Lady Vols basketball coach Kim Caldwell expects Alyssa Latham to return to the court for Tennessee’s matchup at Mississippi State.
Latham did not play in the No. 22 Lady Vols’ win at Auburn on Jan. 4 due to a shoulder injury she suffered in practice. But Caldwell said Latham will be back when Tennessee (10-3, 2-0 SEC) plays Mississippi State (14-2, 0-2) on Jan. 8 (7:30 p.m. ET, SEC Network+).
Advertisement
“When we were getting crushed on the boards, I looked at her like, ‘Just go in. You got one arm, go in,’ ” Caldwell joked on Jan. 7. “But yeah, she practiced (Jan. 6). She looks great. It’s going to be good to have her back.”
Latham has become a crucial piece of Tennessee’s rotation, and Caldwell was eager to get her back so she doesn’t lose momentum.
“She’s just such a big part of what we do, and we really missed having her out there,” Caldwell said Jan. 4. “The steps that she has taken to getting better, I don’t want her to lose momentum. I want her to just keep continuing to get better, because our team needs her in a bad way.”
Latham played a significant role in the 76-65 win over Florida on Jan. 1 with nine points, eight rebounds, two steals and an assist in 30 minutes. Without her against the Tigers, Tennessee barely outrebounded them (34-31) and gave up 16 offensive rebounds.
Advertisement
Latham two missed games earlier this season against Belmont and Middle Tennessee State in November due to personal reasons.
She is averaging 4.5 points, 3.5 rebounds and 1.2 steals in 16.5 minutes per game. But she plays a crucial role within Tennessee’s system, and she has averaged 7.8 points and 5.0 rebounds in her past four games.
Cora Hall is the University of Tennessee women’s athletics reporter for Knox News. Email: cora.hall@knoxnews.com; X: @corahalll; Bluesky: @corahall.bsky.social. Support strong local journalism and unlock premium perks: subscribe.knoxnews.com/offers
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Kim Caldwell updates Alyssa Latham’s status for Lady Vols vs Mississippi State
