The hype surrounding LSU women’s basketball is arguably higher than it’s ever been.

From Kim Mulkey’s arrival last season to the emergence of Angel Reese and a 25-1 record this season, LSU’s fanbase has fully embraced the program that garnered little attention just two years ago.

The support from the fanbase is easy to see. Attendance numbers have skyrocketed this season, with LSU breaking a Pete Maravich Assembly Center attendance record in its win over Tennessee.

Over 15,000 people filled the PMAC to watch the Tigers secure a 76-68 win in a “whiteout” game for the LSU crowd. That wasn’t the only game that featured a raucous LSU crowd, though.

A little less than two weeks prior on Jan. 9, LSU welcomed Arkansas to the PMAC for a battle between two of the top teams in the SEC. LSU gutted out a 79-76 win; the crowd was a critical factor, according to Arkansas head coach Mike Neighbors.

“Their student body, I don’t know how many they had here but it was vocal, it was honest, it was distracting, it was a really really tough environment,” Neighbors said. 

The student investment and attendance has been a major factor in the changing atmosphere around LSU women’s basketball, according to LSU Director of Fan Engagement Heidi Wetherbee.

“Atmosphere 100% makes a big difference,” Wetherbee said. “It energizes our team when it’s been a late game going into overtime and they’re digging for those last couple of pushes of energy and you guys 100% reinvigorate them.”

Across all levels of women’s and men’s college basketball, student sections are often the driving force of big crowds and atmospheres. Groups like the “Cameron Crazies,” at Duke, or the newly named “Kim’s Krewe,” at LSU, are known for their loud cheering and in-game gimmicks that create a tough environment for their team’s opponent.

At LSU, Wetherbee and the athletic department have worked with the students throughout the season to continue to build the atmosphere. Promotions such as free food and t-shirts for students have been a large part of the effort to drive student engagement.

“We made extra efforts this year to really get out in front of the students,” Wetherbee said. “We hit free speech rally the day of the game, as long as it’s a midweek game, if it’s a weekend game, we try and hit it on the Friday before the weekend with flyers of what we’re doing. We did a lot of student food this year, we’ve had a lot of t-shirts, especially here at the end of the season. The two things I always hear that get students out are food and t-shirts.”

Another factor in creating this season’s environment is the combination of the students with the rest of the fanbase. Much of the early support for LSU women’s basketball under Mulkey came from the older crowd, and that support is still present.

With the growing support coming from the student body, one of the challenges for Weathersbee and LSU is creating an environment that is appealing to both crowds. 

“We’ve worked really hard this year and continue to work hard to find that balance between what the older generations of our fanbase want, more family based kind of stuff and stuff that the students in the team want to hear,” Wetherbee said. “Those are two kinds of different ends of the spectrum. So, you’ve got to find a way to merge them nicely.” 

A major part in creating the atmosphere in the PMAC is the music. Between the band and the music pumped through the arena speakers, it supplements the noise made by the crowd.

This is another area where efforts are made to balance the interests of the older and younger crowd. At LSU women’s basketball games, the band sits in the lower level of the student section and is active throughout the game. 

The band plays many of LSU’s traditional anthems and fight songs that resonate with much of the fan base, especially the older crowd. The students feed off that energy too, but Wetherbee talked about the importance of playing songs the students and players know and finding a balance.

Some students do enjoy the traditional experience of the band, though. Toni Gwynn, an LSU junior, enjoys the energy the band creates. 

“I like the band more than like a typical, like, DJ type thing. Just because, like, everybody knows the stand tunes, like, even like the old people who show up,” Gwynn said. “Any situation where there’s like live music versus like DJ recordings type deal, I’m always gonna go for live music.”

Many students, though, enjoy the energy created by the music played over the speakers. Some have even mentioned the idea of having a DJ inside the arena to enhance that experience.

Peyton Pipher, an LSU junior, enjoys the newer music that connects the students to the players.

“We love our Tiger Band. They do a fantastic job. But I think just creating basketball environment from the NBA to college elsewhere, keeping up with the times. I mean, if you look at the loudest parts of the Tennessee game, it was when, when ‘Swag Surfin’ was played, or when, songs are played. That’s when the student section really went crazy,” Pipher said. “I’m definitely pro-DJ and I think it affects the team. I think the girls probably enjoy listening to the music that we all like, they’re one of us.”

Though there’s no metric or statistic to truly measure it, the crowd’s impact on games is easy to see. LSU is currently undefeated at home this season, and Mulkey has often given credit to the LSU fans.

Now with one home game left in the regular season, LSU looks to continue that atmosphere into the postseason. Wetherbee looks to cultivate that atmosphere going forward with LSU just two years into the Mulkey era. 

“Every time we get you get a new coach, you expect it to be a couple of years before we rebuild,” Wetherbee said. “But she’s a phenomenal recruiter, her and her staff utmost respect to all of them for what they’re building there. I would hope that we continue the, the upward trajectory, and that will lead to, you know, letting us do more and bigger things.”