A cinch for six

Sporting News, The, March 16, 1998 by Lynn Zinser

Pat Summitt's sixth national title (third straight) might be her easiest yet--and there's no end in sight to Tennessee's dominance

The Tennessee women's basketball players take the floor through a gantlet of little kids while their introductions dissolve into the roar of more than 15,000 fans, who will stand and yell until the first basket is scored.

The players run through a large "T" that's decorated with the years of Tennessee's five national titles and deliver very low-fives with characteristic smiles. The announcer slows down his intonation of "CHAAAMIIIQUUE HOOLDSCLAAW," with every bit the melodrama of Michael Jordan's intro in Chicago, which might seem silly until you realize the Vols' average attendance betters eight NBA teams.

This is pure show biz, lacking only the dry ice--they use that to welcome them out for warmups--but adding the innocence of a college crowd. It includes older women in hand-knitted orange sweaters and 10-year-olds with awestruck expressions. It is also pure celebration. This is a team no one in Knoxville wants to miss.

"They are awfully fun to watch," coach Pat Summitt says. "If I wasn't their coach, I'd be up there watching them, too."

Such is the power of the No, 1-ranked and undefeated Volunteers. They have melted even the storied intensity of Summitt, whose stare during the tough times can peel paint from old cars.

That's not to say the stare can't come back in an instant. But in blitzing to its 33-0 record, the only thing Tennessee has had resembling a fair fight is a four-point win against Alabama in the SEC Tournament title game. It has 17 wins by 30 or more points and has beaten 12 top-20 teams by a 28-point average.

The Vols have all the traditional ingredients for success: Chamique Holdsclaw is the best player in the country, Summitt the best coach, their four-member freshman class could start as a unit almost anywhere else.

And their intangibles make them truly scary: great chemistry, diligent work ethic and the perspective to enjoy how good they are. "You know, when they're playing well sometimes, I think they forget the score," Summitt says.

These Vols, unlike any previous, play an up-tempo style that rattles foes with fullcourt pressure and halfcourt traps.

On offense, they rely a lot on Holdsclaw, who averages 22.9 points a game and is smoother than any college player since Sheryl Swoopes. How she gets the ball is almost as breathtaking as how she scores. Kellie Jolly is a creative passer, as is freshman forward Tamika Catchings.

On defense it seems as if more than five are out there, though there are only 10 healthy players. Of course, all but about two are potential starters.

"It helps not to have to play 40 minutes," says Holdsclaw, TSN's Player of the Year. "But they also keep you working hard. ... You can't relax when you've got somebody like Semeka Randall breathing down your back."

This team is as young as it is talented, but Summitt says that doesn't scare away recruits. That's because she doesn't over-recruit. She only has 12 on scholarship, and the only senior is Laurie Milligan, whose career ended with a knee problem.

"We could have signed a couple more players last year, but we decided to wait," Summitt says. "So next year well have dime spots. ... If a recruit was here right now, I could tell her she'll get minutes, because right now, we need help in the paint"

This is not something other coaches want to hear. "I don't care how good they are now. Look at how good they're going to be," Georgia coach Andy Landers said, before his team got beat by 59.

But talent alone doesn't win national championships, and the Vols know that. Last season, they were a much thinner team. They finished a mere fifth in the Southeastern Conference and fell out of the top 10 for the first time in 11 years. They also won the NCAA Tournament.

It was Summitt's fifth title, her most unexpected and the one that put her in the class of coaches that includes Dean Smith and John Wooden. Tennessee actually offered her its men's coaching job once, and she turned it down.

This season, she is also an unusually relaxed person. She marvels at her team, gets caught up in the buzz the players have created.

"Everything we've achieved has been because of them," Summitt says. "As a staff, it's our job to help them be as good as they can. We don't have to win another championship. This is all about those players and helping them achieve what they want to achieve."

RELATED ARTICLE: How to accomplish the impossible

They have beaten all comers, most by ridiculously absurd margins. They have allowed only one team to keep the difference under double digits. They are the overwhelming favorite to win the NCAA Tournament.

So the question automatically is begged-how can anyone come out on top against Tennessee?

It's probably not possible, given the talent and confidence that pours from Tennessee. But here are a few points opponents would do well to emphasize:

* CONTROL THE TEMPO. The Vols are without a doubt the quickest team in the nation this season and maybe the quickest ever. They will run with the basketball at any time--after a made basket, after a missed basket, after a free throw, after a time out. Keep them from driving constantly to the hoop, and you at least keep them out of triple digits.