The Tennessee women’s basketball team had to overcome 23 turnovers and an eight-point deficit to survive a scare in the Southeastern Conference Tournament quarterfinals Friday night.
However, the third-seeded Lady Vols claimed a, 77-72, victory over No. 11 Ole Miss in Greenville, South Carolina, ending the Rebels’ run and likely their season.
Ole Miss (11-11) knocked off sixth-seed Arkansas on Thursday, and the Rebels nearly eliminated Tennessee (16-6).
The Rebels had a 41-37 lead at halftime and extended that advantage to 47-39 by the end of the third quarter.
That was when UT junior Rae Burrell heated up after a slow night in the first three quarters.
Burrell, who was just 2-for-11 over the first 30 minutes of the contest, scored nine of her 18 points in the final frame and provided a spark that the Lady Vols needed to withstand a pesky Ole Miss squad and move on to face South Carolina in Saturday’s semifinals.
Rennia Davis led Tennessee with 33 points and 14 rebounds, while Jordan Horston finished with 12 points.
Tipoff for Saturday’s game is slated for 6:30 p.m. EST.
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