Ranked: UConn v Tennessee

April 2, 1995 (UConn 70 – Tennessee 64) Target Center, Minneapolis, MN – The perfect end to the perfect season. Jen Rizzotti ruined Michelle Marciniak’s life, Carla Berube iced the game with a couple made free throws as Kara Wolters wept on the sidelines, and Rebecca Lobo and her French braid went down in history.

January 16, 1995 (UConn 77 – Tennessee 66) Gampel Pavilion – Now, yes, there are several Final Four wins below this one on the list, but here’s what you have to remember: No one expected UConn to beat Tennessee. At the time, Tennessee was the UConn women’s basketball of women’s basketball. They were the titans, the perennial winners. UConn was the upstart new kids on the block. They had made the NCAA Tournament every year since 1982, and when ESPN was able to schedule a game at Gampel no one really expected UConn to win. But they did.

April 6, 2004 (UConn 70 – Tennessee 61) New Orleans Arena, NCAA National Championship – A day after the UConn men’s basketball team secured its second NCAA Championship, Diana Taurasi lead her team to its third consecutive title. UConn mostly dominated the game, though Tennessee managed to cut the lead to two in the second half. But DT could not be stopped, and the entirety of Storrs, Connecticut was set on fire.

April 8, 2003 (UConn 73 – Tennessee 68) Georgia Dome, Atlanta, GA, NCAA National Championship – UConn finished the regular season undefeated and carried its 70-game win streak to the Big East Championship Finals, before losing to Villanova. DT got her revenge, dropping 28 points on Tennessee in the NCAA Finals, and capping off a “rebuilding” season with a second consecutive NCAA Title.

January 6, 1996 (UConn 59 – Tennessee 53) Thompson–Boling Arena – The Lady Vols put their NCAA women’s basketball record 69-game win streak (nice) on the line for this match up, and UConn promptly ended it. Tennessee would get its revenge in the Final Four, but we won’t talk about that right now.

April 2, 2000 (UConn 71 – Tennessee 52) Wachovia Center, Philadelphia, PA – UConn and Tennessee split their two regular-season meetings this year, meeting in the NCAA Finals for the rubber match. Shea Ralph out-hustled everyone, snatching six steals and sacrificing her body to give Tennessee the walloping it so richly deserved.

March 29, 2002 (UConn 79 – Tennessee 56) Alamodome, San Antonio, TX – UConn gave Tennessee the biggest whooping of the series in the NCAA Semifinal in front of a record crowd. Tennessee scored first, but never held the lead after. Kara Lawson led Tennessee with 9 points (lol). This was win 38 in another perfect season for the Huskies.

January 4, 2003 (UConn 63 – Tennessee 62) Hartford Civic Center – If you’ve ever wanted to know exactly how good Diana Taurasi was, and exactly how she was able to will her team to victory, this is the game to watch. DT scored 25 points, including the game-tying shot at the end of regulation, as well as the game-winner with 31 seconds left in OT. She also made a 60-foot shot at the end of the first half to send Huskies into the break with a three-point lead. When it was time to win games, Diana Taurasi stepped up and won them. This is why she is, was and always will be the GOAT.

January 8, 2000 (UConn 74 – Tennessee 67) Thompson–Boling Arena – This game was a physical battle, with lots of bumping in the paint and bodies on the floor (god I miss the Big East). Sue Bird led all scorers with 25 points, and the Huskies made eight-of-nine free throws in the final two minutes of the game.

December 30, 2000 (UConn 81 – Tennessee 76) Hartford Civic Center – There was a Nor’easter raging outside, but UConn managed to fend off the Lady Vols, who cut a 17-point lead to three with a minute left. Svetlana Abrosimova struggled with a bad back, only playing 11 minutes, and giving freshman Diana Taurasi a chance to shine. Sue Bird iced this game with made free throws.

January 5, 2002 (UConn 86 – Tennessee 72) Thompson–Boling Arena – In one of the many No. 1 v No. 2 match-ups, Diana Taurasi scored 32 points in front of a then-record crowd of 24,611 at Tennessee. In one of the best Geno-isms ever, asked after the game if any of Tennessee’s regulars could start for UConn he replied: “Yeah, if I cut one of my guys.”

February 5, 2004 (UConn 81 – Tennessee 67) Thompson–Boling Arena – This was another physical battle between the Lady Vols and the Huskies. Diana Taurasi scored 18 points before fouling out in the final minute of the game.

January 5, 1997 (UConn 72 – Tennessee 57) Hartford Civic Center – Nykesha Sales had the best stat line in this game in front of a sold-out Civic Center: 22 points, 10 rebounds, four steals and three assists.

The Losses

March 29, 1996 (Tennessee 88 – UConn 83) Charlotte Coliseum, Charlotte, NC, NCAA Final Four – I can’t even be that mad at this game. UConn took one off of Tennessee earlier that season and was sporting a 3-0 all-time record against the Lady Vols. Tennessee went out to an early lead, but UConn came roaring back, and Nykesha Sales hit a three at the end of regulation to send this one into OT. Both Kara Wolters and Jamelle Elliott fouled out in regulation, and the Huskies couldn’t keep up on the glass. Jen Rizzotti sent up a three-point prayer at the buzzer that was tipped and didn’t make it to the basket. It was a heartbreaker for UConn, but it was a hell of a game for women’s basketball.

March 24, 1997 (Tennessee 91 – UConn 81) Carver–Hawkeye Arena, Iowa City, IA, NCAA Elite Eight – UConn came into this game with zero losses to Tennessee’s 10. With a second perfect season on the line, UConn came up short. Chamique Holdsclaw and her Lady Vols managed to shoot a remarkable 50 percent from the floor, and UConn just didn’t have the answers. And that’s all I have to say about that.

January 8, 2005 (Tennessee 68 – UConn 67) Hartford Civic Center – Ann Strother missed two-of-three free throws with 3.9 seconds on the clock to let Tennessee sneak out of Connecticut with a one-point win, and I am actually mad at this one.

February 2, 2000 (Tennessee 72 – UConn 71) Gampel Pavilion – Semeka Randall hit a game-winner with 4.4 seconds left on the clock. But don’t worry, UConn put the hurt on Tennessee in the National Championship this season, with this game standing as the Huskies’ only loss that year.

February 1, 2001 (Tennessee 92 – UConn 88) Thompson–Boling Arena – Tennessee’s Gwen Jackson (remember her? Yeah, me neither) went off in this game, with 28 points, 14 rebounds and 5 blocks. But this was the only game Tennessee would win during the Diana Taurasi years, so fine, whatever.

January 3, 1998 (Tennessee 84 – UConn 69) Thompson–Boling Arena, January 10, 1999 (Tennessee 92 – UConn 81) Gampel Pavilion – Tennessee had Chamique Holdsclaw, Tamika Catchings and Semeka Randall, aka The Three Meeks and they were very good.

January 7, 2006 (Tennessee 89 – UConn 80) Thompson–Boling Arena; January 6, 2007 (Tennessee 70 – Connecticut 64) Hartford Civic Center – Tennessee didn’t officially cancel the series until June of 2007, but we knew going in that these were the last games on the schedule and that Tennessee didn’t seem interested in scheduling any more. The Great Maya Moore Recruiting Incident was just the final nail in the coffin, so it was with great sadness that UConn fans went into these games, knowing they were likely to be the last for the foreseeable future. A couple down UConn years combined with Candace Parker being Candace Parker made these tough losses to swallow.