CAREER HIGHS

* Indicates most recent high   

• Points: 18 // Liberty, 12/31/23
• Rebounds: 10 // Kentucky, 3/7/24
• Assists:  6 // Chattanooga, 12/27/21
• Steals:  4 // Texas A&M, 1/12/23*
• Blocks: 2 // Tenn. Tech, 12/1/21
• Field Goals: 6 // Liberty, 12/31/23*
• 3-Pointers: 6 // Liberty, 12/31/23
• Free Throws: 4 // LSU, 3/4/23*
• Minutes: 37 // LSU, 3/4/23*

CAREER HONORS

• SEC Community Service Team -- 2023-24
• SEC Academic Honor Roll -- 2022-23
• SEC Community Service Team -- 2022-23
• SEC Academic Honor Roll -- 2021-22
• VOLeaders Academy -- 2021-22
• SEC Academic Honor Roll -- 2020-21

CAREER HIGHLIGHTS

• Has hit 170 career treys to rank fifth all-time in program history.
• Her 37.3 shooting percentage (170-456) from long range is 10th best at Tennessee.
• Stands No. 6 in career three-pointers attempted with 456. 

2023-24 SENIOR

• One of four players to appear in all 33 games, earning eight starts and averaging 5.2 points and 3.4 rebounds.
• Scored in double figures four times and had nine points on five other occasions. 
• Finished second on the team with 44 three-pointers, hitting at a 32.4-percent clip.
• Had six games where she made three or more treys.
• Averaged 5.5 points and 4.0 rebounds while shooting 57.1 percent from the field, including 50 percent on threes, during the NCAA Tournament.
• Tied for 10th all-time at UT by hitting six three-pointers vs. Liberty, finishing with a career-high 18 points.
• Went 4-of-4 from the field, including three treys, to record an NCAA high of 11 points vs. Green Bay in the first round.
• Carded her first college double-double, tallying 10 points and 10 boards in 25 minutes vs. Kentucky in the SEC second round.
• Finished with 10 points on 4-of-6 shooting and a (then) career-high nine rebounds at No. 18/22 Florida State.
• Had back-to-back nine-point performances at Vanderbilt and vs. No. 13/10 LSU.
• Had eight points, three steals, three assists and two rebounds in a home win over Kentucky.
• Studied abroad in Iceland the summer prior to her senior season. 

2022-23 JUNIOR

• Averaged 7.4 points, 2.9 rebounds and 24.0 minutes per game while starting 35 of 37 contests.
• Shot 41.9 percent on field goals, 40.9 percent on threes and 81.5 percent at the free-throw line.
• Her three-point shooting percentage ranked third among SEC competitors.
• Tallied a career-high 12 games with double-figure scoring, including nine times in league play.
• Drained 70 three-pointers for the No. 9 single-season total in school history.
• A career sum of 126 treys stands just outside the UT top 10 (133 is No. 10).
• Hit a career-high five threes en route to a career-high-tying 17 points against Auburn.
• Nailed four treys in an overall six-of-12 shooting performance en route to 16 points against Georgia. 
• Poured in 16 points and pulled down four rebounds against Alabama. 
• Chipped in 14 points on 55.6 percent shooting in Tennessee’s second meeting with Vanderbilt.
• Turned in 13 points in a home win over Mississippi State on four made three-pointers.
• Shot 80 percent from beyond the arc, draining four threes to finish with 12 points against Kentucky in the SEC Tournament. 
• Contributed 10 points in UT’s SEC Tournament semifinal game win vs. No. 4/3 LSU.
• Sank three treys en route to 10 points vs. Saint Louis in the NCAA First Round.
• Finished with 10 points at Texas A&M while tying her career high of four steals and setting a new career high of eight rebounds. Opened the season vs. No. 14/15 Ohio State, UMass and No. 12/11 Indiana with a trio of three-pointers vs. each for nine points.

2021-22 SOPHOMORE

• Played in 33 games, starting 30 and averaging 5.3 points, 2.4 rebounds and 1.1 assists.
• Finished the season hitting 100 percent on free throws (10-10) and 38.3 percent on threes (49-128). 
• Led the team in three-pointers with 49 on the season, the most at UT since Meme Jackson hit 54 in 2018-19.
• Her career three-point field goal percentage (37.6) ranked No. 10 in the Tennessee record book through 2021-22.
• In SEC play, she improved her contributions to 6.3 ppg. and then scored 7.5 ppg. in the SEC Tournament.
• Her three-point marksmanship also increased to 48.1 percent (26-54) over 15 league contests.
• Scored in double figures in six games, including four times during the SEC slate.
• Hit three or more treys 11 times and was UT’s leading three-point shooter on 15 occasions. 
• Led UT in steals six times to rank fifth on the team in that category.
• Scored a career-high 17 points vs. Mississippi State, enjoying a 5-of-6 night beyond the three-point arc.
• Drained three treys and went a perfect four of four from the free-throw line for 13 points against Ole Miss. 
• Fired in 12 points vs. Alabama in the SEC quarterfinals, going two for five on threes and two of two on free throws.
• Nailed four of seven three-balls to contribute 12 points, three rebounds and a steal against Missouri. 
• Hit double figures for the first time in college, going three of six on treys to score 11 points vs. Kansas in the South Point Thanksgiving Shootout in Las Vegas.
• Capped off a 9-for-16 spree on threes over a three-game stretch, nailing four of six to tally 12 points vs. Tennessee Tech.
• Filled the stat sheet vs. Chattanooga, carding a career-best six assists and five rebounds while tallying nine points via a 3-of-5 effort from three-point land.
• Had other nine-point efforts vs. #4/4 Louisville in the NCAA Sweet 16 and vs. No. 19/20 Kentucky, vs. Alabama and at Florida.

2020-21 FRESHMAN

• Slowed by injury during the 2020-21 preseason and had to work her way back after being out of action for an extended period.
• As a result, she appeared in 10 games during her first college season, averaging 2.3 ppg. and 0.6 rpg.
• Made her Lady Vol debut against Furman, hitting a trey to finish with three points. 
• Knocked down a pair of threes against UNCG to finish with a season-high six points along with two rebounds & a block in 20 minutes of duty.  
• Hit a trey and dished out an assist in her eight minutes of action against Auburn. 
• Appeared in both of UT's NCAA Tournament games, playing 13 minutes and carding a three-pointer and two rebounds vs. Middle Tennessee. 
• In the NCAA Second Round, she played five minutes vs. Michigan and contributed a rebound, assist and steal vs. the Wolverines. 
• Hit threes in SEC road games at Alabama and Kentucky and in the regular-season finale at home vs. Auburn.

USA/SUMMER BASKETBALL

• Selected to compete on Tennessee's entry in the 2023 USA Basketball 3X Nationals.
• Played for Tennessee Flight program.

HIGH SCHOOL

• No. 86 overall player by Blue Star Media.
• No. 144 overall player, No. 33 guard, four-star recruit by ProspectsNation.com.
• No. 29 guard, three-star prospect by espnW HoopGurlz.
• McDonald’s All-America nominee (2020).
• TSWA Class A All-State (2017, 2018, 2019, 2020).
• All-West Tennessee First Team (2017, 2018, 2019, 2020).
• All-State Tournament Team (2018, 2019).
• Miss Basketball Finalist (2018, 2020).
• Region Co-MVP (2018, 2019, 2020).
• All-Region (2018, 2019, 2020).
• District MVP (2017, 2018 [co], 2019[co]).
• All-District (2017, 2018, 2019 2020).
• All-District Defensive Team (2020).
• District Tournament Co-MVP (2018, 2019).
• All-District Tournament Team (2018, 2019, 2020).
• All-Defensive MVP (2019).
• Tallied 2,604 points, 902 rebounds, 368 assists and 338 steals in 153 career games.
• Career highs included 34 points, 12 rebounds, five assists and four blocks.
• Led Greenfield to a 131-22 record, including 34-0 as a senior.
• GHS won 2018 state title and 2020 run was cut short due to the COVID-19 crisis.
• Helped her team win three regional and sub-state titles and two district crowns.
• Averaged 16.7 ppg., 6.3 rpg., 2.7 apg. and 2.2 spg. as a senior, while shooting 63.7 percent from the field, 44 percent on three-pointers and 81.5 percent from the free throw line.
• Averaged 18.8 ppg., 9.0 rpg., 3.3 apg. and 2.5 spg. as a junior, while shooting 45.9 percent from the field, 39.1 percent from long range and 82.1 percent from the charity stripe.
• Named Top 10 at GHS and recognized as a Tennessee Scholar.
• Delegate in Weakley County Youth Leadership and Tennessee Girls State.

PERSONAL

• Full name is Jessica Montess Darby.
• Born in Jackson, Tenn., on April 27, 2002.
• Parents are Tandy and Kasi Darby.
• Father played baseball at UT Martin.
• Mother played basketball at Union University.
• Has two sisters: Edie and Sloan.
• Tess and Edie played together at GHS.
• Chose UT over Georgia Tech and Texas Tech.
• First high school signee by Kellie Harper at Tennessee.
• Graduated with a degree in finance in the summer of 2023.
• Working on a master's in agricultural leadership, education and communication.
• Recipient of the Dr. Eric W. Barton Women’s Basketball Scholarship and the Jim Stockdale Basketball Scholarship Endowment.