The postseason is here for LSU Women’s Basketball, but the mindset is just the same. The Tigers took care of business Friday night, taking down the Georgia Bulldogs in their first SEC Tournament game with an 81-62 win.
Despite a 40-minute delay in the first half due to a water leak, the Tigers played their game and came out on top. This win marks head coach Kim Mulkey’s first win in the SEC Tournament during her time at LSU, as last year the team was eliminated in the first round with an upset loss to Kentucky.
“The girls went into their locker room, and I walked in and told them three or four things immediately that we needed to do better,” Mulkey said. “You want to know what I said? ‘Aren’t you hosting a regional here? I believe I’d get that fixed, that’s not a good look.'”
The dynamic guard duo of Alexis Morris and Flau’jae Johnson led the charge for LSU, combining for 68 of the Tigers’ 83 total points. The two outscored the entire Georgia squad and combined for 10 three-pointers.
Morris led the Tigers in scoring with 28 points along with four assists, and Johnson was right behind with 20 points, eight rebounds and three assists.
“This is my last year,” Morris said. “It’s do or die for me. I just came out and took what the defense gave me.”
Angel Reese made an impact once again. Although it wasn’t a double-double performance, she finished with 15 points and six rebounds on the night.
LaDazhia Williams also was a force in the paint, scoring in double-figures with 10 points and seven rebounds.
“I think any coach would tell you when you have four or five in double figures, you’re going to win a lot of basketball games,” Mulkey said.
Despite the Bulldogs coming up short, they still filled the stat sheet. Alisha Lewis led Georgia with a double-double performance of 14 points and 10 assists, along with four steals. Javyn Nicholson and Brittney Smith both finished in double figures for Georgia. Nicholson scored 11 points with five rebounds, and Smith added 10 points.
“This week we’re going to have to be super creative,” Georgia head coach Katie Abrahamson-Henderson said. “We’ll be really creative this week, we need to heal some bodies up. This time of year everybody’s got little aches and pains everywhere, so we’ll definitely heal some bodies up.”
The Tigers could not have set the tone any better for the rest of the SEC Tournament going forward. Morris used her veteran experience in the way Mulkey knew she could. In addition, it didn’t take long for the newcomers to get used to the waters of the SEC postseason.
With Morris and Johnson getting hot and staying hot from three, the potential for the guards along with Jasmine Carson to shoot consistently from the perimeter going forward can make LSU a dangerous team in the tournament.
They also rested Angel Reese, as she sat the majority of the fourth quarter. Having her rested headed into the rest of the tournament games will also be beneficial.
LSU will face the winner of Tennessee and Kentucky, which is following LSU’s matchup with Georgia. The Tigers take the floor once again on Saturday night at 6 p.m. C.T. at Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, South Carolina. The game will be broadcasted live on ESPNU.
“As a competitor, you have to have goals and our goal was to win one game here,” Mulkey said. “We’ve done that now. Can we win the next one”?
