Throughout the season, LSU (23-4, 12-0) has stifled opponents defensively and limited them to fewer than 50 points per game. Monday night, in front of a crowd of 9,763 in the PMAC, the Lady Tigers met their match in a 74-69 loss against No. 1 Connecticut. LSU senior guard Quianna Chaney cut UConn’s lead to 72-69 with less than a minute to play and scored three of her 22 points with two Huskies contesting the shot. Following a UConn turnover, the Lady Tigers had a chance to tie the game with six seconds to play, but Chaney’s desperation 3-point attempt fell short and ended LSU’s hopes of upsetting its second No.1-ranked opponent of the season. UConn freshman forward Maya Moore hit several key shots down the stretch for the Huskies and led UConn (27-1, 13-1 Big East) with 29 points. LSU coach Van Chancellor said Moore’s play on the road was critical to the Huskies’ success. Moore and UConn sophomore post players Tina Charles and Kaili McLaren also kept LSU off the glass as the Huskies outrebounded the Lady Tigers, 39-25. Chancellor said McLaren’s interior play off the bench was the deciding factor in the game. “Everybody talked about [Charles] and [Moore], but I thought McLaren was the difference maker,” Chancellor said. LSU senior center Sylvia Fowles had one of her best statistical games of the season in the loss, scoring a season-high 26 points and grabbing 11 rebounds. “You can’t ask for any better,” Fowles said. “UConn is the No. 1 team in the country, and they aren’t No. 1 for nothing. When you get out there, it’s going to be a fight. They just took good shots and got rebounds.” Following the game, LSU coach Van Chancellor said Chaney and senior guard RaShonta LeBlanc will both visit a doctor tomorrow. LeBlanc suffered an ankle injury late in the second half. Chaney fought calf cramps during the final minute of the game, having to be stretched on the sidelines by team trainer Melissa Moore. The Huskies jumped out of the gate early in the second half, using a 5-0 run out of the locker room to take an 11-point lead. Both teams exchanged runs throughout the second half with LSU taking a 61-60 lead with more than five minutes to play on a jump shot by LeBlanc. The Huskies stormed back with a two-minute, 7-0 run capped by a tip-in by McLaren that gave Uconn a 67-61 lead with three minutes to play. Senior guard Ketia Swanier also helped spark the Huskies run, hitting two 3-pointers to extend the Huskies’ lead. “We knew that they were going to make runs,” Moore said. “They had their run and now we had to get our run, and I think [Swanier] sparked us with several threes.” The Huskies controlled the first half, taking a 20-12 lead with just more than eight minutes to play in the first half. Moore and Charles controlled the paint early for the Huskies and scored 17 of their combined 19 first-half points in the first 12 minutes of play. McLaren also contributed on the interior for the Huskies off the bench and scored six points and pulling down six rebounds in the first half. She entered the game for senior forward Charde Houston, who left the game early with two fouls. The Lady Tigers cut the Huskies’ lead to 34-28 at halftime with a seven-minute, 16-10 run sparked Fowles. The Miami native scored 14 first-half points for LSU. The Lady Tigers were unable to sustain offensive rhythm in the first half and made just nine field goals compared to 16 for the Huskies. LSU was able to stay close from the free-throw line, sinking seven of its 10 first-half attempts. Chancellor said he accepts blame for the loss and will work harder to prepare LSU for its next opponent. “In a game like tonight, as the head coach of LSU, I should have found some way to help our team win tonight,” Chancellor said. “We just went through some periods when we couldn’t stop them.”
—-Contact Casey Gisclair @ [email protected]