In less than 24 hours, the No. 18 Lady Vols played two games in the West Palm Beach Classic.
Tennessee won both matches with the latest coming in the form of a 102-61 win over Tulsa.
The Lady Vols (11-0) outscored the Golden Hurricanes (6-6) by 30 in the second quarter to create serious separation and earn their third win in four days. They previously beat Memphis on the road on Wednesday night and Richmond on Friday afternoon.
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Leading the way for Tennessee was Sara Puckett. She managed 17 points with seven rebounds, two assists and two steals.
Behind Puckett, Jewel Spear, Zee Spearman, Talaysia Cooper and Ruby Whitehorn also got over 100 points. As a team, the Lady Vols shot 48.1% from the field and 43.8% on 3-pointers.
The defense forced Tulsa into just 34.9% shooting and 23 turnovers.
HOW IT HAPPENED
For a third-straight game, the Lady Vols' first quarter wasn't the best. This time, Tennessee trailed by five early. By the end of the quarter, the Lady Vols managed to take a two-point lead at 22-20.
Tennessee shot 36.8% from the field with five turnovers in the opening frame. Nine second-chance points helped the Lady Vols earn a lead, though.
The second quarter was a completely different story. Tennessee opened on an 8-0 run to take a quick 10-point lead despite Tulsa taking a timeout just a minute and a half into the frame.
The Lady Vols didn't stop there, either. Tennessee outscored the Golden Hurricanes 41-11 in the frame to take a 63-31 lead into the halftime break.
Leading the way was Sara Puckett at the half. She had 15 points including a 3-pointer at the buzzer.
The third quarter featured a struggling offense on both ends. The Lady Vols outscored Tulsa 15-14 in the frame as fatigue from the stretch of games appeared to rear its head.
It was more coasting in the fourth quarter. Tennessee got over the 100-point mark as it emptied its bench and won by 41.
UP NEXT
The Lady Vols have one final game before SEC play arrives. Tennessee will host Winthrop on Dec. 29 at 2 p.m. ET airing on SECN+.
Then, the Lady Vols will travel to College Station to begin conference play against Texas A&M. That game is set for Jan. 2, 2025 at 8 p.m. ET on SECN+.
The SEC home opener will be against Oklahoma on Jan. 5 at 3 p.m. ET on ESPN. The Sooners are ranked as the No. 10 team in the country.
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