After a convincing 77-44 road win over Auburn during the week, the LSU women’s basketball team returned home to face the horn in their side, South Carolina. The Tigers jumped out to an early lead, but the Gamecocks led for the majority of the game and handed LSU its fourth loss of the season in a 75-72 game on Saturday night.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
The first quarter was fast-paced with South Carolina jumping out to a 7-3 lead less than two minutes in. The Gamecocks made three out of their first four shots, while Mikaylah Williams knocked down a three-pointer for LSU’s first bucket. The Tigers then went on a 7-0 run before a timeout to take the lead. A Flau’Jae Johnson corner three and coast-to-coast layup by Zakiyah Johnson put LSU ahead moments before a foul caused a pause in the action.
Johnson continued to generate offense through the final half of the first quarter as Jada Richard and MiLaysia Fuwiley fed her the ball for an 18-footer and a layup. The Tigers knocked down a couple more shots, including a midrange jumper by Williams with just over two minutes to play. Fuwiley was fouled in transition and made both free throws before Amiya Joyner closed out the first period with a block on Ta’Niya Latson. The Bayou Bengals were in front 21-16 heading into the second.
South Carolina’s Tessa Johnson shot lights out from three-point range during the second quarter. The junior guard scored thrice from behind the arc, two of which were on back-to-back possessions.
The Gamecocks opened the second quarter with another strong start, cutting it to a two-point game. Flau’Jae had no issues getting into the paint, recording three layups and knocking down an eight-footer. That was before Johnson’s shooting cut LSU’s lead down to just one with less than three and a half minutes to go in the first half.
Joyner and Williams tried to hold off the Gamecocks in the closing minutes of the quarter by scoring in the paint, but it wasn’t enough. Raven Johnson scored from behind the arc, and Tessa Johnson drove past the Tiger defense for a layup. Neither team scored in the final 44 seconds, and LSU went into the locker room down 41-40.
The first half was also relatively clean on both sides. There were just 10 total turnovers and eight fouls called. Through the first 20 minutes, the Tigers shot 55% as a team, and the Gamecocks were shooting 58% from three-point land.
A slow start to the second half allowed the Gamecocks to propel to nearly a double-digit advantage. The Tigers couldn’t see the ball go through the hoop and began to commit turnovers, thanks to bad passes by Williams and Kate Koval. South Carolina took advantage of those extra opportunities with layups by Latson and Joyce Edwards to go up 50-42 and force Tiger head coach Kim Mulkey to burn a timeout.
A quick 11-4 run for LSU cut it to a three-point game. Bella Hines subbed in, scoring a couple of midrange baskets and face-guarding Tessa Johnson, not allowing her to score in her four minutes on the floor. Grace Knox also had a wide-open layup, Richard made three free throws, and Joyner got into the paint for another two points to make it a one-point game. That was before Ayla McDowell threw up a prayer of a hook shot with the time running down after Knox blocked her initial shot. The Tigers were down 60-55 heading into the final quarter.
Hines and Knox were the only LSU players who scored early in the fourth quarter. After that, the Tigers went on a three-minute scoring drought, but their defense held the Gamecocks in check, allowing just five points in that time.
Flau’Jae ended LSU’s lull and took over the game once again, scoring three times and finding Joyner for another shot in the paint. Her contributions on the offensive end made it a 73-72 game in favor of South Carolina with 45 seconds to go. She had an opportunity to give the Bayou Bengals the lead after getting fouled in transition, but missed both shots from the charity stripe.
LSU was ice cold from three-point range the whole fourth quarter and couldn’t get any shots to fall down the stretch. South Carolina made its free throws in the closing seconds and beat LSU 79-72, dropping the Tigers’ record to 22-4 on the season and 8-4 in SEC play.
BIG NUMBER: 18
The losing streak continues for the LSU Tigers. Valentine’s Day’s loss marked the 18th game in a row the Bayou Bengals were on the losing end of a game against the Gamecocks. The last time LSU won was back on January 12th when they won 58-48.
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Madina Okot
Okot was a force on the boards, finishing the game with a 12-point, 17-rebound double-double. Seven of those rebounds were on the offensive end as South Carolina beat LSU 79-72.
UP NEXT: The LSU women’s basketball team will travel to Oxford to take on the Ole Miss Rebels. Tipoff from the Sandy and John Black Pavilion is set for 8:00 PM on Thursday, February 19th, and the action can be heard on Mustang 107.1.