPORT YOUTUBE CHANNEL.

– FOLLOW VOLREPORT ON TWITTER: @TennesseeRivals, @TMansfieldMedia, @ByNoahTaylor, @RealTBannerman, @RyanTSylvia, @Dale_Dowden, @ShayneP_Media, @TylerIvens.

–––––