Parker hoping to play Monday vs. No. 7 Rutgers

Posted February 08, 2008 10:00 pm

Associated Press

NASHVILLE, Tenn. -- As a doctor checked Candace Parker's knee on Friday, the Tennessee star turned to her trainer and mouthed, "Don't count me out for Monday."

A day after Parker bruised her knee in No. 2 Tennessee's 87-69 win over Mississippi State, the 6-foot-4 forward was plotting how she'd prepare for Monday's game against a No. 7 Rutgers team that's rolling off an upset of top-ranked Connecticut.

"I am going to be rehabbing like crazy," she said Friday at practice, where she hobbled around on crutches. "(Tennessee trainer Jenny Moshak) and I are going to be buddies for the next 48 hours and just try to get back."

Coach Pat Summitt is urging caution with the knee that's already undergone two surgeries to repair a torn ligament that Parker suffered in high school and won't decide until Monday if Parker will play.

Parker was one of three Lady Vols injured in the scrappy game against the Lady Bulldogs. Freshman guard Angie Bjorklund broke her nose and senior forward Alberta Auguste reaggravated a shoulder injury.

Tennessee's schedule doesn't get much easier, with key Southeastern Conference opponents LSU and Vanderbilt up next.

"As big a game as it is to play Rutgers here at home, I'm hopeful that they will be able to play. But if they are not ready, they are not ready, and other people are going to have to step up," Summitt said.

None of the Lady Vols (21-1) are underestimating the stakes of Monday's game, also a rematch of the 2007 national championship game won by Tennessee 59-46. The game will air as part of ESPN2's "Big Monday" broadcast.

Rutgers coach C. Vivian Stringer doesn't think Tennessee would be any less dangerous without Parker as other Lady Vols will jump at a chance to show Summitt they can play just as hard as the star.

But, she also realizes just how important Parker is to women's basketball.

"She is the most versatile player in America, hands down. There has not been a player like her in the past 10 years or 20 years," Stringer said. "She is a game-changer, there is no question about it."