​2/25/2021
LSU Sports Information
By: Judy Willson



​   BATON ROUGE – In the regular season finale, LSU women’s basketball came up just short after a hard-fought game against Mississippi State, losing by a 68-59 score in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center on Thursday night.
 
LSU is now 8-12 overall and 6-8 in SEC play, while Mississippi State improves to 10-7 overall and 5-6 in league play.
 
The Tigers were led in scoring by senior Khayla Pointer who had 17 points and grabbed seven rebounds while also adding four assists. Going into the game, Pointer was tied at No. 7 on LSU’s all-time career assists list with LeNette Caldwell (420; 1974-80), but after her performance against the Bulldogs, she is now in sole possession of the No.7 spot with 424 career assists.
 
Senior Awa Trasi also scored in double figures with 12 points and grabbed five rebounds. Junior Ryann Payne scored a new career-high, finishing with eight points while also adding two rebounds.
 
Senior Rakell Spencer added a season-high six points as well as grabbing six rebounds for the Tigers. Redshirt senior Faustine Aifuwa scored seven points and grabbed 10 rebounds, barely missing a double-double.
 
The Tigers were able to out-rebound the Bulldogs by a 43-31 margin on the glass.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• Pointer got the scoring started with a jump shot and gave LSU an early 2-0 lead over Mississippi State.
• The teams traded baskets and were tied at six when the first-quarter media timeout occurred.
• Senior Awa Trasi hit a jumper with the clock winding down to give the Tigers a 14-12 lead over the Bulldogs after one quarter of play.
• A bucket by senior Karli Seay jump started the scoring for the Tigers in the second quarter.
• Scoring became a back-and-forth affair between the teams. With 4:52 remaining in the quarter, the score was tied at 23.
• A 10-2 scoring run after a timeout gave the Tigers a 33-25 lead over the Bulldogs at halftime.
• The Tigers shot poorly to start the third quarter which saw the Bulldogs shrink the lead from eight to one. The Tigers led 38-37 as the action went to a timeout.
• Mississippi State outscored LSU 25-8 in the third quarter to lead LSU 50-41 after three quarters of play.
• A Pointer layup ended a scoring drought for the Tigers that started in the third quarter and got LSU on the scoreboard to start the fourth.
• The Tigers shrunk the deficit to four points trailing the Bulldogs 54-50 at the first fourth-quarter media timeout.
• The Bulldogs outscored the Tigers 43-26 in the second half resulting in a 68-59 loss for LSU.

​Nikki Fargas’ Postgame Quotes
Opening Statement…
“I thought in the second half they were very intentional on picking up their intensity and really getting after us defensively. It allowed them to get their transition game going, and we weren’t able to score the basketball enough possessions in that third quarter. We only made three baskets, so it’s really hard to set our pressure when you’re not making baskets. We had too many breakdowns in defensive awareness. We did a nice job of guarding the three-ball in the first half. They went 1-10. Then, in the second half they go 4-7. That’s a problem that allowed them to get going. We were giving them transition and threes. It’s really difficult to guard a team when you leave players wide open.”
 
On LSU having trouble scoring in the second half…
“I thought, when you look at Khayla (Pointer) and her game, when they bring two defenders, we have to reverse the ball. I thought we had the ball stuck way too long, so when she did see the double-team, we needed a quick ball reversal and a play on the backside. We had opportunities to score the basketball. When you get 18 offensive rebounds, I’m crediting our team for that, but to only score eight points off of those offensive rebounds, that makes for difficult offense. In that stretch where we didn’t score, I thought we turned the ball over way too much. We took care of the basketball in the first half, but during that stretch in the third quarter we had seven turnovers on 12 possessions, and that is something that is gonna make your offense look really choppy.”
 
Up Next
The Tigers will wait to find out their opponent in the first round of the Southeastern Conference Tournament after the rest of the league plays on Sunday. LSU was schedule to play Vanderbilt on Sunday before the Commodores opted out of the season in January. The tournament will be hosted in the Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, S.C. from March 3-7.

2/24/2021
LSU Sports Information
By: Judy Willson



​   BATON ROUGE – The LSU women’s basketball team hosts Mississippi State on Thursday, February 25 at 6 p.m. CT at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center in its new regular season finale. The Tigers originally were scheduled to play Vanderbilt on Sunday, February 28 before the Commodores opted out of the 2020-21 season in January.
 
LSU will recognize Joanette Batiste Boutte during the game as part of Black History Month and the Historical Hidden Figures initiative sponsored by the Advancement of Blacks In Sports (ABIS) and Black Leadership Association for Athletes, Administrators and Coaches (B.L.A.A.A.C.). Boutte was the first Black women’s basketball and volleyball player at LSU, beginning in 1975. She still ranks No. 4 on the LSU career rebounds list with 1,017 boards and No. 7 on the single season rebounds list with 402 during her freshman season in 1975-76. In 1979, she was the seventh pick by the Dallas Diamonds of the Women’s Professional Basketball League (WBL).
 
Thursday’s game will be broadcast on SEC Network Plus with Lyn Rollins and Victor Howell calling the game. Fans can watch SEC Network Plus over the internet at ESPN.com/watch or on the ESPN app. A link to the game is available on LSUsports.net.
 
The games will also be broadcast on the LSU Sports Radio Network and locally in Baton Rouge on 107.3 FM. Voice of the Lady Tigers Patrick Wright, in his 31st season, will be on the call from courtside in the PMAC. A links to live stats is available at LSUsports.net.
                                                                                                                  
LSU Preview
LSU is 8-11 on the season and is in eighth place at 6-7 in the SEC following last Sunday’s 74-64 loss against No. 18 Arkansas. Senior Khayla Pointer led the Tigers with 24 points, followed by classmate Jailin Cherry with 16 points and a team-leading nine rebounds.
 
Pointer leads LSU with 16.6 points and 4.2 assists per game to go along with a team-high 45 steals. Pointer became the eighth Tiger in school history to dish out 400 career assists on Jan. 28 at Georgia. She currently sits at No. 23 on LSU’s career scoring list with 1,249 points.
 
Redshirt senior Faustine Aifuwa became the second Tiger to record over 180 career blocked shots on Feb. 21 against South Carolina, joining LSU legend Sylvia Fowles. Aifuwa is currently in 15th place on the career rebounds list with 727, the 16th LSU player to record over 700 career rebounds. She needs two rebounds to move into 14th place on the list, passing Seimone Augustus.  To become LSU’s 35th 1,000-career points scorer, Aifuwa needs 33 points. Aifuwa continues to lead LSU with 8.7 rebounds per game and 32 blocked shots this season, and is the second-leading scorer on the team with 11.4 points per game. She recently took over the top spot on the team leaderboard for field goal shooting at 43.7 percent.
 
Sophomore Tiara Young, a strong candidate for SEC Sixth Player of the Year honors, is providing a key spark off the bench averaging 8.9 points and 3.8 rebounds per game and is second in shooting at 43.4 percent from the field.
 
The Opponent – Mississippi State
Mississippi State is 9-7 overall and 4-6 in SEC play this season, right behind LSU in ninth place. The Bulldogs are led in scoring by Rickea Jackson at 16.1 points per game. Jessika Carter is second in scoring with 14.9 points per game and leads the team in rebounds with 9.1 per game and 24 blocked shots. Aliyah Matharu also averages double-figures in scoring at 10.3, coming primarily off the bench. Myah Taylor runs the point and leads the team with 70 assists and 26 steals.
 
This will be the 62nd meeting between LSU and Mississippi State. The Tigers lead the series, 47-14 and are 23-4 against the Bulldogs in Baton Rouge.
 
Season and Single Ticket Sales Information
For the 2020-21 season, seating for LSU women’s basketball games will be general admission in the PMAC. Seating has been reconfigured to support physically-distanced seating. Available seats will be spaced out in blocks of 2, 3 and 4 seats in order maximize attendance opportunities. Fans will be allowed to sit in any seat that is marked as available. Sections 112 and 115 are reserved for player guests.
 
Single game ticket prices are $7.00 for adults and $5.00 for youth ages 3-12. To order tickets for the Mississippi State game, go to LSUtix.net.
 
Follow Along on Social Media
Follow updates on LSU women’s basketball on Twitter and Instagram at @LSUwbkb or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/lsuwbkb.
​

​2/21/2021
LSU Sports Information
By: Judy Willson


   BATON ROUGE, La. – Despite a valiant comeback effort in the fourth quarter, the LSU women's basketball team was unable to upset No. 18 Arkansas, losing by a 74-64 score Sunday night in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center.
   LSU is now 8-11 overall and 6-7 in SEC play, while Arkansas improves to 17-7 overall and 7-6 in conference play.
  Senior Khayla Pointer led the Tigers in scoring with 24 points, adding five rebounds and three assists to round out her stats line. Her scoring output was good enough to move up a spot in the all-time scoring list for LSU. She surpassed Scholanda Robinson (1,229; 2001-06) and now sits at No. 23 with 1,249 career points.
   Pointer's three assists were also enough to move her up a spot in LSU's all-time career assists list. She is now tied with LeNette Caldwell (420; 1974-80) sitting at No. 7.
   Junior Ryann Payne scored her first career points in a Tigers' uniform. She finished with six points and collected three rebounds and one assist, all firsts of her LSU career. 
   Senior Jailin Cherry was also a bright spot for the Tigers, finishing with 16 points and adding a season-high nine rebounds.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• Arkansas started the scoring with a three pointer. LSU answered with a jumper by Pointer. The Razorbacks led the Tigers 9-4 with 7:28 remaining in the first quarter.
• The teams continued to trade baskets as the quarter went on, but the Razorbacks maintained their lead. Arkansas led LSU 22-12 at the end of the first quarter.
• Cherry got the scoring started for LSU in the second quarter with a layup. Arkansas opened the quarter on a 12-8 run and led LSU 34-20 at the media timeout.
• LSU used three free throws from Payne at the end of the quarter to close the gap. Arkansas led LSU 43-29 at halftime.
• Cherry opened LSU's scoring in the third quarter with a quick four points highlighted by a shifty lay-in.
• Arkansas extended its lead to 20 points and were ahead 53-33 five minutes into the third quarter.
• Junior Sarah Shematsi drained a buzzer-beater to close the gap. However, Arkansas still led 60-43 at the end of the third quarter.
• LSU continued to trail Arkansas 69-54 at the fourth-quarter media timeout.
• Continuing to claw away Arkansas' lead, LSU trailed 69-58 at the second fourth-quarter media timeout.
• Pointer cut the Razorback lead to eight, 64-72 with under 20 seconds left in the game.
• LSU lost to Arkansas 74-64.

Nikki Fargas' Postgame Quotes
Opening Statement…
"When you play a team that shoots the three-ball extremely well, you have to be locked into the scouting report defense. We did exactly the opposite of what we had practiced. I'm disappointed in how we guarded because when you can take away something that a team like Arkansas does really well, which is shoot the three and dribble drive and force them into two's, it might give you a chance at winning a ballgame or two against them. You definitely can't come out the gate starting down 10 and then you're playing catchup, and that's what we did. In the second half, we changed our defense and that's on me. I changed our defense and I changed our lineup. I went with players who I thought were going to be more disciplined in running our defense the way that it needed to be run. I thought in the second half we did some good things. We were more efficient offensively than we were in the first quarter. We still have some life in us, so I don't want this game to continue to linger over us, but we do need to learn from it."

On losing Tiara Young to injury in first quarter…
"Tiara is that player that you can move Khayla Pointer off the ball when she comes in. She can also create, she is a really good offensive threat for us and has been. She is a key for us. She is one of our better offensive players. We hope to get her back. I will say, we had some players that played really tough. She hadn't played a lot of minutes lately, but I thought Sarah Shematsi gave us some good minutes. I thought Ryann Payne, with her effort, she did some things to help us. You obviously need more when you play a team like Arkansas. Destiny Slocum just really had her way with us. We were going under instead of over. She is smart and crafty. We wanted to go to our denial defense and force backdoors. I can live with that, because we were playing for the backdoor, but we weren't playing for her to just maneuver around the three-point line like she did."

​Up Next
The Tigers will stay in Baton Rouge and take on the Mississippi State Bulldogs in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center on Thursday, February 25. The matchup will be streamed on SEC Network Plus at 6 p.m. CT. As always, fans are encouraged to tune into the LSU Sports Radio Network, broadcasting on 107.3 FM in Baton Rouge, with Voice of the Tigers Patrick Wright calling the action.

​2/14/2021
By: Terrill J. Weil
Da Boot Sports!


   COLUMBIA, SC:  South Carolina would show LSU no love on Valentine's Day on Sunday as they would take down the Lady Tigers, 66-59 in Columbia. The top ranked Gamecocks held a huge lead throughout the  majority of the contest before LSU would scratch and battle back late in the 4th quarter to pull to within shouting distance before time expired. Falling further under .500, at what point does Nikki Fargas find herself on the hot seat?     . 


   The Lady Tigers would score the first two baskets of the ball game as they would take an early 4-0 lead. But that only seemed to wake the sleeping giant as the Gamecocks would go on a 12-0 run over the next five minutes.
  LSU would battle back to cut the Carolina lead to five, 12-7 with 1:44 left in the first quarter after a Domonique Davis basket and a free throw by Khayla Pointer. 
   The Lady Cocks would answer with a 5-0 run to end the first quarter with a 17-7 advantage.


   We would go two minutes into the 2nd quarter before a point, as LSU's Jailin Cherry would finally score with 7:56 left to pull the Tigers to within eight, 17-9. The game pace would pick up over the next minute as both teams would trade baskets a few times with Carolina holding on to a 21-13. 
   South Carolina would then shift into another gear and start to pull away, going on a 6-0 run taking a 27-13 lead with 5:05 left in the first half. 
   The Lady Tigers refused to quit, but they were no match for the #1 ranked team in the nation as The Lady Cocks would control the rest of the 2nd quarter to take a 34-22 halftime lead.



   Over the first two minutes of the 3rd quarter LSU would play with energy and hustle as they
would outscore Carolina 4-2 cutting the lead to nine, 35-26 with 8:13 to go. However, the Lady Tigers could pull no closer.
   The Gamecocks would again find an extra gear, controlling the rest of the 3rd quarter, leading by as much as 18, before finishing the quarter holding a commanding 54-38 lead.


   Things weren't looking good for LSU to start the final period of what had been so far a one-sided contest. But the Lady Tigers would keep fighting, scratching, and clawing as they would begin to chip away at Carolina's huge lead.  With 1:33 left in the game, LSU had cut the lead to nine, 62-53, before going on a quick 6-2 run over the next minute to pull to within five, 64-59 with :24 ticks left on the clock. Unfortunately the Lady Tigers would run out of time as South Carolina would hold on for the win, 66-59.


   Jailin Cherry would lead the Tigers with 19 points, while Faustine Aifuwa would record a double-double with 11 points and grabbing 12 rebounds. Khayla Pointer would also add 11 points on the day. 
   With the loss, LSU now sits at 8-10 overall while falling to 4-4 in SEC play. Next up is a trip to Lexington, Kentucky to take on the Wildcats on Thursday, Feb. 18that 6:00pm.
       

2/13/2021
By: Brittney Achord
Da Boot Sports!



   BATON ROUGE, LA - Despite the combative and relentless effort put up by the Lady Tigers in Thursday night’s Bayou Battle against the Florida Gators, the LSU Women’s Basketball team would take a 73-66 gut-wrenching loss in overtime. This is the fourth time the Lady Tigers have taken a game into overtime this season, and the first time they have come up short. With the loss the Lady Tigers fall to 8-9 on the season and 6-5 in the SEC. 

The Lady Tigers showed perseverance in an unyielding 45 minute battle.  

Senior Khayla Pointer put up a season high 27 points, two rebounds, two assists, and one steal.

Senior Faustine Aifuwa was a boisterous powerhouse on the court with her 17th career, seventh in the season, double double with 16 points, 10 rebounds, and one block.  She is now three blocks shy of surpassing Julie Gross’s 178 blocks on the all-time blocks lists.

Two key players would foul out in overtime, but not without electrifying the court with their dominating tenacity.  Senior Awa Trasi would put up 10 points, six rebounds, two steals, and shot 4-4  from the free throw line.  Sophomore Tiara Young continued to show her growth and determination putting up nine points, five rebounds, four assists, and two steals. 

Here is the Da Boot Sports game breakdown:


          1st HALF:


   The Lady Tigers took the court with determination and energy that lit up the PMAC.  Defensively they were suffocating.  Offensively they were better inside the paint than they have been in games past.  They were moving the ball, allowing more players involved, which allowed more plays to take place.  

   19 seconds into the game, Trasi put up a forceful layup that set the tone of the first quarter.  After a steal by Cherry, the Gators would foul, sending her to the free throw line where she would add two more points for the Lady Tigers quickly making it a 4-0 game. The Lady Tigers would continue to push relentlessly up and down the court making it hard for the Gators to control the ball offensively.  With 4:27 left in the 1st quarter, back-to-back jumpers by Young and Aifuwa gave the Lady Tigers their biggest lead of the night, 12-4. The Gators would answer going on a 10-4 run finishing out the quarter, with LSU clinging to a 16-14 lead.

   The Lady Tigers would start to lose their rhythm in the 2nd quarter only shooting 15.4% in field goals and 25% from 3-point range. The Gators would be the first to put points on the board and continue to control the ball throughout the quarter.  After back-to-back jumpers by the Gators, Aifuwa would bring the game back to a tie at 18-18 with an unyielding layup. The Gators would then go on a 7-0 run to finish out the second quarter, but it was Pointer who proved the persistence of this Tiger team with an electrifying 3-pointer to end the half.  The Tigers went into the locker room trailing 25-21.



          2nd HALF:

   Aifuwa continued to show her tenacity in this game, amplifying the energy on the court, with a dynamic layup only 28 seconds into the third quarter. The Tigers found their rhythm and momentum answering basket-for-basket throughout the quarter.  After a defensive rebound by Cherry, the ball would be put in the hands of Trasi who would score on a jumper to bring the game to within two points, 28-26.  The Gators would answer back with a layup just before the media timeout.  The Lady Tigers would continue to show perseverance through the remainder of the quarter, however the Gators would come out of the third quarter leading 41-37.


   Pointer ruthlessly opened the fourth quarter with a layup on a foul turning into a 3-point play, followed by another layup to give the Lady Tigers back the lead 42-41. The Gators would answer back with a 4-0 run, but Young would fight back with a ferocious layup on the fast break to bring the Lady Tigers back to within one.  With 4:24 left in the game, Aifuwa would put up a jumper followed by an assist, steal, and back-to-back layups by Young helping the Lady Tigers lead once again, 52-51. Pointer would finish out the fourth quarter with a layup, fouled by Rickards and would score on the free throw to bring the Tigers into their fourth overtime battle of the season.



          OVERTIME:

   The Tigers put up an intense five minute fight in overtime.  Aifuwa, Cherry, Pointer, and Young would all put points on the board for the Lady Tigers, but LSU would fall into foul trouble. Trasi and Young would foul out of the game, and lose control of the ball with 40 seconds left in overtime.  The Gators would go on a 6-0 run coming out with the win over the Lady Tigers 73-66.


   In a post-game interview, Coach Fargas stated, “I thought we had some energy plays there. I thought we started the game with a lot of energy. We were up 10-4 and then the fouls started, so I had to take my starters out and they went on a run. We only scored six more points after that. Going into the second quarter, you have to keep that momentum going and when we lost it at the end of the first quarter, it was really difficult getting it back. I said to my staff ‘We can’t lose momentum, we are a momentum type flowing team.’ We tried to generate enough defensive pressure in our full-court presses and things like that. We turned them over 18 times, but our inability to score in the second quarter really hurt us. It’s kind of defeating when you come out the gates quick and then your second quarter is really flat. I think our offensive mindset is to play with our post game and things like that. We only had six assists on the night and that’s not good enough. A good offensive team has anywhere from 14 to 15 assists a game and we only had six. We got outrebounded, that’s a problem too. I thought we missed some rebounds that led to putbacks for them. We also lost Briggs way too much. She and Smith are two of the best combo guards in our game. You have to know where they are at all times on the floor. You have to be aware of their ability to score the basketball and be aware they are going to take a lot of shots, but let’s make it as difficult as we can and I didn’t feel like we did that tonight.”

The Lady Tigers hit the road again for the 10th time this season, for a Valentine’s Day showdown against the No. 1 South Carolina Gamecocks.  The matchup will be televised on the SEC Network on Sunday, February 14, at 11 a.m. CT. As always, fans are encouraged to tune into the LSU Sports Radio Network, broadcasting on 107.3 FM in Baton Rouge, with Voice of the Tigers Patrick Wright calling the action.

2/13/2021
LSU Sports Information
By: Judy Willson



​   BATON ROUGE, La. – The LSU women’s basketball team travels to face No. 1 South Carolina on Sunday, February 14 at 11 a.m. CT in Colonial Life Arena in Columbia, South Carolina.
 
The Tigers will be wearing their pink road uniforms as they play in their second Play4Kay game in a week. Fans are encouraged to wear pink to honor cancer warriors at the annual Play4Kay game. Teams around the nation, in conjunction with the Kay Yow Cancer Fund, are raising awareness during the month of February to the needs for research and patient care for all cancers affecting women. For more information, go to kayyow.com.
 
Sunday’s game will be broadcast on the SEC Network with Eric Frede and Christy Thomaskutty calling the game. Fans can watch SEC Network through their local cable or satellite provider, on the internet at ESPN.com/watch or on the ESPN app. A link to the game is available on LSUsports.net.
 
The games will also be broadcast on the LSU Sports Radio Network and locally in Baton Rouge on 107.3 FM. Voice of the Lady Tigers Patrick Wright, in his 31st season, will be on the call from the LSU Radio Studio. A links to live stats is available at LSUsports.net.
                                                                                                                  
LSU Preview
LSU is 8-9 on the season and is in sixth place at 6-5 in the SEC following last Thursday’s 73-66 overtime loss against Florida. It was the fourth overtime game of the season for the Tigers, tying a program record for most overtime games in a season. Senior Khayla Pointer led three Tigers in double-figure scoring with a season-high 27 points, followed by redshirt senior Faustine Aifuwa with 16 and senior Awa Trasi with 10. Aifuwa posted her eighth double-double of the season with a team-leading 10 rebounds. Sophomore Tiara Young came off the bench with a solid stats line of nine points, five rebounds, four assists, two steals and no turnovers.
 
Aifuwa picked up another blocked shot on Thursday in her pursuit of second place on the LSU career blocked shots list. She is three blocked shots away (175) from moving into second place on the LSU career list to tie Julie Gross’ 178 (1978-80). Aifuwa is currently in 16th place on the career rebounds list with 712, the 16th LSU player to record over 700 career rebounds. She needs 48 points to become LSU’s 35th 1,000-career points scorer. Aifuwa continues to lead LSU with 8.8 rebounds per game and 24 blocked shots this season, and is the second-leading scorer on the team with 11.9 points per game. She recently took over the top spot on the team leaderboard for field goal shooting at 44.9 percent.
 
Pointer leads LSU with 16.5 points and 4.1 assists per game to go along with a team-high 41 steals. Pointer became the eighth Tiger in school history to dish out 400 career assists on Jan. 28 at Georgia. She currently sits at No. 25 on LSU’s career scoring list with 1,214 points.
 
Sophomore Tiara Young, a strong candidate for SEC Sixth Player of the Year honors, is providing a key spark off the bench averaging 9.6 points and 4.1 rebounds per game and is second in shooting at 44.2 percent from the field.
 
The Opponent – No. 1 South Carolina
South Carolina is 16-2 overall and 11-0 in SEC play this season. The Gamecocks are currently No. 1 in the Associated Press poll and No. 3 in the coaches poll. Four players are averaging double-figure scoring – Zia Cooke (15.8 points per game), Aliyah Boston (13.7 ppg), Destanni Henderson (11.6 ppg) and Victaria Sexton (10.0 ppg). Boston is the team’s leading rebounder with 11.5 boards per game and has blocked 54 shots. Henderson has a league-leading 101 assist this season.
 
This will be the 38th meeting between LSU and South Carolina and the second this season. The Gamecocks won the first meeting in Baton Rouge, 69-65, on January 24. The Tigers lead the series, 22-15 and are 10-7 when games are contested in Columbia.
 ​

2/4/2021
By: Terrill J. Weil
Da Boot Sports!


COLLEGE STATION, TX: The LSU Lady Tigers would head to College Station hoping to sweep #7 Texas A&M on Thursday night. The Lady Aggies' only loss of the season came three weeks ago in Baton Rouge when LSU pulled a surprising upset 65-61 Overtime victory. LSU will also head into the rematch without Head Coach Nikki Fargas as she will miss her second game in a row due to COVID-19 protocols. Coach Thomas-Swinson will once again lead the team.
LSU would play three competitive quarters, but the Lady Aggies would prove to be too much to handle on their home court as the Tigers would struggle in the 4th quarter, losing 54-41.

​

A&M would draw first blood as Jordan Nixon would hit a three point jumper a minute into the contest putting the Aggies up 3-0.
The Lady Tigers would trail over the next three minutes until a jumper by Karli Seay at the 6:32 mark would give LSU their first lead of the game, 6-5. LSU would frustrate A&M for the rest of the quarter playing suffocating defense, while offensively, the Lady Tigers would come up big on several possessions hitting some nice shots to go on a 12-3 run until Zaay Green would hit a jumper at the buzzer for the Lady Aggies to bring the score to 18-10, LSU at the end of the 1st quarter.

Khayla Pointer would start out the second quarter with a hot hand as she would hit two three pointers in the first three minutes of the period to extend the LSU lead to 24-14 with 7:04 on the clock.
But the Lady Tigers would all of a sudden go cold, struggling to score over the next five minutes,
allowing A&M to cut the lead to three, 24-21.
LSU would finally get on the board again as Khayla Pointer would hit one of two free throws with 2:31 left, 25-21.
Faustine Aifuwa would hit a jumper for LSU with :56 seconds remaining, to send us to the half with the Lady Tigers leading 27-21.
The big stats of the first half is one, LSU has out-rebounded A&M on the boards, 18-15. The Tigers are the only team who has been able to out-rebound Texas A&M all season long. Two, a tough LSU defense has forced the Lady Aggies into 12 first half turnovers. A&M averages 14 per game.
Khyala Pointer would lead LSU in scoring at the half with 9 points, while Faustine Aifuwa would add 6 points, and Karli Seay would contribute five.



Over the first four and a half minutes of the 3rd quarter both teams would play even, with LSU still holding onto a six point lead, 31-25 at the 5:31 mark.
Texas A&M however would shift themselves into another gear and go on a 6-2 run over the next two minutes, forcing LSU to call a timeout with 3:39 left in the quarter.
LSU would come out of the timeout responding with a jumper by Aifuwa. But A&M would begin to push the game to an up tempo pace and slowly claw their way back into the lead. Karli Seay would foul Aliyah Wilson on a made fast break basket, sending her the line for a three point play to give Texas A&M the lead, 36-35 with 1:24 left on the clock.
Wilson would sting LSU once more as she would hit a three pointer at the buzzer to extend the Lady Aggies lead to 39-37 at the end of the 3rd quarter.

A&M would blaze into the 4th quarter with two straight three pointers to go up 45-37 two minutes in. LSU would continue to struggle as they would still find themselves scoreless in the final quarter at the 6:23 mark as A&M would build their lead to 49-37.
It was becoming a 4th quarter of missed shots, turnovers, and offensive fouls by the Lady Tigers as with 4:59 to go in the game, they would still be without a 4th quarter point, as A&M had out-scored them 10-0 in the period.
Faustine Aifuwa would hit one of two free throws at the 4:32 mark to finally put LSU on the score board in the quarter, 49-38 A&M. LSU could only manage three total points in the last ten minutes of the contest.
Texas A&M would finish off the Lady Tigers with the final score of 54-41.

With the loss LSU falls to 8-8 overall and 6-4 in the SEC.

Next up the Lady Tigers host Florida on Thursday, Feb. 11th at 6pm in the PMAC... Come out and support these young ladies. They are playing good basketball and are fun the watch....
​

2/1/2021
By: Mike Lanclos
Da Boot Sports



BATON Rouge, LA.:: LSU would host SEC foe Ole Miss on Sunday afternoon in the Pete
Maravich Assembly Center and find themselves in a tough battle and found a way to make a comeback to seal a victory in overtime, 75-66. With the win LSU improves to 8-7 overall, 6-3 in SEC play while Ole Miss drops to 7-7, 1-7 in SEC play. The Rebels didn't shy away from making the Lady Tigers earn the victory. The game was a rematch from earlier in the month in Oxford when LSU also won in overtime 77-69. Head Coach Nikki Fargas had to miss today's game because of COVID-19 protocols, while assistant head coach Charlene Thomas-Swinson would fill in to run the team.

At the tip Ole Miss would knock the ball into LSU's hands. The Lady Tigers would jump on the scoreboard quickly with a jump shot from Awa Trasi. For the next few minutes both teams exchange buckets as the game would stay close. Eventually the Lady Rebels would take the lead as Shakira Austin would hit a layup to put her squad ahead 6-4 at the 5:05 mark. Eventually the Rebels would build a six point lead with 27 seconds left in the period. The Lady Tigers would miss a shot at the buzzer as Ole Miss would hold onto their 18-12 lead at the end of the first quarter.

The Lady Rebs would start the second quarter extending their lead to 8 points, 20-12. LSU's Faustine Aifuwa would answer by nailing a jump shot while getting fouled, but failed to make the free throw. 20-14 with 8:53 to go. Ole Miss would then go on a 8-0 run to take a 14 point lead at the 7:23 mark as Snudda Collins would nail a huge 3 point bucket. It seemed like everything LSU tried to do, Ole Miss would have an answer for early in the game. Finally the Lady Tigers would start a small rally as Tiara Young would get back to back buckets along with a free throw to close the gap to nine points. The teams would both get into a rhythm going back and forth until the LSU could close the gap to a five point Rebel lead. But the Lady Rebels would go into the locker room with a seven point lead, 35-28.


In the third quarter Ole Miss would keep the pressure on the Lady Tigers building their lead to 10 points as Madison Scott would get a layup while getting fouled and make the free throw to convert the three point opportunity. LSU's Awa Trasi would do her part to help close the gap to six points at the 6:52 mark as she would hit four straight free throws on back to back foul opportunities. Eventually the Lady Rebels would get things going again increase the lead to nine points, 49-40 with 2:13 left on the clock. The Lady Tigers would keep the game in striking distance as Khayla Pointer hit a layup and then Faustine Aifuwa would add in a free throw to pull to within six, 49-43. To end the quarter the Lady Rebs' Donnetta Johnson would bank in a layup to give Ole Miss a 8 point advantage, 51-43.

The fourth quarter would build with exciting as the Lady Tigers would finally catch some breaks allowing them to slowly claw back into the game. It would begin at the 3:30 mark, as Ole Miss would turnover the ball on a shot clock violation while leading 58-53. Then they would lose Iyanla Kitchens as she would foul out of the game with 2:04 left in the game. Khayla Pointer would hit two free throws that would cut the Lady Rebels' lead to 4 points, 60-56. LSU' defensive pressure would force Ole Miss into another turnover as Khayla Pointer would come up with a steal with 30 ticks on the clock, laying the ball in and getting fouled to complete a three point play to close the gap to one, 60-59. After a pair of free throws would increase the Rebels lead back to three, Karli Seay would nail a long three pointer while drawing a foul. She would hit the free throw to earn the four point play and the lead, 63-62 with only 12 seconds left in the ball game. Ole Miss would drive down the court as Mimi Reid would get fouled with 1.3 seconds to play putting her at the free throw line. She would only make 1-2 to tie the game at 63-63 sending the contest into overtime.


In overtime, LSU would find an extra gear and begin to take charge of the game as Awa Trasi and Khayla Pointer would both score to give the Lady Tigers a 4 point lead. Jacorriah Bracey would miss two free throws followed by Shakira Austin fouling out, the third Lady Rebel to do so. LSU would out score the Lady Rebels 12-3 in the overtime period to pull out an exciting 75-66 comeback victory.

For the game the Lady Rebels were led by Donnetta Johnson with 18 points, Shakira Austin and Madison Scott each had 12 points a piece. LSU would be lead by Khayla pointer with 25 points, Faustine Aifuwa had 17 points while Awa Trasi and Karli Seay each had 13 points a piece. It was a hard fought game by both teams, both squads seemed to give all they had and left everything on the court.



LSU Acting Head Coach Charlene Thomas-Swinson on the big win::

"It's a group effort. You know you can't script it with what it means for our bench, to give us as much as they are. I'll tell you what, we can't keep going like this. We need to be able to get out to ant early lead and be able to finish them early."

Next up LSU will travel to College Station to play Texas A&M on Thursday, February 4th for an 8 pm start.