3 reasons Lady Vols basketball's SEC road win vs Mississippi State could be turning point

Tennessee may have fallen behind early once again, something that has happened too frequently this season, but this time felt different.

After getting smacked by Texas A&M on Sunday, the Lady Vols didn't waste any time getting back on track. They logged their ninth comeback win of the season, beating Mississippi State 75-64 on Thursday at Humphrey Coliseum in Starkville, Mississippi.

It's the fewest points the Lady Vols (11-6, 4-1 SEC) have allowed in conference play this season, and it's also the fewest points MSU (15-5, 2-3) has scored against an SEC opponent.

Here are three reasons why the road win could be a turning point for Tennessee.

Lady Vols flipped switch early with defense

Tennessee hadn't taken control of a conference game that early prior to Thursday.

It hadn't been able to ramp up the defense and limit its opponents' scoring in the second quarter in its previous four SEC games. But it did just that against Mississippi State, outscoring it 18-14 to cut the deficit to 37-30 at halftime.

Part of that was credit to the Lady Vols adjusting early. Much of the hole they were in was because they settled for outside shots, but they went from taking nine 3-pointers in the first quarter to only 12 the rest of the game, finishing 5-for-21.

Tennessee came out of the locker room with its foot on the gas, outscoring MSU 21-5 in the third to take a nine-point lead. The Lady Vols were forcing turnovers and scoring off them, keeping the Bulldogs out of the paint and getting stops when they needed to. And Tennessee committed nine turnovers, but forced 15.

Coach Kellie Harper said it started with the team's activity and improving awareness on the ball.

"They missed a few shots in that second quarter that I felt like they had made in the first, but they didn't get a lot of easy looks," she said. "And I thought we were doing what we needed to do. Now, obviously, I know they had some foul trouble . . . But still proud of our team and doing what we needed to do."

Lady Vols guards starting to find their rhythm together

When Mississippi State was making a late push to cut Tennessee's lead, Jewel Spear and Kaiya Wynn combined for important plays.

The Bulldogs forced Tennessee deep into the shot clock, and it had to pass a bit frantically to avoid their aggressive ball pressure. But Spear found Wynn wide open under the basket for an easy finish. Next offensive possession, Wynn assisted on a bucket by Sara Puckett. Then Spear found Wynn again, this time at the elbow for a jump shot, giving Tennessee a 69-57 lead with 3:26 left in the game.

The junior guard had 13 points on 6-for-10 shooting, five rebounds, three steals and an assist. Harper said Wynn came in and gave the team great energy as usual, and her impact was felt especially on the defensive end.

"She had a ton of deflections, had a few steals, some defensive boards, guarded well, and then handled the ball well," Harper said. "She came up with a couple of loose balls that I thought were critical for us closing the game out. But really proud of her and how she was a spark for us."

Tennessee brings home a win from a tough road challenge

The game in Starkville wasn't going to be easy by any means, especially coming off a road loss to Texas A&M and travel issues that kept Tennessee in Texas an extra day.

The Lady Vols are in a critical stretch of conference play, with four straight games against projected tournament teams, three of them on the road. With their NCAA NET ranking holding in the 60s, the road win over MSU — which was No. 32 before Thursday — will help boost the Lady Vols' ranking.

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Harper said they're not focusing big picture. There are a lot of SEC games left, and Harper wants her team focused on the game in front of them. But the significance of Thursday's result wasn't lost on her.

"I understand that's a big win. That is a huge win for us," she said. "I think it's good for a lot of reasons, obviously, for record's sake, but also for our team and for our mentality and our confidence."

Cora Hall covers University of Tennessee women’s athletics. Email her at cora.hall@knoxnews.com and follow her on Twitter @corahalll. If you enjoy Cora’s coverage, consider a digital subscription that allows you to access all of it.

This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Why Lady Vols basketball triumph vs Mississippi State could be the key