Kim Caldwell addresses Talaysia Cooper’s injury for Lady Vols basketball
Talaysia Cooper suffered an injury in the second quarter of Lady Vols basketball’s 72-69 loss to Georgia on senior day.
With 1:38 left in the first half, Cooper went up for a jump shot and went down with a right ankle injury. She was carried to the locker room by athletic training staff. The redshirt sophomore did not return to the game.
After the game, Tennessee head coach Kim Caldwell said she didn’t have any update.
“I don’t know anything more than you know,” Caldwell said. “I know she rolled her ankle, and I haven’t seen her since.”
Cooper played 12 minutes in the loss, scoring two points on 1-for-7 shooting. She also grabbed one rebound and picked up an assist and two steals.
During the second quarter, Georgia went on a 15-0 scoring run and led by as many as 23 points. The Lady Vols started a comeback and cut the halftime deficit to 13.
Then, Tennessee started the third quarter on a 13-0 run, doing so without Cooper in the game.The Lady Vols trailed by two after 30 minutes of play.
The Lady Vols failed to close out the game in the fourth despite leading. The Lady Vols finished the game shooting 34% from the field and 21% from 3-point range.
How Lady Vols basketball plans to respond in SEC Tournament
Depending on results from other games, Lady Vols basketball will either play Wednesday or Thursday at the SEC Tournament.
A Missouri win over Vanderbilt would keep Tennessee in sole possession of the No. 8 seed. The Lady Vols would then play Thursday at the SEC Tournament. If the Commodores earn a road win, their tiebreaker would force Tennessee to the No. 9 seed and into playing on the first day of the event.
The Lady Vols will enter the SEC Tournament after losses to Kentucky and Georgia. With only one day of on-court activity before the conference tournament, Tennessee has to be prepared.
“We’re gonna have to come up with something because we have one day of practice before we hit the road,” Caldwell said. “We have to try to play ourselves out of this.”