Tennessee senior forward Rickea Jackson returned to the court Tuesday after missing the previous eight games with a lower right leg injury, registering 11 points, six rebounds and two assists in 21 minutes in Tennessee's 85-63 win over Wofford.
The 6-foot-2 first-team all-SEC selection, who is utilizing her fifth and final year of collegiate eligibility, is widely expected to be a first-round WNBA Draft pick in 2024. She's currently slated to go No. 6 overall to the Washington Mystics in ESPN's latest mock draft.
"Rickea was able to work back into practice. She's not 100 percent, but 21 minutes is pretty impressive that she was able to go that long," Tennessee head coach Kellie Harper said. "It's the way it looked in practice. She steps on the court, and she changes things. I know the team was happy to get her back out there."
Tennessee -- the preseason No. 11 team in the Associated Press poll and picked to finish third in the SEC -- struggled early this season without Jackson, falling to 4-5 and dropping out of the rankings with losses to Florida State, Indiana, Notre Dame, Ohio State and Middle Tennessee. They got back over .500 with wins over Eastern Kentucky and Wofford across the last 10 days.
Against Wofford, Tennessee assisted 23 of their 30 makes and three starters tallied at least 12 points, led by Jewel Spear's 18. The offense should only improve moving forward with Jackson -- their top scorer last season (19.2 PPG) and this year pre-injury -- back on the floor.
"I think [Jackson's] presence affects [the rest of the team] when they step on the court," Harper said. "She gives them great confidence. People key in on her. I mean, she hasn't played in however many weeks, and she was the focus as soon as she checked into the game. She is that talented. But I do think it takes a little bit of pressure off some of our other players, and it does seem as though they are playing a little freer tonight. I love the balance; I think we are going to be at our best when we have good balance offensively."
Just as the Lady Vols get Jackson back, though, they received devastating news this week about another player: Point guard Destinee Wells, in her first season with Tennessee following three years at Belmont, will miss the remainder of the season with a lower leg injury, Harper said Tuesday.
"It was a gut punch, I think, for the team and for her," Harper said. "I hate it. I hate it for her, I hate it for the team, but it's part of it, and we're going to have to move on."