Women’s basketball preview: LSU return top scoring defense in SEC, projected 6th in conference

By Alexandra Cox | @alexandracox123

November 4, 2019

Hannah Michel

The Reveille’s five “Players to Watch” on LSU men’s and women’s basketball teams for the 2019-2020 season.

The LSU women’s basketball team kicks off its 2019-2020 season when the Lady Tigers host the University of New Orleans in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center at 6:30 p.m. on Tuesday. The Tigers start their campaign for the NCAA tournament while Coach Nikki Fargas enters her ninth season as the head coach.
The Lady Tigers are coming off of an exciting win in an exhibition game against Mississippi College on Friday. The Lady Tigers had four players to reach double-digit points. Junior forward Awa Trasi, junior forward Khayla Pointer and freshman guard Tiara Young all scored 12 points. While senior guard Mercedes Brooks scored 10 points.
The Lady Tigers are led by Senior forward Ayana Mitchell who has been named to the Southeastern Conference Coaches Preseason All-Conference Team. In the preseason, Mitchell has also been named to the Katrina McClain Award Watch List by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association, and the SEC Media Preseason All-Conference First Team.
The Conyers, Georgia native finished her junior year ranked 24th in the nation and second in the SEC in field goal shooting percentage at 56.3%. She averaged a double-double of 13.5 points and 10.5 rebounds per game. Her rebounding ranked 30th in the nation and third in the SEC, while she was 20th in the nation with 16 double-doubles. Mitchell finished 17th in the SEC in scoring and was tied for 11th in steals per game (1.7).
The Lady Tigers also return the top scoring defense in the SEC and 16th in the nation at 56.2 points per game. LSU returns four starters, including Mitchell, and Pointer, senior guard Jaelyn Richard-Harris and junior center Faustine Aifuwa. Freshmen Tiara Young and Domonique Davis comprise LSU’s No. 20 recruiting class joining the team in 2019-20.
LSU is predicted to finish sixth in the SEC. They finished last season 16-13 overall and 7-9 in SEC play.
LSU plays 14 games in the PMAC this season. Home games include SEC rivals Alabama, Georgia, and Kentucky, and non-conference rivals, Southeastern, Rutgers and Florida State.