2025–26 Tennessee Lady Volunteers basketball team

2025–26 Tennessee Lady Volunteers basketball
2025–26 Tennessee Lady Volunteers basketball
Conference	Southeastern Conference
Ranking
Coaches	No. 18
AP	No. 17
Record	7–3 (0–0 SEC)
Head coach	Kim Caldwell (2nd season);
Assistant coaches	Roman Tubner; Gabe Lazo; Jenna Burdette;
Home arena	Thompson–Boling Arena

2025–26 SEC women's basketball standings
	Conf.				Overall
Team	W		L	PCT	W		L	PCT
Alabama	0	–	0	–	14	–	0	1.000
No. 2 Texas	0	–	0	–	14	–	0	1.000
Georgia	0	–	0	–	13	–	0	1.000
No. 5 LSU	0	–	0	–	13	–	0	1.000
No. 12 Vanderbilt	0	–	0	–	12	–	0	1.000
No. 11 Kentucky	0	–	0	–	12	–	1	.923
Mississippi State	0	–	0	–	12	–	1	.923
No. 15 Ole Miss	0	–	0	–	12	–	1	.923
No. 3 South Carolina	0	–	0	–	12	–	1	.923
No. 8т Oklahoma	0	–	0	–	11	–	1	.917
Arkansas	0	–	0	–	11	–	3	.786
Florida	0	–	0	–	11	–	3	.786
Missouri	0	–	0	–	11	–	3	.786
Texas A&M	0	–	0	–	7	–	2	.778
Auburn	0	–	0	–	10	–	3	.769
No. 23 Tennessee	0	–	0	–	7	–	3	.700

† 2026 SEC tournament winner As of December 21, 2025 Rankings from AP poll

The 2025–26 Tennessee Lady Volunteers basketball team will represent the University of Tennessee in the 2025–26 college basketball season. Led by head coach Kim Caldwell in her second year, the team will play their games at Thompson–Boling Arena and are members of the Southeastern Conference.

Previous season

Following Caldwell's hiring in April 2024, the 2024–25 team went undefeated in non-conference play, achieving a Top 15 national ranking. However, other SEC teams ranked well, and the team finished the season with a 24–10 overall record, 8–8 in the conference. In the postseason, they lost in the second round of the SEC tournament to in-state rival Vanderbilt.^[1] They earned an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament, advancing to the Sweet Sixteen before losing to SEC foe Texas.^[2]

Offseason

Departures

Departures
Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Year	Hometown	Reason for departure
Jewel Spear	0	G	5'10"	Graduate Student	The Colony, TX	Graduated
Sara Puckett	1	G/F	6'2"	Senior	Muscle Shoals, AL	Graduated
Samara Spencer	7	G	5'7"	Senior	Fort Lauderdale, FL	Graduated
Destinee Wells	10	G	5'6"	Senior	Lakeland, TN	Transferred to UT Martin
Edie Darby	12	G	5'7"	Junior	Greenfield, TN	Walk-on; retired from basketball due to a foot injury^[3]
Avery Strickland	13	G/F	5'10"	Junior	Knoxville, TN	Transferred to Belmont
Fayor Ayodele	15	F	6'1"	Graduate Student	Móstoles, Spain	Graduated
Tess Darby	21	G/F	6'1"	Graduate Student	Greenfield, TN	Graduated
Jillian Hollingshead	53	F	6'5"	Senior	Gainesville, GA	Graduated

Incoming transfers

Incoming transfers
Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Year	Hometown	Previous school
Janiah Barker	0	F	6'4"	Senior	Marietta, GA	UCLA
Nya Robertson	1	G	5'7"	Senior	Fort Worth, TX	SMU
Jersey Wolfenbarger	8	G/F	6'5"	Senior	Fort Smith, AR	LSU

Recruiting classes

2025 recruiting class

College recruiting information
Name	Hometown	School	Height	Weight
Mia Pauldo PG	Denville, NJ	Morris Catholic High School	5 ft 5 in (1.65 m)	N/A
Mia Pauldo PG	Recruit ratings: 247Sports: ESPN: (97)
Deniya Prawl W	Toronto, ON	IMG Academy	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	N/A
Deniya Prawl W	Recruit ratings: 247Sports: ESPN: (97)
Jaida Civil G	Vero Beach, FL	Palm Bay Magnet High School	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	N/A
Jaida Civil G	Recruit ratings: 247Sports: ESPN: (95)
Lauren Hurst W	Cleveland, TN	Cleveland High School	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	N/A
Lauren Hurst W	Recruit ratings: 247Sports: ESPN: (94)
Mya Pauldo PG	Denville, NJ	Morris Catholic High School	5 ft 5 in (1.65 m)	N/A
Mya Pauldo PG	Recruit ratings: 247Sports: ESPN: (94)
Overall recruit ranking:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, On3, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2025 Player Commits". ESPN. Archived from the original on January 27, 2025.

Roster

2025–26 Tennessee Lady Volunteers women's basketball team

Players

Coaches

Pos.	#	Name	Height	Year	Previous school	Hometown
F	0	Janiah Barker	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	Sr	UCLA	Marietta, GA
G	1	Nya Robertson	5 ft 7 in (1.7 m)	Sr	SMU	Fort Worth, TX
G	4	Kaniya Boyd	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)	RS So	Centennial HS	Las Vegas, NV
G	5	Kaiya Wynn	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	RS Sr	Foster HS	Richmond, TX
G	7	Lauren Hurst	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	Fr	Cleveland HS	Cleveland, TN
F	8	Jersey Wolfenbarger	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	Sr	LSU	Fort Smith, AR
F	11	Zee Spearman	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	Sr	University of Miami	Dacula, GA
G	12	Mya Pauldo	5 ft 6 in (1.68 m)	Fr	Morris Catholic HS	Paterson, NJ
G	13	Mia Pauldo	5 ft 6 in (1.68 m)	Fr	Morris Catholic HS	Paterson, NJ
G	15	Jaida Civil	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	Fr	Palm Bay Magnet HS	Vero Beach, FL
G	25	Deniya Prawl	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	Fr	IMG Academy	Toronto, ON
F	33	Alyssa Latham	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	Jr	Syracuse	Glenwood, IL
G	55	Talaysia Cooper	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	RS Jr	South Carolina	Turbeville, SC

Head coach

Kim Caldwell (Glenville State)

Assistant coach(es)

Roman Tubner (Centenary)
Gabe Lazo (Barry)
Jenna Burdette (Dayton)

Legend

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

Injured
Current redshirt

Roster

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Rank^#	Opponent^#	Result	Record	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Site (attendance) city, state
Exhibition
October 29, 2025* 6:30 p.m., SECN+/ESPN+	No. 8	Columbus State	W 148–48		18 – Tied	11 – Spearman	7 – Mya Pauldo	Thompson–Boling Arena (10,159) Knoxville, TN
Regular season
November 4, 2025* 4:00 p.m., ESPN2	No. 8	vs. No. 9 NC State Ro Greensboro Invitational	L 77–80	0–1	23 – Cooper	11 – Cooper	7 – Cooper	First Horizon Coliseum (4,731) Greensboro, NC
November 7, 2025* 6:30 p.m., SECN+/ESPN+	No. 8	East Tennessee State	W 97–47	1–1	24 – Spearman	6 – Tied	4 – Robertson	Thompson–Boling Arena (10,671) Knoxville, TN
November 9, 2025* 3:00 p.m., ESPN+	No. 8	at UT Martin Pat Summitt Heritage Classic	W 72–61	2–1	17 – Robertson	8 – Tied	5 – Civil	Skyhawk Arena (4,560) Martin, TN
November 13, 2025* 7:00 p.m., SECN	No. 12	Belmont	W 68–58	3–1	22 – Cooper	14 – Cooper	2 – Tied	Thompson–Boling Arena (10,043) Knoxville, TN
November 20, 2025* 7:30 p.m., ESPN+	No. 15	at Middle Tennessee	W 85–41	4–1	20 – Barker	12 – Barker	5 – Cooper	Murphy Center (10,212) Murfreesboro, TN
November 23, 2025* 2:00 p.m., SECN+/ESPN+	No. 15	Coppin State	W 88–35	5–1	32 – Robertson	11 – Cooper	9 – Cooper	Thompson–Boling Arena (9,947) Knoxville, TN
November 30, 2025* 4:30 p.m., FS1	No. 14	at No. 3 UCLA	L 77–99	5–2	25 – Barker	6 – Tied	8 – Cooper	Pauley Pavilion (5,639) Los Angeles, CA
December 3, 2025* 9:00 p.m., ESPN2	No. 19	at Stanford ACC–SEC Challenge/Rivalry	W 65–62	6–2	19 – Cooper	8 – Spearman	6 – Cooper	Maples Pavilion (4,499) Stanford, CA
December 14, 2025* 2:00 p.m., SECN+/ESPN+	No. 18	Winthrop	W 112–40	7–2	20 – Barker	10 – Barker	10 – Mia Pauldo	Thompson–Boling Arena (10,091) Knoxville, TN
December 20, 2025* 10:30 a.m., FOX	No. 17	vs. No. 16 Louisville Shark Beauty Women's Champions Classic	L 65–89	7–3	18 – Spearman	12 – Spearman	4 – Tied	Barclays Center (10,107) Brooklyn, NY
December 22, 2025* 6:30 p.m., SECN+/ESPN+	No. 23	Southern						Thompson–Boling Arena Knoxville, TN
January 1, 2026 2:00 p.m., SECN+/ESPN+		Florida						Thompson–Boling Arena Knoxville, TN
January 4, 2026 4:00 p.m., SECN		at Auburn						Neville Arena Auburn, AL
January 8, 2026 7:30 p.m., SECN+/ESPN+		at Mississippi State						Humphrey Coliseum Starkville, MS
January 11, 2026 2:00 p.m., SECN+/ESPN+		Arkansas						Thompson–Boling Arena Knoxville, TN
January 18, 2026 2:00 p.m., SECN		at Alabama						Coleman Coliseum Tuscaloosa, AL
January 22, 2026 6:30 p.m., SECN		Kentucky Rivalry						Thompson–Boling Arena Knoxville, TN
January 26, 2026 7:00 p.m., ESPNU		at Ole Miss						SJB Pavilion Oxford, MS
January 29, 2026 6:30 p.m., SECN+/ESPN+		Mississippi State						Thompson–Boling Arena Knoxville, TN
February 1, 2026* 12:00 p.m., FOX		at UConn Rivalry						PeoplesBank Arena Hartford, CT
February 5, 2026 6:30 p.m., SECN+/ESPN+		at Georgia						Stegeman Coliseum Athens, GA
February 8, 2026 3:00 p.m., ABC		at South Carolina						Colonial Life Arena Columbia, SC
February 12, 2026 6:30 p.m., SECN+/ESPN+		Missouri						Thompson–Boling Arena Knoxville, TN
February 15, 2026 3:00 p.m., ABC		Texas						Thompson–Boling Arena Knoxville, TN
February 19, 2026 6:30 p.m., SECN+/ESPN+		Texas A&M						Thompson-Boling Arena Knoxville, TN
February 22, 2026 2:00 p.m., ESPN/ESPN2		at Oklahoma						Lloyd Noble Center Norman, OK
February 26, 2026 6:00 p.m., ESPN		at LSU						Pete Maravich Assembly Center Baton Rouge, LA
March 1, 2026 2:00 p.m., ESPN		Vanderbilt Rivalry						Thompson-Boling Arena Knoxville, TN
2026 SEC women's basketball tournament
March 4–8, 2026 TBA		vs. SEC Tournament						Bon Secours Wellness Arena Greenville, SC
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time. 2025–26 Schedule

Rankings

Ranking movements
**Legend:** ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
т = Tied with team above or below
	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	Final
AP	8	12	15	14	19	18	17
Coaches	9	12т	13	11	17	18	18

References

^ "Iyana Moore, Mikayla Blakes combine for 47 points as Vanderbilt beats No. 18 Tennessee women in SEC". ESPN. March 6, 2025. Retrieved August 6, 2025.
^ Texas trots past Tennessee, punches ticket to Elite Eight
^ "Edie Darby to medically retire from basketball". 247. Retrieved April 21, 2025.

[1] "Iyana Moore, Mikayla Blakes combine for 47 points as Vanderbilt beats No. 18 Tennessee women in SEC". ESPN. March 6, 2025. Retrieved August 6, 2025.

[2] Texas trots past Tennessee, punches ticket to Elite Eight

[3] "Edie Darby to medically retire from basketball". 247. Retrieved April 21, 2025.

[1]

[2]

[3]

Tennessee Lady Volunteers basketball
Venues	Stokely Athletic Center (1974–1987) Thompson–Boling Arena (1987–present)
Rivalries	Kentucky Stanford UConn Vanderbilt
Culture & lore	History Smokey "Rocky Top"
People	Head coaches Retired jerseys
Seasons	1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25 2025–26
AIAW and NCAA national championships in bold; AIAW and NCAA Final Four appearances in italics