Tennessee fizzles out of NCAA tournament after a winless March, searching for answers and an identity
Kim Caldwell wasn’t wrong when she said on the eve of the NCAA tournament that her Tennessee squad and NC State were both different teams than when they met in November’s season opener. Presumably, she didn’t mean the Lady Vols had regressed. Yet, maybe she left that one open to interpretation.
Tennessee went winless in March for the first time in its program’s storied history on Friday when the 10-seed’s season ended in a 76-61 loss to No. 7 NC State in the Fort Worth 3 regional. Conversely, the margin in November was one possession.
Draft your Yahoo Fantasy Baseball team for the 2026 MLB Season This was only the team’s third loss in the first round of the tournament (35-3) and concluded an eight-game losing skid that can no longer be attributed to a difficult SEC schedule. The vibes have been wrong for months, the play on the court wilted and the drama off of it escalated. Blame spread quicker and more widely than the Lady Vols’ stagnant offense.
It landed on players’ effort and will, then the coaches, and Caldwell’s unique offensive approach. Tennessee's season comes to an end after a First-Round loss to NC State. pic.
twitter. com/EEMBmbVA69 — Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) March 21, 2026 Caldwell’s “hockey-style substitution” approach that won her an NCAA championship at the DII level can be polarizing . As the losses mounted, it drew the ire of Rocky Top.
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