KNOXVILLE - Statistically speaking, the Tennessee women's basketball team's 73-46 win over UNC Asheville on Wednesday night was just another dominating performance for a program accustomed to lopsided results.
The Lady Volunteers dominated the glass, outrebounding the Lady Bulldogs 46-24. They held the visitors to 35 percent shooting from the floor while forcing 20 turnovers. But if Tennessee coach Holly Warlick needs a teaching moment for a team made up largely of freshmen and sophomores, she has a 10-minute span of them to choose from.
The No. 12 Lady Vols (2-0) eventually pulled away for the 27-point win in front of 6,914 at Thompson-Boling Arena, using a dominating fourth-quarter performance to stretch out the final advantage. But they were outscored 18-8 in the third quarter, making only three of 12 shots while committing six turnovers.
"It was a lack of consistency for us," said sophomore guard Rennia Davis, who scored all 10 of her points in the fourth quarter. "The big thing we emphasize is playing hard throughout the game, and we didn't play a full 40 minutes as hard as we could tonight."
Tennessee struggled shooting, making only 42 percent of its attempts from the field, but as has been the case this season, the Lady Vols shared the scoring load. Meme Jackson had 13 points to lead five Tennessee players in double figures. Cheridene Green had 12 points, while Evina Westbrook added 11 and Davis and Rae Burrell chipped in 10 points and eight rebounds apiece.
Sonora Dengokl scored 14 points to lead UNC Asheville (0-2). Ali Trani added 12, going 4-for-9 from 3-point range.
"Game of spurts," Warlick said. "I thought our rebounding was solid. Our one-on-one defense was probably not where we needed it to be. Our energy level was up and down, but I had to step back and realize we're a young team and we're not there yet, so we're going to continue to work.
"We did some good things, but when I watch the tape, I'm sure there are some things I understand we need to go back and work on."
Tennessee controlled the game from the outset, scoring 15 of the first 17 points and leading 21-8 after a quarter. The Bulldogs started to make a few shots in the second quarter, cutting Tennessee's lead to 31-16, but the Lady Vols responded by scoring the final 13 points of the half and went into the locker room up 44-16.
The Lady Vols were more efficient in the final period, making eight of their 12 shots overall and all three of their 3-point attempts in the final 10 minutes.
The big first-half lead meant the poor third quarter didn't hurt Tennessee much, but after Sunday's 2 p.m. home game against Florida A&M comes a trip to the Bahamas, where the Lady Vols will take on Clemson next Thursday and face either Oklahoma or the University of Alabama at Birmingham after that.
The schedule continues to stiffen in December, with a game at Oklahoma State in the SEC/Big 12 Challenge, a trip to Texas and a home date with Stanford among the nonconference games remaining.
"We've got tape to watch and learn and continue to get better," Warlick said.
Top-10 recruiting class
The Lady Vols announced the signings of three future players Wednesday as part of a recruiting class that is currently No. 8 in the espnW HoopGurlz rankings.
The class includes 6-foot-1 Jordan Horston, the No. 2 player in the country and the consensus top-ranked guard, 6-5 center Tamari Key and 6-5 forward/center Emily Saunders. Key is listed as a five-star recruit, while Saunders is rated a four-star prospect by ProspectsNation.com.
"I am very excited to welcome these young ladies to the Lady Vol family and believe they will really complement the players expected to return next season," Warlick said.
"I thought we needed a multi-faceted perimeter player, and we got one. We needed to add an inside presence that was both athletic and physical, and we got that as well. We addressed all of the needs we felt we had with this class."
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com. Follow him on Twitter @genehenley3.