NASHVILLE, Tenn. – LSU sophomore center Sylvia Fowles scored just 10 points and grabbed only seven rebounds Monday night against Washington.
But all the Lady Tigers needed was the 6-foot, 6-inch center’s presence on the floor to cruise past No. 9 seed Washington, 72-49.
After playing two minutes in the first half, Fowles played 19 minutes in the second half and carried the Lady Tigers to their fourth consecutive Sweet 16 with the win.
“It was a little frustrating, having to sit from the sideline and watch my team go out there and bang,” Fowles said. “But overall I think they did a good job.”
After both teams exchanged 10-to-2 scoring runs in the first six minutes of the second half, LSU used a 17-2 run followed two minutes later by an 8-0 run to distance themselves from the Lady Huskies.
Washington coach June Daughtery said she was happy her team limited Augustus’ touches in the first half but could not find a way to stop her in the second half.
“She ended up getting way too many looks in the second half,” Daughtery said. “When that happens, things become very easy for LSU in the scoring department, and the game certainly took a tough turn for us in the second half.”
LSU senior guard Seimone Augustus finished the game with 26 points and seven rebounds and said the team cannot put a price on Fowles’ importance on being on the floor.
“It’s just a different story,” Augustus said. “We try to run our offense through her once she’s on the court, and the defense pays a lot of attention to her.”
LSU coach Pokey Chatman echoed Augustus’ thoughts, saying Fowles ability to cause havoc on both ends of the floor fuels the team.
“When Sylvia is moving and she’s posting up, she’s going to garner the attention of at least two people,” Chatman said. “On defense she just alters things. She may turn something that could have been a two-footer into a five-footer because she’s back there in the paint.”
With Fowles playing most of the second half, Washington missed 20 of its 29 shots and scored just 23 points in the half.
“We just thought, regardless of whether Sylvia Fowles got in, we could keep pushing and win the game,” Washington forward Andrea Plouffe said. “We always thought we had a chance.”
In the first half the Lady Tigers began the game on an 11-2 run and prompted a Washington timeout with 16:05 left to play in the opening frame.
Without Fowles LSU’s shooting percentage shrunk to just 27.6 percent from the floor in the half.
Washington kept in striking distance of LSU and waited until Fowles’ exit to make its run.
The Lady Huskies went on a 10-0 run to take a one-point lead with 8:47 left in the half.
From there, the teams went back and forth before going into locker room at halftime with Washington leading, 26-23.
Excessive scoring droughts in the first half did not help LSU’s cause either.
The Lady Tigers had a seven-minute drought without scoring a point followed by about a five-minute drought without a field goal.
 
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