The LSU women’s basketball team celebrated with fans Monday night in the PMAC as it was announced as the No. 6 seed in the Spokane region of the NCAA Tournament.
The Lady Tigers will take on 11th-seeded Green Bay, which enters the tournament on a 24-game winning streak, at 6:30 p.m. Sunday in the PMAC.
“Seeing that sixth seed up there; it is a great place to be,” said LSU junior forward Theresa Plaisance. “We are in a great spot. We are going to come out, do our best and have a great run in the tournament. … It’s do-or-die now, and we are ready to go.”
It’s a familiar matchup for LSU fans, as a sixth-seeded LSU took on an 11th-seeded Green Bay in the first round of the 2009 NCAA Tournament. LSU won, 69-59.
Also familiar is LSU’s likely second-round matchup against third-seeded Penn State if it gets past Green Bay. LSU was ousted from the NCAA Tournament by Penn State, 90-80, in the second round last season.
The Lady Tigers are excited about the opportunity to exact revenge on the Lady Lions, but they are not yet ready to look that far ahead.
“I am not saying anything [about a potential match against Penn State] until we get past that first game,” said LSU junior guard Jeanne Kenney. “I’m not jinxing anything, but we are going to be ready.”
The Lady Tigers look forward to having the opportunity to play their first two games of the tournament in their home venue, a luxury most teams are not allotted.
LSU has fared well in home games this season, going 13-3 in the PMAC.
“They’re coming to our house, and this is a big [Southeastern Conference] house,” Kenney said. “We look to take care of our home court. It is going to be a fight. I am glad it is at home, and I am excited.”
LSU is one of an impressive group of seven teams representing the SEC in the tournament.
Tennessee and Kentucky were both selected as the second-seeded team in the Oklahoma City and Bridgeport regions, respectively. Georgia will join LSU in the Spokane region as the fourth seed.
LSU coach Nikki Caldwell said having faced all of those teams at some point this will likely help them succeed in the tournament.
“The SEC really does a great job of preparing you for different types of teams that you may face in NCAA Tournament play,” Caldwell said.
Still, Caldwell does not want her team to expect anything but the best performance out of any team they play, saying each team enters the tournament “zero-and-zero.”
As far as expectations go, the Lady Tigers have set their goals on par with what every successful NCAA Tournament team expects.
“We want a national championship,” Kenney said. “It is a big accomplishment to get [to the NCAA Tournament], but it is another thing to win. We are definitely going to take it one team at a time.”
“We are going to come out, do our best and have a great run in the tournament… It’s do-or-die now, and we are ready to go.”
