By ANDRE CHAMPAGNE, Tiger Rag Staff Reporter
Tonight, the second-seeded LSU women’s basketball team will face a familiar opponent, taking on third-seeded Duke in the Sweet 16 at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento (9 p.m., ESPN).
The Tigers (29-5, 12-4 Southeastern Conference) defeated the Blue Devils 93-77 in early December during the SEC/ACC Challenge in Durham, where they shot 60 percent from the field. But Duke (26-8, 16-2 Atlantic Coast Conference) has become a much different team since then. Since allowing 93 points to LSU, the Blue Devils have held opponents to 55.7 points per game, one of the best marks in the country. The biggest difference, however, is their recent surge, winning 21 of their last 23 games.
“I think their confidence is out of the roof,” head coach Mulkey said on Thursday. “They won the league. They didn’t change anything. Their identity and our identity is the same as it was last time we played. You just perfect what you do. And I think that they just do things better now than they did then, whether it’s defense, whether it’s executing things on the offensive end.”
Tonight’s matchup is expected to be much lower scoring, as both teams pride themselves on strong defense and have improved significantly on that end since December’s high-scoring game.
LSU’s guards have led the way throughout the NCAA Tournament, but a win tonight could come down to the Tigers’ post play.
That’s good news for LSU. Sophomore Kate Koval and senior Amiya Joyner are both coming off double-doubles in the team’s 101-47 win over Texas Tech. Not only are they heating up at the right time, but both also played well against Duke in December.
“You know, we were watching the Duke tape, and you know they were just ballers in that last game, and we need them to play at that level,” senior guard Flau’jae Johnson said on Thursday.
Big4️⃣’s confidence in the post players 📈 pic.twitter.com/EC2kUIgK8l
— LSU Women's Basketball (@LSUwbkb) March 26, 2026
Joyner scored 14 points on 7-of-9 shooting with five rebounds in the first meeting, while Koval added 13 points on 6-of-11 shooting, along with four rebounds, two assists, three steals and a block.
Both players were also effective defensively. LSU’s post players held Duke 6-2 sophomore forward Toby Fournier to 14 points and 6-3 junior forward Delaney Thomas to 12. Mulkey said having both bigs on the floor is an advantage.
“It’s a good matchup for me to have both bigs on the floor,” Mulkey said.
To be successful in the paint, Mulkey emphasized keeping things simple.
“Do what you’ve been doing all year,” Mulkey said. “Throw it in there, finish, defend, run the floor, get back in transition defense.”
No matter what happens Friday, LSU knows its interior presence will be key to opening up opportunities for its guards. Johnson said it’s important for the team to continue building confidence in the post players as they develop.
“I just believe they’re so dynamic – more than they know – and it’s up to us to continue to build confidence in them, throw them the ball,” Johnson said. “(If) They mess up, throw it again. Just tell them they’re big a part of the team. Just tell them like ‘We’re going to feed y’all, but, you know, do your thing,’ And I think they’re building that confidence game by game for sure.”
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