KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Tennessee men's basketball head coach spoke on the legacy of the late Lady Vols head coach Pat Summitt this week as the Vols prepare for their Elite 8 matchup against Purdue in Detroit.
The Vols will be looking for their first-ever Final Four appearance, but Summitt led the Lady Vols to eight national championships and 18 Final Four bids. Barnes praised all she did for the University of Tennessee.
"What she built has sustained at the University of Tennessee," Barnes said. "It was a program that was built on work."
Summitt's legacy has carried through in the Tennessee coaching ranks, and both Lady Vols head coaches since, Holly Warlick and Kellie Harper, were players that Summitt coached at Tennessee. The program has still never missed an NCAA Tournament.
"[That] is unthinkable, really," Barnes said. "To do what they've done with the kind of pressure that has been there."
Beyond the winning Summitt did at Tennessee, Barnes credited the person that Summitt was as well.
"Her legacy will be more than just those crystal balls," Barnes said. "[Summitt was] a once in a lifetime coach, person, who truly made her mark."
