After the Lady Tigers’ first-ever victory against the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tenn., LSU women’s basketball assistant coach Bob Starkey said his friends asked him where he celebrated the historic win.
“I went back to the office and watched film on Georgia,” Starkey said he told them. “Playing in the SEC, that’s the way it’s got to be.”
With victories over No. 5 Tennessee and No. 13 Georgia in the past week, LSU (22-1, 10-0) has moved up to No. 2 in the AP poll and is poised to win the Southeastern Conference regular season title.
“We’re happy that we accomplished that kind of feat as far playing two tough opponents in the same week,” senior guard Seimone Augustus said. “But now we have to focus on finishing out the regular season, making sure we go 14-and-0.”
LSU’s road to conference perfection continues tonight at 6 p.m. in Gainesville, Fla., against the University of Florida (18-6, 6-5) on senior night for the Lady Gators.
Sophomore guard Erica White, whose hometown is nearby Jacksonville, said LSU will need to match Florida’s intensity from tip-off.
“We always talk about the first five minutes of the game,” White said. “They’ll probably give us a good run, but we’re going to have to play hard and execute.”
Starkey, who was running practice Tuesday because coach Pokey Chatman was on a recruiting trip, said the Lady Tigers are accustomed to drawing their opponent’s best game because of the team’s success.
“Our program has gotten to the point to wherever we go, there’s a great crowd and we get the other team’s best,” Starkey said. “One thing coach [Sue] Gunter used to always tell the team before they went onto the floor was, ‘Don’t let this game mean more to them than it does to us.'”
Defensively, Augustus said the Lady Tigers will try to keep Florida perimeter oriented.
The Lady Gators are eighth in the SEC in field goal percentage at 41.8 percent.
“We want to make sure if they do take a shot outside the paint, that it’s always contested,” Augustus said.
Florida seniors Brittany Davis and Delila Eshe combined average about 26 points per game and 15 rebounds per contest.
“Their two post players do an excellent job of running the floor,” Starkey said. “They get a lot touches, and they utilize a lot of shot fakes.”
Starkey said Florida freshman guard Sha Brooks also caught the eye of the LSU coaching staff and players.
“Brooks is extremely quick and gets touches on the perimeter but then breaks you down on the dribble driving to the paint,” Starkey said.
Offensively, Starkey said LSU will stick to the strengths of their inside game and their transition offense.
“One of the stats that we talk to our kids about before the game, at halftime and after the game is paint points,” Starkey said. “That’s the area that we think if we’re going to be successful, we need to dominate.”
 
Contact Kyle Whitfield at [email protected]