 Photo By: Jonathan Mailhes Da Boot Sports 3/22/2024 By: Jason Watson Jr. BATON ROUGE, LA- Kim Mulkey and the LSU Women’s basketball team kicked off their 2024 NCAA Tournament run with a 70-60 victory over the University of Rice. LSU won the opening tip-off, and a Mikaylah Williams mid-range basket started the scoring, putting the Lady Tigers up 2-0. Flau’jae Johnson followed that up with a three-pointer, sending the sold-out PMAC crowd into a frenzy. Sloppy play plagued the Tigers early, giving up four turnovers in the opening five minutes. Hailey Van Lith knocked down a three out of the first official timeout to put the Tigers up 10-6. Flau’jae Johnson showed off her bag of tricks with a nifty layup. The Tigers and Owls displayed a low-scoring affair. Fourteen total turnovers and 18 total points showed on the scoreboard at the end of the first quarter, and LSU led 12-6. Rice answered back with two triples to tie the ballgame at 12 apiece. Although it did not look great, LSU got some much-needed firepower from Williams and Aneesah Morrow. The Tigers had scored on four of five possessions to go up 28-19 but got held to a 2:30+ scoring drought following. Rice made a run of their own before heading into the intermission. The Owls trailed 30-27. LSU went into the break with 13 turnovers but out-rebounding Rice and still had just a three-point lead. The Owls struck first in the second half, an easy layup made it 30-29. The teams exchanged buckets before LSU’s Flau’jae Johnson had the fans out of their seats on a sweet Euro step move. With 4:50 remaining in the third quarter, LSU led 40-38. Out of the official timeout, Mikaylah Williams drove hard to the paint for a basket. On the other end, Angel Reese got a steal before going coast-to-coast for a pair of free throws. The Owls got an easy basket inside the paint off a miscommunication from LSU, but Williams put up a triple, sending the crowd into an eruption. LSU entered the bonus in the third quarter, earning multiple trips to the charity stripe. Pairing an aggressive defensive effort with that mix extended the Tiger lead to 11, heading to the fourth quarter. Angel Reese had a double-double entering the final frame, sitting with 10 points and 17 rebounds. The Owls scored a three-pointer to draw to within eight. With just under seven to play, the Rice Owls entered the bonus of the fourth quarter. Rice split a pair from the stripe to make it a seven-point deficit, but Hailey Van Lith responded with a side-step jumper. Malia Fisher of Rice fouled out with 5:42 to go in the game. Fisher finished with 13 points for the Owls. A second-chance layup from Rice’s Destiny Jackson made it a nine-point game. Aneesah Morrow committed a personal foul on the defensive end, sending the Owls to the free-throw line. They knocked down both, making it 57-50 with 4:30 to play in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament. Mikaylah Williams nailed a trey, pushing the lead back up to 10. After a split free-throw trip, Last-Tear Poa came up with a clutch layup for the Tigers, but Rice was not ready to quit yet. After back-to-back scores, the Owls had drawn to within six with under two minutes to play. Kim Mulkey called timeout with 1:43 on the game clock, leading 62-56. Out of the 30-second break, Flau’jae Johnson got an open look at a mid-range jumper and nailed it. Rice answered with a layup and caught a break with a traveling violation called on Hailey Van Lith, but the Owls turned the ball over to no avail. The Tigers entered the bonus, sending Poa to the free-throw line for two shots. The junior made both in a “need to have it” moment. After a few more free throw attempts, LSU was able to ice away the ballgame. #14 Rice gave the reigning national champions everything they could handle, but in the end, they fell just short of overcoming the #3-seeded Tigers. LSU survives and advances to the Round of 32. After a staple March Madness upset, they will have a date with #11 Middle Tennessee on Sunday. The Blue Raiders defeated Louisville 71-69 on Friday. As always, Geaux Tigers! Don't forget to tune in every Monday night on our YouTube Channel at 7pm for Talking Tigers with Da Boot Sports as we talk LSU Basketball. GEAUX TIGERS!! Photos Below By: Jonathan Mailhes Photos Below By: Paige Luper John 14:6 - "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." (Accept Jesus as your Lord and Savior) *John 3;16 - For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. A huge Thank You to Cardio Health Solutions owned by Ron Sancho for sponsoring and believing in our publication!
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