During SEC play, Tennessee has kept the same starting lineup that pushed the Lady Vols' leading scorer, Rickea Jackson, to the bench.
However, with Jordan Horston listed out with an illness that forced her to miss the team's trip, Jackson was plugged into the starting lineup.
Despite losing Horston's leadership and exquisite play, Tennessee (16-6, 8-0 SEC) was able to pull out a 68-65 win over Missouri (14-6, 3-4) in Columbia on Sunday.
The Lady Vols' win was never certain, though. The pair of teams battled tightly to the final moments of the match.
With 1:25 remaining, Hayley Frank knocked down a 3-pointer to give the Tigers a 65-60 lead.
However, despite Missouri seemingly in full control, Tennessee never surrendered. Jordan Walker came up with a steal and promptly laid it in for a score to cut the lead to three. Then, following a stop, Sara Puckett banked in a 3-pointer to knot the score at 65. Following another stop, Jackson finished an and-one with just over a second remaining to seal the game.
"I think I can speak for Rickea (Jackson) on this, we knew we were not going to lose," said Puckett. "We weren't going to let that happen... We were just going to do anything we could. We weren't going to let our team down. We weren't going to lose."
This 8-0 run in the final minute of the match featured impressive play from Tennessee's two leading scorers. Puckett scored a team and career-high 17 points in the contest on 7-for-9 shooting from the field and a perfect 3-for-3 shooting on 3-pointers. She scored eight of her points in the fourth quarter alone. She also grabbed a tie for the team-high five rebounds and passed for an assist.
"Where we have success with Sara (Puckett) is working her in combination with Rickea (Jackson) and playing off of each other," said Tennessee coach Kellie Harper. "That's where Sara (Puckett) got several midrange opportunities today, because she was playing in that mid-post area."
With Horston absent, Jackson was expected to carry the scoring load. Although she didn't reach her season average, she still impressed with 15 points on 6-for-11 shooting including the game-winner. Jackson added four rebounds, two assists and a steal, as well.
Also helping lead the charger were Tennessee's trio of forwards. Karoline Striplin, Jasmine Franklin and Jillian Hollingshead all scored eight points and combined for 11 rebounds. This positive play helped keep the offense afloat and led to the Lady Vols winning the rebound battle 34-32. The group's five offensive rebounds contributed to the team's 12 second-chance points, as well.
As a team, Tennessee shot an impressive 48.3% from the field but was hampered by untimely turnovers. On the other end, the Lady Vols surrendered 44.1% shooting from the field and seven made 3-pointers.
Leading the charge for Missouri was Frank. The senior forward torched Tennessee's defense with 26 points on 9-for-16 shooting. This included 19 points in the second half alone. However, Puckett played solid defense down the stretch to keep Frank at bay.
Next for the Lady Vols is a matchup with No. 5 UConn on Thursday at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN. College GameDay will be in attendance as Tennessee plays its first ranked opponent since traveling to No. 2 Stanford on Dec. 18.
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