The LSU women’s basketball team will play its first game of the Southeastern Conference Tournament in a quarterfinal matchup against No. 18 Texas A&M today at the Verizon Arena in Little Rock, Arkansas, shortly after the conclusion of the South Carolina and Arkansas matchup at noon.
The game will be televised on the SEC Network.
LSU (16-12, 10-6 SEC) will face Texas A&M (23-8, 11-6 SEC) for the third time this season and for the Lady Tigers’ second game in a row. LSU split the regular season series, winning the last matchup for its final game of the season in a 80-63 blowout on Sunday.
The Lady Tigers earned a double-bye in the tournament after defeating Texas A&M to clinch the fourth seed in the SEC Tournament. Texas A&M dropped to the fifth seed with the loss and dropped six spots in the national rankings after being the No. 12 team in the country.
Senior forward Sheila Boykin said the team will try to look at the game as if the two teams haven’t faced each other.
“It’s going to be a new game,” Boykin said. “Of course they’re going to go back and watch film and see what they can do better. We’re going to do the same. It’s going to be a new game. The score is 0-0. That last game doesn’t matter anymore. It’s on to the next.”
The first time the two teams faced each other — Jan. 11 in College Station, Texas — was the last loss the Lady Tigers suffered before rewriting the course of their season beating two top-15 teams back-to-back. Since the loss, LSU has gone 8-4, including a six-game home winning streak.
LSU coach Nikki Caldwell said her team has shown what it is capable of during that stretch and they can play with the best in the country.
“This has been a very interesting past few months when you look at the path this team has had to take to get to this place,” Caldwell said. “They have really shown they are resilient, and they play with a lot of courage. They have the passion and the determination to be one of the best teams in the country.
“They have proven that through their play and through their record. We’ve got to continue to take this momentum that we have into the SEC tournament.”
Texas A&M skipped the first round with a bye and defeated a 13-seeded Auburn to advance to the quarterfinals. The Aggies will be without their starting junior point guard Jordan Jones, who they lost for the season after she tore her ACL and meniscus in her right knee. She ranked 11th in the nation in assists per game with 6.6.
Junior guard Courtney Walker, who is tied for second in the SEC in points per game with 14.8, will lead Texas A&M against the Lady Tigers.
Caldwell said she is looking forward to starting the tournament and is excited about her team’s chances.
“I feel like this is a tournament for anyone when you look at the wins and the losses and who has beaten who and how close the games have been,” Caldwell said. “It’s going to be a great tournament. It’s been a great season for our fans to just watch SEC women’s basketball. I know we don’t underestimate anybody in our league.”
You can reach Stanton Vignes on Twitter @stanvignes_TDR.
LSU women’s basketball team prepares for SEC Tournament against Texas A&M
March 5, 2015
More to Discover