Few in Rupp Arena could have expected junior forward Tasmin Mitchell to sink the shot that beat Kentucky on Saturday.Not normally a 3-point shooter, Mitchell drained his second 3-point attempt of the evening with just seconds remaining to lift No. 18 LSU past Kentucky, 73-70.The win gives the Tigers (25-4, 13-1) the Southeastern Conference regular season championship outright — their 10th overall — and marks their first win against Kentucky (19-10, 8-6) in Rupp Arena since Jan. 14, 1989.The Tigers have not lost in SEC play since Jan. 11 and have secured the conference title with two regular season games remaining. By contrast, LSU started SEC play 0-5 in 2008, finishing eighth in the final standings with a 6-10 record.”I don’t want to say it’s unbelievable,” LSU coach Trent Johnson said in a postgame radio interview. “Because for me, it’s what I expect.”Luke Winn, Sports Illustrated college basketball analyst, said LSU probably won’t rise higher than a No. 5 seed in the NCAA tournament despite being “head-and-shoulders” above the rest of the SEC.”Everyone is skeptical because of the lack of doing anything in non-conference play,” Winn said. “It’s almost like they have two identities … so they aren’t in the greatest situation with seeding.”But Winn still sees the Tigers making noise once they advance to the tournament.”They’re very athletic, and they have two players with Final Four experience, plus a very good shooter in Marcus Thornton,” he said.Mitchell finished the night with 21 points and eight rebounds, but all eyes were on senior guard Marcus Thornton in the game’s final minutes. Thornton fought his way to 19 second-half points and five second-half rebounds after scoring just four points before halftime.  Thornton, not sophomore point guard Bo Spencer, advanced the ball up the court with the game tied at 70 and less than a minute to play and fought off a double team and passed to Mitchell with 10 seconds remaining.With all five Kentucky players and all 24,411 in attendance keyed on Thornton, Mitchell drained the game-winner.”I think as a coach, I have to let those guys go out there and just play,” Johnson said.The Tigers’ conference title nearly slipped away from them. LSU led by as many as 12 points in the first half and eight by halftime. Kentucky started the second half with a 26-8 run to take a 10-point lead with just 10 minutes remaining.”We were not going to give up,” Mitchell said in a news release. “Even when we were down 10, we kept playing hard.”Thornton came to life with the Tigers facing their second double-digit deficit in the past 10 days. The Tigers’ leading scorer shot 5-of-8 from the field and 3-of-4 from the free throw line for 16 total points and grabbed five rebounds in the game’s final 10 minutes.”I got in a groove in the second half, and I didn’t feel like I could miss,” Thornton told the Associated Press. “I didn’t feel like anyone could guard me.”With seven top-25 teams falling this week, the Tigers’ win provides a good opportunity to advance further into the national consciousness. “LSU probably has a shot at the 10-11-12 range next week with all the teams going down in front of them,” Winn said. “Plus you have to take momentum into account.”ESPN college basketball analyst Digger Phelps said Saturday night that Johnson should be National Coach of the Year. Winn agrees Johnson is on the short list of contenders.”He has to be considered the slam dunk SEC Coach of the Year,” Winn said. “If people were making a top-five list for National Coach of the Year, Trent would probably have to be on it.”——Contact David Helman at [email protected]