Most sports fans in the area were anxiously awaiting the Super Bowl on Feb. 7 around 3:30 p.m.But the New Orleans Saints were the last thing on the mind of the LSU women’s basketball team, who were in the third overtime of a crucial conference game against Ole Miss in the PMAC.The Lady Tigers came up short, 102-101, after 55 minutes and 21 lead changes, and the loss signaled a problem that affected LSU throughout the 2009-10 campaign.LSU suffered losses in seven Southeastern Conference games by single digits, but the Lady Tigers won nine conference games strongly, taking those games by at least 16 points each. “We did some great things during the year,” LSU coach Van Chancellor said at the team’s end of the season press conference. “We just got in some close games and were unable to finish those games. That separated us from having an unbelievable year to a very good year.”The Lady Tigers ended their season with a second-round exit from the NCAA tournament and finished with a 21-10 record.LSU was picked to win the SEC by the media before the season started, but the Lady Tigers concluded conference play tied for third with three other teams.”I’ll never think you can think you had a bad year when you finished tied for third in your league, and you went to the NCAA playoffs,” Chancellor said.LSU had a chance to advance against No. 2-seed Duke in the second round of the NCAA tournament. The Lady Tigers led the Blue Devils by one point with four minutes left in the game, but Duke scored six unanswered points and went on to win, 60-52.”We were so close all year long to having an unbelievable season,” Chancellor said. “We were so close to being in the Sweet 16. You have to win some close games.”LSU did gain momentum toward the end of the regular season, winning five of its last six games.But a short stay at the SEC tournament in Duluth, Ga., weakened LSU’s NCAA bid.The Lady Tigers stumbled down the stretch against Vanderbilt, 63-61, in the second round of the conference tournament, which led to a No. 7 seed in the NCAA tournament.The first round matchup against 10th-seeded Hartford proved favorable for LSU. The Lady Tigers destroyed the Hawks, 60-39, but then had to face Duke on its home floor of Cameron Indoor Stadium in Durham, N.C.Chancellor said one thing in particular didn’t hold the team back from a better season.”It wasn’t anything big or major,” Chancellor said. “One game it’d be one thing, and another game it’d be another.”Senior guard Allison Hightower ended her career No. 13 on LSU’s all-time scoring list. The Arlington, Texas, native carried the team on her shoulders, averaging 18.2 points per game her senior season.”I feel like I’m leaving on a good note,” Hightower said. “Even though we didn’t make it to the Sweet 16, I feel good where I’m at.”Hightower, the lone senior on the team, was picked No. 15 overall by the Connecticut Sun in April’s WNBA draft.”Now it’s on to the next level,” Hightower said. “I’m looking forward to that.”LSU now transitions from being one of the younger teams in the SEC to being one of the more experienced teams. “We’re going to have to have somebody to step up,” Chancellor said. “We’ve got the physical attributes here.”The team will have six seniors next season, led by guards Katherine Graham and Latear Eason.Forwards Courtney Jones and LaSondra Barrett will headline a five-member junior class.”We know losing Allison is a major part of our team,” Barrett said. “We have a lot of potential on the bench. This experience we got early will carry us to our junior and senior year.”
 
 
 
—-Contact Michael Lambert at [email protected]