Free Republic

CLEVELAND — After a night of hard-nosed, — blue-collar work, Tuesday officially went down in Tennessee women’s basketball history as a banner day. In the days leading up to a 59-46 victory over Rutgers at Quicken Loans Arena, various Lady Vols struggled to explain what winning a national championship would mean. They were very familiar with the effort involved, however, parlaying a gritty defense and dominant rebounding into the salvation for suspect scoring. Candace Parker led three double scorers with 17 points, hitting four consecutive free throws inside the final two minutes as Tennessee (34-3) pulled away down the stretch...

Imagine this: You're an Army Reserve soldier from Knoxville sent to Mosul, Iraq in support of "Operation Iraqi Freedom." Driving up a dusty hill on your way to the former house of "Chemical Ali," now converted to the Headquarters of 101st Division Artillery, you're daydreaming about home. You're slightly depressed, thinking of what you'll be missing this fall; Boomsday, the Smoky Mountain seasonal change, your girlfriend, family, and the whole atmosphere that comes along with UT football, all enough to put one in a foul mood. As the hot 120-degree Iraqi sun beats down, made worse by the heat-retaining flak...