The last five seconds of games have not been friendly to the LSU women’s basketball team the past few weeks. Ten days after losing on a last second shot against the University of Georgia, the Lady Tigers (22-4, 8-2 SEC) were again on the wrong end of a buzzer-beater Sunday in a 72-71 loss against the University of Connecticut (22-2, 11-0 Big East) when freshman forward Porsha Phillips’ last second shot with LSU trailing 72-69 was ruled a two-pointer after television review. LSU coach Pokey Chatman said her first instincts told her the shot was a three-pointer, but that she accepts the officials ruling. “I saw her pull back, so I was thinking it was [a three pointer],” Chatman said. “They had video, and they seemed to be sure [it was a two pointer] initially, so it seemed like the officials had no doubt in their minds that it was a two.” Phillips scored two of her 12 points for LSU with 1:15 to play, cutting the Huskies’ lead to 69-67. After a timeout by UConn coach Geno Auriemma, freshman center Tina Charles missed a basket, giving the Lady Tigers an opportunity to tie the game. Following a Phillips miss, junior forward Quianna Chaney delievered two of her 16 points with 20 seconds to play, tying the game at 69. Sophomore guard Renee Montgomery answered the LSU challenge quickly for the Huskies, burying a 3-pointer with 9 seconds to play, setting the stage for Phillips’ shot, which was ruled a three-pointer by one official, but eventually overruled after video review. Phillips said she was very confident when the ball was in the air, but was heartbroken when the basket was ruled a two-pointer. “I took it and I thought it was a three, but it turned out not to be, so there’s nothing we can do,” Phillips said. The victory capped a UConn comeback after the Huskies faced a 12 point deficit with four minutes to go in the first half. UConn started the second half on an 11-0 tear after trailing 37-31 at halftime, keeping the Lady Tigers from scoring a field goal for over eight minutes. Chaney said she remained confident the team was going to win the game throughout the run, but junior center Sylvia Fowles said the team struggled to maintain focus. “I think all of us thought [we would recover], but it’s just the mental aspect of going out and doing it,” Fowles said. “You can say anything you want to, but it’s about the mental aspect of going out and winning, instead of losing.” After Charles picked up her third foul early with 17 minutes remaining, freshman Kaili McLaren kept Fowles in check, allowing UConn to extend its lead from three points to seven over a nine minute span. “We gave ourselves a chance to win the game by that stretch,” Auriemma said. “[McLaren] came in and made defensive plays, and didn’t let Sylvia manhandle her in the paint.” Things started well for LSU, with the Lady Tigers holding a 36-24 lead with just over four minutes to play in the first half. UConn closed the half on a 7-1 run, cutting the Tiger lead to just six at halftime. Fowles finished the game with her 53rd career double-double, leading LSU with 22 points and 17 rebounds, Auriemma said the game had the feel of a late-round NCAA Tournament game. “You usually don’t get that well-played of a game every night,” he said. “It’s a shame that LSU had to lose, because they certainly played well enough to win as well.”
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