Faith Dupree saw her women's basketball future first-hand Sunday afternoon and the sight left quite an impression.

"It's so much faster and so much more intense," said the Webb School star, comparing high school hoops to what she witnessed in Tennessee's 85-50 exhibition victory over Love & Basketball.

Dupree is one of three recruits who will sign a national letter of intent with the Lady Vols this week. Taber Spani of Lee's Summit, Mo., is expected to sign today on the first day of the fall signing period. Dupree and Clarksville (Tenn.) Northeast's Kamiko Williams is expected to sign on Friday.

Dupree sounds like she's adjusting her present plans with next year in mind.

"I have to get even better on my strengths and pick up my weaknesses,'' she said after averaging 14.5 points, 6.3 rebounds, 2.1 assists, 1.7 blocks and 1.2 steals per game last season for Webb, the Division II-AA state runner-up.

Along with watching UT, Dupree has access to practice reports from Lady Vols freshman Glory Johnson, Dupree's former teammate at Webb.

"I've talked to her a little bit,'' Dupree said. "She said they're very intense and you have to be ready to work. It makes me a little nervous but I can do it."

Tennessee's other two recruits also have an eye toward the future as they enter their senior seasons.

Williams, who committed to Tennessee last fall, said that she's doing extra running. lifting weights and working harder in practice.

"It changed my outlook completely,'' Williams said of her commitment. "Before I wondered if I was good enough. . . . Now I know I'm capable of doing it. I feel reassured. My confidence is up."

Williams, a 5-foot-11 guard, averaged 19.1 points and 6.5 rebounds per game last season. In 22 games, she recorded 87 assists and 84 steals.

Williams' high school coach, Tracie Mason-Blair, isn't merely a cheerleader for the occasion.

"Sometimes I wonder,'' she said. "I've asked (Kamiko): 'Do you realize what you're about to do?' "

Sounds like Mason-Blair will coach Williams with that thought in mind.

"I can say I'm a little harder on her,'' Mason-Blair said. "But how many people can say they have a chance to go play at Tennessee?"

Spani, a 6-1 guard who is home-schooled and plays for Metro Academy, favors an analytical approach to her preparation.

"I think for me, I'll try to look at my overall game,'' she said. "I'm really a student of the game. I love to watch film."

Spani averaged 29.6 points and 11 rebounds per game last season and was named the top girls' player in metropolitan Kansas City.

Notebook: Tennessee center Kelley Cain, who bumped heads with a male practice player Monday, sat out Tuesday's practice. Guard Angie Bjorklund, who's recovering from back spasms, also missed most of the workout.

© 2008, Knoxville News Sentinel Co.