Both LSU basketball teams are coming off wins over the weekend and enter the end of February looking to boost their postseason resumes.
LSU women’s basketball had last week off but returned to play with a dominant 81-58 win over Texas A&M on Monday. The men’s basketball team picked up a big win on Saturday, upsetting No. 11 South Carolina on the road, finally finishing off another late-game comeback.
Both teams have six games remaining in the season, and despite possibly playing for different prizes, both teams still have postseason aspirations.
Our LSU basketball beat writers at The Reveille got together to discuss what’s new in the two programs.
How much does the 23-point win against Texas A&M show LSU women’s basketball defensive growth?
Tyler Harden: Well, holding an opposing team to 14 first half points says something. But nonetheless, it continues to show the team is playing some of its best basketball of the season. Against Texas A&M, the Tigers executed on the defensive side of the ball and converted turnovers to points.
In high intensity games down the line, the ability to do this consistently could be the difference between winning and losing ball games. LSU rarely struggles to score, but consistent defensive production will be the difference maker.
Tre Allen: This is what coach Mulkey has been emphasizing. The defense from LSU can be a game-changer. Not only does good defense limit points for the opposing team, but it creates points for the Tigers. Watching the game on Monday, they were pushing the pace and running up and down the court, and that’s all from their defensive effort.
They still need to focus on maintaining that effort all four quarters as the Aggies started to make a run last night in the third quarter. But winning big on the road is a good indicator of how their defense has developed.
How impressive was LSU men’s basketball’s win over South Carolina?
Jason Willis: The elephant in the room is of course how low South Carolina ranks in advanced metrics. After its loss to LSU, the Gamecocks are No. 59 in the NET rankings and No. 54 in KenPom, which lags well behind its AP ranking of No. 11.
I think the Gamecocks are a good bit better than that, because you don’t hold Tennessee and Kentucky to season lows in points by accident. However, it’s true that their offense isn’t as nuanced as other top SEC teams, and they don’t have an elite No. 1 option. I wouldn’t say the win is as impressive as it might’ve been if it was Tennessee, Auburn or Alabama.
Tre Allen: I think regardless of stats or how they got it done, the win sends a message to the team. It shows they can compete with the higher-ranked teams and can come back from these large deficits. Not only did the Tigers beat a ranked team on the road, but they also did it down 16 at one point.
I think it’ll create a spark within the team, however I’m not sure how much that’ll transfer over to the court when they take on a tough Kentucky team at home.
Aalyah Del Rosario made a big impact defensively against Texas A&M. How much has she grown throughout the season?
Tyler Harden: She’s grown in the way that’s been asked of her, just to fill a role off the bench where she could be a consistent option. In recent games, Angel Reese has found herself in foul trouble, which forces Aneesah Morrow to do more.
Having Del Rosario to pick up some slack will be huge for the team, especially in the postseason. While down the line in Del Rosario’s career at LSU, more will be asked of her, but she’s found her way into her role on this season’s team.
Tre Allen: I think she’s growing at a good pace. For the minutes she’s given and the situations the Tigers are in, I think she’s taking full advantage. At first, you could see the game was moving a little fast for her, which is why she plays in only certain situations, but she’s starting to find her footing, and with her height, she can impact games.
What do you make of Matt McMahon inserting Tyrell Ward and Derek Fountain into the starting lineup?
Jason Willis: Swapping Jalen Reed for Fountain is something we’ve seen multiple times this season, and I wouldn’t be surprised if it’s temporary. Reed has been on and off, but McMahon still thinks a lot of him, and I think they’re just still feeling out what position to put him in for him to be most successful.
The Ward move is more intriguing to me. I don’t know if it was more about compensating for Jalen Cook’s absence than it was about Ward, but giving Ward more on-ball reps is important since he represents a big part of LSU’s future.
Tre Allen: I liked the Ward move; I don’t know how I missed it, but with the way he’s been playing, I understand why McMahon did so. The spacing that Ward provides opens the floor up. He’s shooting 42% from three, and at 6 feet 6 inches he’s a great defender with his length.
As for the Fountain move, I didn’t mind it since they swapped between Reed and Ward this season. I think McMahon values effort and defense, and Fountain has shown he brings that effort multiple times.
Will there be a revenge factor at play at all when LSU women’s basketball plays Auburn on Thursday?
Tyler Harden: Not so much a revenge factor but something to prove. The team has worked to prove that it’s growing and starting to play its best basketball of the season. Responding against an Auburn team that caught them off guard not too long ago is key in showing that.
Tre Allen: I do think there’ll be some sort of revenge factor because that’s just how it is in all sports. Anytime you lose to a team, you don’t want it to happen again, so the next you’re extra prepared, extra focused and extra hungry for a win.
Auburn had home court on its side the last time these two played, and this time it’ll be on LSU’s. Getting swept and splitting a season series are very different things with different meanings.
What is realistic to expect when LSU men’s basketball plays Kentucky on Wednesday?
Jason Willis: It’s absolutely going to be a shootout. That’s just the way Kentucky plays, with one of the best offenses in the nation and one of the less impressive defenses. As we saw against Alabama (twice), LSU is capable of keeping pace with an elite offense for a half, but for the Tigers to pull off an upset, they’ll need to sustain scoring.
LSU has a lot of capable scorers spread out in its starting lineup and off the bench, but consistency has been hard to come by. The team will probably need several of Will Baker, Jordan Wright, Cook and shooters Mike Williams and Ward to be in a groove, or else it’ll be left behind.
Tre Allen: It’s going to be high scoring, but if LSU can limit the possession and time of Kentucky, the Tigers can stay in it. Kentucky is young with a lot of shot makers like Reed Sheppard, Antonio Reeves and Rob Dillingham; it’s going to want to run and get up as many shots as it wants to.
LSU has kept up with that sort of basketball before, but I think it’ll benefit the Tigers if they can slow Kentucky down and not give up too many points and transitions. I think Kentucky will take care of business, but I can see LSU hanging on as it did with Alabama a couple of weeks ago.
