LSU’s bench combined to score 40 points while junior Seimone Augustus recovered from an early ankle injury to score 18 points as the No. 1 ranked Lady Tigers blew past Kentucky 81-58 Thursday night at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center.
With the win, LSU (24-1, 11-0 Southeastern Conference) earned its 11th straight victory as the Lady Tigers managed to remain undefeated in conference play.
Shooting 50.0 percent for the game, coach Pokey Chatman said she was pleased with the team offensively.
“I was pleased with their effort offensively,” Chatman said. “Whether we faced a tandem zone or man-to-man we were able to get to our different sets.”
Kentucky (14-12, 3-8 SEC) managed to keep the game close midway through the first half, keeping within three points at the 8:20 mark with LSU up 23-20.
But a jumper by guard Temeka Johnson sparked a 24-9 run to end the half as LSU headed into halftime up 47-29.
Kentucky failed to pull closer than 18 points in the second half as LSU pulled away with the win.
Kentucky coach Mickie DeMoss said LSU proved strong in every aspect of the game.
“It’s hard to find a weakness on them,” DeMoss said. “They have a solid perimeter game and a solid post game.”
The Lady Tigers shot 4-of-10 from 3-point range while freshman Sylvia Fowles came off the bench to score 12 points and grab eight rebounds.
Chatman said bench production proved important not only in the win but also for the near future.
“It’s huge,” Chatman said. “I think it’s the next step in this team accomplishing some of the goals they’ve set for themselves.”
Senior Florence Williams added eight points off the bench while sophomore Hanna Biernacka was perfect from the 3-point line, shooting 2-for-2 with six points.
Thanks to a strong perimeter defense, LSU managed to shut down Kentucky’s leading scorer, Sara Potts.
Potts, who averages 13.6 points per game, was held to only seven points and eight rebounds in the loss.
DeMoss said LSU, like most other teams, proved successful by shutting Potts down from the 3-point line.
“It’s been that way most of the year, where teams are keying in on Potts and putting their best player on her,” DeMoss said. “I thought we could get the ball inside a little more, but we just couldn’t get any type of flow.”
LSU suffered an early scare when Augustus went down hard on her right ankle midway through the first half on a layup. Yet the junior guard managed to return minutes later to record her 51st straight double-digit scoring game.
“Seimone does a very good job of taking care of herself in terms of the weight room,” Chatman said. “I think she’ll be okay.”
With LSU holding Kentucky to 41.2 percent shooting, DeMoss said LSU proved strong on the defensive side of the ball.
“In the past, LSU has been known more as an offensive team,” DeMoss said. “But defensively, this is probably the best team I’ve seen.”
With the loss, Kentucky remains in second to last place in the SEC, while LSU continues on with it’s best conference start in school history.
“We keep talking about trying to get better every possession,” DeMoss said. “We’re just building for the future.”