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Lady Vols dominate OT to beat Stanford

Dec 20, 2010 - 3:42 AM Knoxville, TN (Sports Network) - Meighan Simmons scored four of her 23 points in a dominant overtime period, which the sixth-ranked Tennessee Lady Vols used to earn an 82-72 victory over No. 3 Stanford at Thompson-Boling Arena.

Angie Bjorklund added 16 points and Shekinna Stricklen netted 15 for the Lady Vols (10-2), who rebounded from last week's loss to No. 2 Baylor in Waco. Eight of Tennessee's 12 overtime points were scored at the free throw line.

Jeanette Pohlen led all scorers with 24 points, while Nnemkadi Ogwumike finished with 20 points and 10 rebounds, but it was not enough to prevent the Cardinal (6-2) from losing a second consecutive game.

The setback leaves Stanford head coach Tara VanDerveer stuck on 799 career victories. Her next chance will be Wednesday, when the Cardinal play San Francisco.

Stanford held a six-point lead with six minutes left to play, but the Lady Vols went on an eight-point surge to move in front. Simmons made four free throws during the stretch, which Taber Spani ended with a layup for a 65-63 edge with just under five minutes remaining.

With about 1 1/2 minutes left, Bjorklund sank a jumper to force a 67-67 tie, and Pohlen drained a three-pointer at the other end. But Simmons answered with a three of her own just inside the final minute, and both teams missed chances to go ahead in the remaining time.

Tennessee was simply dominant in overtime, netting the first seven points of the period while Stanford didn't score for nearly four minutes. Simmons' jumper ended the Lady Vols' run and made it a 77-70 contest.

Kayla Pedersen followed with two foul shots, but by that point it was too late for Stanford to take a second consecutive win over Tennessee.

Tennessee controlled the game early, and held a 21-10 lead after Bjorklund sank a trey a little more than six minutes in. The Lady Vols carried a 39-31 advantage into the break, but the Cardinal made it close shortly into the second half.

Ogwumike sank back-to-back jumpers before Pohlen made two from the line, getting Stanford within 42-40.