1995–96 Tennessee Lady Volunteers basketball team

The 1995–96 Tennessee Lady Volunteers basketball team represented the University of Tennessee as a member of the Southeastern Conference during the 1995–96 women's college basketball season. Coached by Pat Summitt, the Lady Volunteers opened the season ranked No. 6 in the AP poll, and played their home games at Thompson–Boling Arena in Knoxville, Tennessee. These Lady Vols finished 32–4 (9–2 SEC) while playing one of the toughest schedules in the nation, and closed out the season on a 15-game win streak. After falling in the National championship game the prior season, the 1995–96 squad started a run of three national championships back-to-back-to-back.

1995–96 Tennessee Lady Volunteers basketball
NCAA tournament National champions
SEC tournament champions
ConferenceSoutheastern Conference
Ranking
CoachesNo. 1
APNo. 4
Record32–4 (9–2 SEC)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
Home arenaThompson-Boling Arena
1995–96 SEC women's basketball standings
ConfOverall
TeamW L PCTW L PCT
No. 5 Georgia10–1 .90928–5  .848
No. 4 Tennessee†9–2 .81832–4  .889
No. 12 Vanderbilt7–4 .63623–8  .742
No. 10 Alabama7–4 .63624–8  .750
No. 19 Auburn6–5 .54523–9  .719
No. 16 Florida6–5 .54521–9  .700
No. 24 Ole Miss6–5 .54518–11  .621
LSU4–7 .36421–11  .656
Mississippi State4–7 .36413–14  .481
Arkansas3–8 .27321–13  .618
South Carolina2–9 .18216–12  .571
Kentucky2–9 .1828–19  .296
† 1996 SEC tournament winner
Rankings from AP poll

Roster
1995–96 Tennessee Lady Volunteers women's basketball team
PlayersCoaches
Pos.#NameHeightYearPrevious schoolHometown
G 3 Michelle Marciniak 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) SrAmericus Allentown, Pennsylvania
C 4 Tiffani Johnson 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) Jr  Charlotte, North Carolina
G 14 Kellie Jolly 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) FrWhite County Sparta, Tennessee
F/C 23 Chamique Holdsclaw 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) FrChrist the King Astoria, New York
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster

[1]

Schedule and results
Date
time, TV		 Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site
city, state
Regular season
Dec 16, 1995*
 No. 2 at No. 9 Stanford L 72–90  7–1
 Maples Pavilion 
Palo Alto, CA
Jan 2, 1996
 No. 4 No. 21 Florida W 87–67  10–1
(1–0)		 Thompson–Boling Arena 
Knoxville, TN
Jan 6, 1996*
 No. 4 No. 2 Connecticut L 53–59  10–2
 Thompson–Boling Arena 
Knoxville, TN
Jan 8, 1996
 No. 4 at No. 7 Georgia L 71–77  10–3
(1–1)		 Stegeman Coliseum 
Athens, GA
Jan 11, 1996*
 No. 4 No. 15 Old Dominion W 69–47  11–3
 Thompson–Boling Arena 
Knoxville, TN
Feb 22, 1996
 No. 5 at LSU W 88–75  22–4
(8–2)		 Thompson–Boling Arena 
Knoxville, TN
Feb 25, 1996
 No. 5 at No. 10 Vanderbilt W 79–71  23–4
(9–2)		 Memorial Gymnasium 
Nashville, TN
SEC tournament
March 2, 1996*
 (2) No. 4 vs. (7) No. 23 Ole Miss
Quarterfinals		 W 73–51  24–4
 McKenzie Arena 
Chattanooga, TN
March 3, 1996*
 (2) No. 4 vs. (6) No. 18 Florida
Semifinals		 W 74–63  25–4
 McKenzie Arena 
Chattanooga, TN
March 4, 1996*
 (2) No. 4 vs. (4) No. 10 Alabama
Championship game		 W 64–60  26–4
 McKenzie Arena 
Chattanooga, TN
NCAA tournament
March 16, 1996*
 (1 E) No. 4 (16 E) Radford
First round		 W 97–56  27–4
 Thompson–Boling Arena 
Knoxville, TN
March 18, 1996*
 (1 E) No. 4 (9 E) Ohio State
Second round		 W 97–65  28–4
 Thompson–Boling Arena 
Knoxville, TN
March 23, 1996*
 (1 E) No. 4 vs. (4 E) No. 20 Kansas
Regional Semifinal – Sweet Sixteen		 W 92–71  29–4
 University Hall 
Charlottesville, VA
March 25, 1996*
 (1 E) No. 4 at (3 E) No. 11 Virginia
Regional Final – Elite Eight		 W 52–46[2]  30–4
 University Hall 
Charlottesville, VA
March 29, 1996*
 (1 E) No. 4 vs. (1 ME) No. 2 Connecticut
National Semifinal – Final Four/Rivalry		 W 88–83[3] OT 31–4
 Charlotte Coliseum 
Charlotte, NC
March 31, 1996*
 (1 E) No. 4 vs. (2 MW) No. 5 Georgia
Championship		 W 83–65[4]  32–4
 Charlotte Coliseum 
Charlotte, NC
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
MW=Midwest.

[5]

Rankings
Main article: 1995–96 NCAA Division I women's basketball rankings
Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
Week
PollPre1234567891011121314151617Final
AP643224544643655544Not released
Coaches6222244455536555441

References
  1. "1995-96 Tennessee Volunteers Women's Schedule and Results". Sports Reference. Retrieved March 3, 2024.
  2. "Lady Vols Turn Tables on Cavaliers". The Washington Post. March 26, 1996. Retrieved June 19, 2024.
  3. "UConn's Title Dreams Ended By Semifinal Loss to Tennessee". The New York Times. March 30, 1996. Retrieved June 19, 2024.
  4. "Tennessee Takes Title, Beating Georgia, 83-65". The Los Angeles Times. April 1, 1996. Retrieved June 19, 2024.
  5. "1995-96 Women's Basketball Schedule". University of Tennessee Athletics. Retrieved March 3, 2024.
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