The Lady Tigers traveled to Athens, Ga., to try and stifle a two-game losing streak, but the Lady Bulldogs jumped out to an early lead and never looked back in a 71-67 Georgia victory.
After jumping out to an early 4-2 lead, the No. 19 Lady Tigers looked to be returning to form, but the contest quickly went South at the Stegeman Coliseum.
Georgia rallied to gather an 18-point lead against LSU with 9:53 remaining in the first half. The Lady Bulldogs rode sophomore Shacobia Barbee to go ahead 25-7.
LSU senior guard Jeanne Kenney mustered 14 points after shooting 5-of-7 from the field before halftime, but the Lady Tigers would enter the locker room trailing 36-27.
To avoid being downed for the third straight contest, LSU coach Nikki Caldwell turned to senior forward Theresa Plaisance, who had been relatively quiet throughout the first half.
Plaisance would give her squad a fighting chance, finishing with a career-high 29 points after shooting 12-of-20 from the field. She also finished with eight rebounds.
Two other Lady Tigers finished with double-digit scoring – Kenney ended with 17 points and sophomore guard Danielle Ballard had 11. The two combined for nine rebounds and seven assists.
With 24 seconds remaining, Kenney allowed LSU to have one final breath after draining a 3-pointer to bring the Lady Tigers within two.
The first half deficit would be too much to overcome, though.
Georgia junior guard Erika Ford sealed the deal by giving the home squad a 71-67 lead with 14 seconds remaining, sending a reeling LSU squad home with its third straight loss before taking on Arkansas in the PMAC on Sunday.
Overall, LSU shot 47 percent from the field and 35 percent from 3-point range, but the Georgia defense smothered Kenney in the second half, leaving Plaisance as LSU’s only reliable option down the stretch.

Gallery • 1 Photos

Taylor Balkom

LSU senior forward Theresa Plaisance (55) attempts a shotn Sunday, Feb. 16, 2014, while South Carolina juniors Aleigsha Welch (24) and Elem Ibiam (33) defend during the Tigers' 57-73 loss to the Gamecocks in the PMAC.