1987–88 Tennessee Lady Volunteers basketball team

The 1987–88 Tennessee Lady Volunteers basketball team represented the University of Tennessee as a member of the Southeastern Conference during the 1987–88 women's college basketball season. Coached by Pat Summitt, the Lady Volunteers finished 31–3 and reached the program's fifth NCAA Final Four. The Lady Vols started the season ranked No. 1 and played their home games at the brand new Thompson–Boling Arena.

1987–88 Tennessee Lady Volunteers basketball
SEC tournament champions
NCAA tournament, Final Four
ConferenceSoutheastern Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 3
APNo. 1
Record31–3 (8–1 SEC)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
Home arenaThompson–Boling Arena
Seasons
1987–88 SEC women's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
No. 3 Auburn 9 0   1.000 32 3   .914
No. 1 Tennessee 8 1   .889 31 3   .912
LSU 6 3   .667 18 11   .621
No. 12 Ole Miss 5 4   .556 24 7   .774
No. 17 Georgia 5 4   .556 21 10   .677
Alabama 5 4   .556 18 10   .643
Vanderbilt 4 5   .444 18 10   .643
Mississippi State 2 7   .222 19 13   .594
Florida 1 8   .111 9 18   .333
Kentucky 0 9   .000 14 15   .483
1988 SEC tournament winner
Rankings from AP poll

Roster

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1987–88 Tennessee Lady Volunteers women's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Year Previous school Hometown
G 4 Dawn Marsh 5 ft 6 in (1.68 m) Sr   Alcoa, Tennessee
C 11 Kathy Spinks 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) Sr   Forest Hills, Kentucky
C 12 Sheila Frost 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) Jr   Pulaski, Tennessee
F 14 Gay Townson 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) Jr   Loudon, Tennessee
G 23 Kris Durham 5 ft 8 in (1.73 m) Fr   Dunellen, New Jersey
F/C 24 Carla McGhee 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) So   Peoria, Illinois
F 30 Bridgette Gordon 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) Jr DeLand DeLand, Florida
C 32 Daedra Charles 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) Fr Saint Martin de Porres Detroit, Michigan
F 32 Jennifer Tuggle 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) Jr   Etowah, Tennessee
G 33 Tonya Edwards 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) So Flint Northwestern Flint, Michigan
F 34 Lisa Webb 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) Sr   Milledgeville, Georgia
G/F 35 Melissa McCray 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) Jr   Johnson City, Tennessee
F 42 Pearl Moore 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) Fr   Harriman, Tennessee
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)

Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster

[1]

Schedule and results

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Date
time, TV
Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site
city, state
Regular season
Nov 27, 1987*
No. 1 vs. Indiana W 91–52  1–0
 
Cincinnati, Ohio
Nov 28, 1987*
No. 1 vs. No. 18 Old Dominion W 83–52  2–0
 
Cincinnati, Ohio
Dec 3, 1987*
No. 1 Stetson W 102–59  3–0
Thompson–Boling Arena 
Knoxville, Tennessee
Dec 9, 1987*
No. 1 No. 2 Texas L 78–97  3–1
Thompson–Boling Arena 
Knoxville, Tennessee
Dec 13, 1987*
No. 1 at UCLA W 89–63  4–1
Pauley Pavilion 
Los Angeles, California
Dec 16, 1987*
No. 3 at Oregon State W 91–56  5–1
Gill Coliseum 
Corvallis, Oregon
Dec 19, 1987*
No. 3 Eastern Kentucky W 115–40  6–1
Thompson–Boling Arena 
Knoxville, Tennessee
Dec 20, 1987*
No. 3 Northern Illinois W 103–76  7–1
Thompson–Boling Arena 
Knoxville, Tennessee
Jan 3, 1988*
No. 3 at Illinois W 93–59  8–1
Assembly Hall 
Champaign, Illinois
Jan 5, 1988*
No. 4 Northwestern W 78–65  9–1
Thompson–Boling Arena 
Knoxville, Tennessee
Jan 9, 1988
No. 4 No. 2 Auburn L 68–71  9–2
(0–1)
Thompson–Boling Arena 
Knoxville, Tennessee
Jan 11, 1988*
No. 4 at Georgia Tech W 96–79  10–2
Alexander Memorial Coliseum 
Atlanta, Georgia
Jan 14, 1988*
No. 4 Old Dominion W 91–68  11–2
Thompson–Boling Arena 
Knoxville, Tennessee
Jan 17, 1988
No. 4 Vanderbilt W 104–67  12–2
(1–1)
Thompson–Boling Arena 
Knoxville, Tennessee
Jan 20, 1988*
No. 4 at South Carolina W 85–80  13–2
Carolina Coliseum 
Columbia, South Carolina
Jan 23, 1988
No. 4 Alabama W 97–70  14–2
(2–1)
Thompson–Boling Arena 
Knoxville, Tennessee
Jan 27, 1988*
No. 4 at Memphis State W 97–73  15–2
Memorial Fieldhouse 
Memphis Tennessee
Jan 31, 1988
No. 3 at No. 13 Georgia W 82–79  16–2
(3–1)
Tad Smith Coliseum 
Athens, Georgia
Feb 3, 1988*
No. 3 at Notre Dame W 91–71  17–2
Joyce Center 
Notre Dame, Indiana
Feb 6, 1988
No. 3 at Ole Miss W 78–67  18–2
(4–1)
Tad Smith Coliseum 
Oxford, Mississippi
Feb 8, 1988
No. 3 at Mississippi State W 81–74  19–2
(5–1)
Humphrey Coliseum 
Starkville, Mississippi
Feb 13, 1988
No. 3 LSU W 89–82  20–2
(6–1)
Thompson–Boling Arena 
Knoxville, Tennessee
Feb 15, 1988*
No. 3 No. 5 Louisiana Tech W 76–74  21–2
Thompson–Boling Arena (7,106)
Knoxville, Tennessee
Feb 18, 1988
No. 3 at Kentucky
Rivalry
W 99–75  22–2
(7–1)
Rupp Arena 
Lexington, Kentucky
Feb 21, 1988
No. 3 Florida W 108–53  23–2
(8–1)
Thompson–Boling Arena 
Knoxville, Tennessee
Feb 25, 1988*
No. 3 at North Carolina W 88–65  24–2
Carmichael Auditorium 
Chapel Hill, North Carolina
Feb 27, 1988*
No. 3 Tennessee State W 104–51  25–2
Thompson–Boling Arena 
Knoxville, Tennessee
SEC tournament
Mar 5, 1988
(2) No. 3 vs. (10) Kentucky
Quarterfinals
W 100–66  26–2
Albany Civic Center 
Albany, Georgia
Mar 6, 1988
(2) No. 3 vs. (6) No. 17 Georgia
Semifinals
W 82–76  27–2
Albany Civic Center 
Albany, Georgia
Mar 7, 1988
(2) No. 3 vs. (1) No. 1 Auburn
Championship game
W 73–70  28–2
Albany Civic Center 
Albany, Georgia
NCAA tournament
Mar 19, 1988*
(1 E) No. 1 (9 E) Wake Forest
Second round
W 94–66  29–2
Thompson–Boling Arena 
Knoxville, Tennessee
Mar 24, 1988
(1 E) No. 1 vs. (4 E) No. 14 James Madison
Regional Semifinal – Sweet Sixteen
W 72–52  30–2
Norfolk Scope 
Norfolk, Virginia
Mar 25, 1988
(1 E) No. 1 vs. (2 E) No. 10 Virginia
Regional Final – Elite Eight
W 84–76[2]  31–2
Norfolk Scope 
Norfolk, Virginia
Apr 1, 1988
(1 E) No. 1 vs. (2 MW) No. 5 Louisiana Tech
National Semifinal – Final Four
L 59–68[3]  31–3
Tacoma Dome (8,449)
Tacoma, Washington
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
E=East.

[4]

Rankings

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References

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  1. ^ "1987-88 Tennessee Volunteers Women's Schedule and Results". Sports Reference. Retrieved June 9, 2024.
  2. ^ "Tennessee Eliminates Virginia". The Washington Post. March 26, 1988. Retrieved June 10, 2024.
  3. ^ "Louisiana Tech to Play Auburn in Final". The New York Times. April 2, 1988. Retrieved June 10, 2024.
  4. ^ "1987-88 Women's Basketball Schedule". University of Tennessee Athletics. Retrieved June 9, 2024.