Lady Vols basketball coach Kim Caldwell said she expects Janiah Barker to be back with the team for Tennessee’s road game against LSU.
Barker did not travel with the team for the Lady Vols’ 100-93 loss at Oklahoma on Feb. 22 because she didn’t meet program expecations.
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“She didn’t meet team standards, didn’t make the trip,” Caldwell said in her postgame press conference. “We’ll fix it when we get back, she’s got a bright future and she’ll be fine.”
When Caldwell was asked on Feb. 25 if things had been resolved and if she expected Barker to return, she said, “Yeah, I do.”
Tennessee (16-10, 8-6 SEC) will play No. 6 LSU (24-4, 10-4) at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, on Feb. 26 (6 p.m. ET, ESPN).
Barker’s absence followed her career-high 29 points in Tennessee’s loss to Texas A&M on Feb. 19. She has been a significant piece of Tennessee’s rotation, averaging 25.4 minutes in SEC play.
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The 6-foot-4 forward has averaged 14.4 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 1.2 steals, shooting 46.9% from the field and 36.6% on 3.9 attempts from 3-point range.
Barker is one of four forwards on the roster, but the Lady Vols still played well without her offensively against Oklahoma. Tennessee missed her defense inside and rebounding, though, as it got outrebounded 47-34. The Sooners scored 22 points off 22 offensive rebounds.
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:knoxnews.com/subscribe
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Janiah Barker: Kim Caldwell provides update ahead of Lady Vols vs LSU
