Heading into this game against No. 14 Kentucky, No. 7 LSU women’s basketball was 0-2 against top-15 teams on the road.

That changed today after the Tigers came back down 16 points in the first half to defeat the Wildcats 65-58.

With this win over Kentucky, LSU has clinched a double bye in the SEC tournament and earned a top-4 seed.

Mikaylah Williams takes over

The Tigers entered the second half down by 12, but the deficit felt much more significant than what it was. Mikayla Williams kept the Tigers float, scoring nine points in the first half, but needed some help from her teammates.

While Aneesah Morrow and Flau’Jae Johnson gave Williams a hand, it was Williams who led the Tigers to victory.

Williams ended the game with 24 points and five rebounds while shooting 10-for-21 (47.6%) from the field.

The biggest moment for Williams in this game came during the last minute of the game when Kentucky stormed back in the fourth quarter.

The Wildcats ended up closing the gap and even took the lead, but LSU stayed with them it was a battle in the final minutes of the game.

While up by only one with less than a minute to go, Johnson found Williams at the top of the key, where Williams buried a three-pointer to make it a four-point game.

That shot ended up being the nail in the coffin for the Wildcats, and it was another clutch that Williams could add to her long list from this season.

Second half domination

The first half was a half to forget for LSU.

The Tigers shot 9-for-28 (32%) from the field and 1-for-4 (25%) from the three-point line. They also racked up ten turnovers on top of that.

There was no energy or ball movement; LSU was getting straight-up outworked.

However, the energy shifted in the third quarter as the Tigers outscored the Wildcats 23-6 and entered the fourth quarter with a five-point lead.

The trio of Williams, Johnson and Morrow contributed to that third-quarter barrage, combining for 21 of the 23 points.

The Tigers shot 10-for-21 (47.6%) from the field and only had one turnover in that third quarter.
It wasn’t just the offense that helped propel the Tigers in the third quarter, it was the defense as well.

After giving up 38 points in the first half and allowing 10 second-chance points, the Wildcats only scored 20 points and only had four second-chance points in the second half.

The third quarter was LSU’s opening, and holding the Wildcats to 2-for-13 (15.4%) from the field allowed the Tigers to come back.

LSU’s defense tightened up in the second half

Kim Mulkey’s teams will always have one thing that will be constantly emphasized every year: defense.

The defense for the Tigers was lost in the first half.

Kentucky created separation in the second quarter as the Wildcats 24 points while shooting 10-for-21 (47.6%) from the field and 4-for-11 (36.4%) from the three-point line.

Kentucky’s leading scorer, Georgia Amoore, scored eight points in the second quarter while having three assists and getting her teammates involved.

However, the script changed in the second half as the defense from the Tigers started to stifle the Wildcats.

Amoore finished the second half shooting 2-for-9 (22%) and only scoring four points. It wasn’t just Amoore who struggled.

Kentucky shot 8-for-28 (28.6%) from the field and had nine turnovers.

One way to get back into the game if you’re struggling to score offensively is by having tough defense and forcing turnovers, and that’s precisely what they did.

The Tigers snatched up the ball away from the Wildcats seven times and scored nine points off turnovers.