No. 7 LSU Uses Dominant Second Half to Defeat Tennessee 89-73 on Senior Night

By ANDRE CHAMPAGNE, Tiger Rag Staff Reporter

Junior guard Mikaylah Williams recorded a double-double with a team-high 20 points and 10 rebounds to lead LSU to an 89-73 win over Tennessee on Thursday night at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center.

“Well, I thought Mikaylah played strong,” head coach Kim Mulkey said after the win. “When we went small, I moved Mikaylah inside with Z some and with Grace some and I just felt like she played extremely strong on the perimeter. We all know Mikaylah’s one of the jump shooting midrange players in the country, but she mixed up what she was doing offensively.”

With the victory, LSU clinched at least a top-four seed and a double bye in the SEC Tournament.

Mulkey also became the first coach in SEC history to win 25 or more games in each of her first five seasons with a team.

LSU (25-4, 11-4 SEC) pulled away in the second half, outscoring Tennessee 46-31 over the final 20 minutes. The Tigers shot 19-of-38 (50%) from the field after the break.

Junior guard MiLaysia Fulwiley turned in her third straight strong performance, finishing with 18 points on 7-of-18 shooting while adding six rebounds, three assists, four blocks and two steals.

“She’s been playing in practice very confidently,” Mulkey said. “She can make some of the worst turnovers that just make your blood boil, but then she can get it back on the other end, so MiLaysia has got a lot of energy right now. She’s got a lot of confidence right now.”

Senior guard Flau’jae Johnson added 10 points and three rebounds in her final regular-season home game at LSU. Johnson was one of three seniors honored and ran out of the tunnel wearing a “Feaux” jersey.

“It was a moment,” Johnson said after the game. “I told Jennifer (Roberts) I wanted to have big fo’ on my jersey with a E-A-U-X how LSU does it, so they did it for me, so it was pretty cool.”

BIG FEAUX FOREVER. pic.twitter.com/YXTHuh0gZk

— LSU Women's Basketball (@LSUwbkb) February 26, 2026

Lasting Legacy 🤞 pic.twitter.com/9OFPehDkYV

— LSU Women's Basketball (@LSUwbkb) February 27, 2026

LSU sealed the win in the fourth quarter, outscoring Tennessee 19-14, holding the Lady Vols to 5-of-17 shooting in the final period.

Tennessee briefly regained the lead early in the third quarter after another three-pointer, but LSU responded quickly. Freshman forward ZaKiyah Johnson scored six straight points to give the Tigers a 51-46 lead with 6:18 left in the period. LSU capitalized in transition late in the quarter to build a 70-59 advantage entering the fourth. Williams led the Tigers in the third with eight points on 4-of-5 shooting.

Freshman forward Grace Knox opened the second-quarter scoring with a layup to trim the deficit to 20-18. Fulwiley knocked down back-to-back threes to tie the game at 24 with 7:44 remaining. LSU stretched its lead to 34-26 when freshman guard Bella Hines finished at the rim, but Tennessee later answered with its sixth three-pointer of the half to cut the margin to 42-41. Williams closed the half with a tough shot in the paint to send LSU into the break ahead 43-42.

LSU struck first in the opening quarter on a basket in the paint by ZaKiyah Johnson. Williams later hit a midrange jumper to make it 8-4 with 6:09 left. Tennessee caught fire from deep, knocking down three straight three-pointers to take an 18-13 lead with 1:45 remaining. The Lady Vols pushed the margin to seven before sophomore guard Jada Richard buried a three at the buzzer to cut it to 20-16 at the end of the first quarter.

LSU will travel to Starkville to face Mississippi State (18-10, 5-9 SEC) in Sunday’s regular-season finale at Humphrey Coliseum (3 p.m., SEC Network).