Round one of the NCAA Tournament was no issue for the LSU women’s basketball team when they defeated the Jacksonville Dolphins 116-58 on Friday. The team returned on Sunday when Kim Mulkey’s No. 2-seeded squad faced the No. 7-seeded Texas Tech Lady Raiders inside the PMAC in the Round of 32.
Similar to round one, the Bayou Bengals had no issues scoring and forcing the Lady Raiders into numerous turnovers. When it was all said and done, LSU moved on to the Sweet 16 with a 101-47 win over Texas Tech on Sunday.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
LSU had no issues taking an early 10-0 lead after forcing Texas Tech into multiple turnovers and some bad shots. Four of the team’s starters scored, with all but Mikaylah Williams’ basket being in the paint, and the layups by Zakiyah Johnson and Kate Koval were putbacks.
Following an official timeout, Texas Tech’s Gemma Nunez and Bailey Maupin hit back-to-back threes to cut into the Tiger lead. Maupin then cut it to a three-point game by going three for three from the free throw line after Flau’Jae Johnson fouled her on a shot attempt.
In the final two minutes of the opening quarter, MiLaysia Fuwiley stole the basketball from Nunez and went coast-to-coast for a fast break layup, and Flau’Jae got open for a three at the top of the key. Majupin continued to be the main source of offense for the Lady Raiders, but it was Williams who made the final shot of the quarter and put the Tigers ahead 19-14 after 10 minutes of action.
Much like the opening quarter, LSU dominated the early half of the second. The Tigers went on a 12-0 run through the first five minutes as Flau’Jae had a pair of layups off turnovers before Williams and Jada Richard hit jumpshots to help stretch the Tiger lead to 17. Texas Tech gave the ball away six more times during the run.
Danae Fritz ended the Lady Raider scoring drought by draining a three-pointer, but Williams answered back with one on the next possession. The rest of the half was in favor of the Tigers as Flau’Jae scored four more points for LSU, and Williams had an and-one layup with a minute to go. The Bayou Bengals went into the locker room with a 43-25 lead with 20 minutes to go in the game.
LSU opened the second half with another scoring run to extend its lead, going on a 17-3 run through the first 4:17 of the third quarter. A couple more live-ball turnovers by Texas Tech led to instant offense for the Bayou Bengals and forced the Lady Raiders to burn another timeout. During the run, LSU got the line five times while Tech’s points came from a Sarengbe Sanogo layup to begin the quarter and a Maupin free throw.
In the final four and a half minutes of the third quarter, the Tigers went on a 16-2 run that featured three players knocking down threes. Bella Hines, Williams, and Flau’Jae all scored from behind the arc, while Hines scored again, this time on an and-one layup. After 30 minutes of play, LSU was up 76-32 as they outscored Texas Tech 33-7 in the third.
Head coach Kim Mulkey decided to sub out both her star players, Flau’Jae Johnson and Mikaylah Williams, with less than eight minutes left in the ball game. Johnson received an enormous cheer from the crowd, and she shared a long, heartfelt hug with her coach, with this game being her final game inside the Pete Maravich Assembly Center of her college career.
Those substitutions didn’t slow down LSU’s offense, however, as Koval was on clean-up duty, making multiple layups, and then players such as Richard and Grace Knox got into the paint and forced their way to the free-throw line to continue their scoring output.
With under a minute to go, Richard knocked down a three and put the Tigers over the century mark. At the final buzzer, LSU officially moved on to the Sweet 16 with a 101-47 win over Texas Tech.
BIG NUMBER: 16
For the 16th time this 2025-26 season, the LSU women have scored 100 points in a game. That breaks the previous record of 15 100-point games set by Long Beach State back in the 1986-87 season. Also, for the second NCAA Tournament game in a row, the LSU Tigers win big. In both tournament games at home, the Bayou Bengals have at least double the score of their opponent, scored at least 100 points, and have won by at least 50 points.
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Flau’Jae Johnson & Mikaylah Williams
Both players had similar stat lines in Sunday’s 101-47 win over Texas Tech. Williams and Johnson each had 24 points on nine made shots. Mikaylah had seven rebounds and four assists while Flau’Jae recorded four boards, three dimes, and a pair of steals.
UP NEXT: The LSU women’s basketball team will await its Sweet 16 opponent. It’ll either be the No. 3-seeded Duke Blue Devils or the No. 6-seeded Baylor Bears. The time, date, and location for the round three matchup are TBD, but the action will be heard on Mustang 107.1.