Tennessee has lost another women's basketball player and a key position has taken the brunt of the latest departure.
Freshman point guard Lauren Avant told UT coach Pat Summitt on Wednesday that she wouldn't return next season. After a team workout at Pratt Pavilion, Summitt said that Avant would finish the spring semester at UT before transferring to a "smaller school."
The news came the day after injury-plagued center Kelley Cain announced that she would forgo her final season of eligibility. At that point, Summitt said that she didn't expect any more player attrition.
"She just didn't feel like that maybe a Division I program was the best for her,'' Summitt said of Avant. ". . . She said: I'm not looking for anything other than maybe a Division II or III (school)."
Avant could transfer to a school in either classification and maintain her eligibility, rather than have to sit out a season."
UT issued a release on Avant's departure but she didn't comment on the matter.
With Avant leaving, reserve Kamiko Williams and Briana Bass, who plays sparingly, are the primary point guards currently on the roster. Freshman Meighan Simmons moved into the starting spot in early December and finished the season there but she's destined to play off guard.
Incoming freshman Ariel Massengale already has been named the starting point guard for next season by Summitt, who indicated that UT now will add at least one more player this spring.
Avant's season had a Cain-like quality to it. She arrived at UT still recovering from a shoulder injury that limited her to eight games during her senior season at Lausanne Collegiate School in Memphis. While at UT, she suffered an ankle injury and endured illness and concussions. She played in just 19 games. Her biggest highlight was scoring 11 points and sparking a comeback victory at Vanderbilt on Feb. 13.
The demands of playing basketball at Tennessee were compounded by Avant's pre-med academic concentration. She plans to become an orthopaedic surgeon.
Avant originally committed to Tennessee when she was 14 years old.
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