No. 3 LSU suffered its first loss of the season 88-64 on the road against No. 1 South Carolina in a game where the Tigers never led.
LSU immediately went down 6-0 to begin the game and never recovered. However, that does not mean they vanished under the lights.
Despite going down by as much as 16, they cut the lead down to three in the first half. However, South Carolina kept the pressure on LSU and ended the half up 42-32.
By the end of the third quarter, LSU went down by 18 and that lead proved insurmountable, as they finished with a 24-point loss.
To add to the complications, LSU guard Alexis Morris seemed to suffer a knee injury to begin the game. However, she came back and kept LSU in the game, as she dropped 15 points in the first half and finished with 23 rebounds and six rebounds.
Forward Angel Reese, who remains in discussions for National Player of the Year, only scored three points in the first half. However, she played better in the second half and finished with 16 points and four rebounds.
Reese also broke her 23-game double-double streak as she only grabbed four rebounds. She had the longest streak to begin a season in SEC history and had the second longest streak in SEC history behind South Carolina’s Aliyah Boston.
One of the key catalysts to LSU’s loss showed in the rebounding and blocks. South Carolina had 37 rebounds and 10 blocks compared to LSU’s 25 rebounds and six blocks. South Carolina’s physicality and length gave them an advantage in those categories.
South Carolina’s highest scorers consisted of center Kamilla Cordoso, who had 18 points and 13 rebounds, and Zia Cooke, who had 17 points and one rebound.
LSU proved its ability to win throughout the season, but they could not take down a perennial powerhouse in their own stadium. South Carolina remains the only undefeated team remaining in college women’s basketball.