Like two champion boxers, LSU and University of California, Santa Barbara duked it out Saturday afternoon.
But after all the jabs, hooks and bumps and bruises, the No. 4 Lady Tigers (22-1) were left exhausted after a 94-90 triple-overtime win, the longest game in Lady Tigers history.
“I knew it was going to be a really, really good game,” LSU head coach Sue Gunter said. “But I didn’t think it was going to be quite that good. This is a game we’ll learn from. We’re going to be better because of this game.”
No. 20 UCSB already had knocked off then-No. 6 Purdue earlier in the season. The Gauchos, despite being on the losing end, enjoyed the competitive non-conference game.
“Every time we came out for an overtime, I looked over at the ref and I think she said it was the best game she had ever reffed,” said UCSB point guard Jess Hansen.
Gauchos head coach Mark French agreed.
“I thought it was a great game,” he said. “That’s what college sports should all be about.”
Aiysha Smith led LSU with a career-high 30 points to go with 11 rebounds. She is the first Lady Tiger to tally 30 points since current WNBA guard Marie Ferdinand went over the mark in a 2001 game against Purdue.
Seimone Augustus had 20 points, and point guard Temeka Johnson poured in 18. Johnson also had seven steals, seven assists and six rebounds.
Reserve Kristen Mann led the Gauchos with 27 points. Hansen had 23 after shooting 5-of-9 from 3-point range.
After Hansen drove the length of the court with less than 10 seconds remaining, beating the buzzer and tying the game at 62 at the end of the regulation, Johnson had her own answer.
With LSU trailing 68-66 in the first overtime, Johnson drove the lane and put up a one-handed shot that kissed off the backboard to tie the game with eight seconds remaining.
“I’ve never been a part of anything like that,” Augustus said. “I’m glad my teammates stepped up and hit some big shots.”
There were 14 lead changes, and the score was tied 16 times.
LSU built an eight-point lead in the second overtime, but Hansen again came up big, hitting a 3 with 12 seconds remaining to send the game to a third extra session with the score tied at 80.
Trailing by one in the third overtime, Augustus hit a jumper with under two minutes to go, and Smith hit a huge 3 with 55 seconds to go to give LSU a four-point lead.
“I really didn’t know what to expect,” Smith said. “The coaches told us they were strong and physical and they were going to play hard. We can’t take everybody lightly.”
UCSB stayed alive with a 3 to cut the lead to one before Ke-Ke Tardy added two free throws, and Johnson added another to seal the game for LSU.
“We did a great job of coming back in the first two overtimes,” Mann said. “We just came up short in the third.”
It was the Tigers that got the best of the fight in the third overtime.