LSU Women’s Basketball Heads To Austin For High-Stakes SEC Rematch With Texas

By ANDRE CHAMPAGNE, Tiger Rag Staff Reporter

The No. 5 LSU women’s basketball team will travel to Austin to face No. 4 Texas on Thursday night at the Moody Center (8 p.m., ESPN). The top-five matchup carries major implications in the SEC standings.

It will be the second meeting between the teams this season. LSU (21-2, 7-2 Southeastern Conference) defeated Texas (21-2, 6-2 SEC) 70-65 on Jan. 11 in Baton Rouge, outrebounding the Longhorns 44-35 in the win.

This time, the Tigers can expect it to be a tougher battle on the glass. The Tigers were outrebounded in their first two conference games against No. 16 Kentucky (18-5, 5-4 SEC) and No. 7 Vanderbilt (21-2, 7-2 SEC), but the team has a new mindset when it comes to crashing the boards.

“It’s toughness and it’s grit,” freshman forward ZaKiyah Johnson said after LSU’s 103-63 win over Alabama on Sunday. “How much do you want to go get the ball? Every time it comes off the glass, it should be yours. And I think that’s the mindset that we’ve gotten to and it helps a lot. We’re going to get it and it should be ours.”

Texas is expected to be far more aggressive in the paint in the rematch. Longhorns’ 6-6 senior forward Kyla Oldacre was one of the most effective players on the floor in the first meeting, posting 16 points and 16 rebounds. Even though she was tough to stop, Oldacre only took nine shots.

“Kyla was six for nine and our guards can’t get her the ball more than nine times and that’s just really disappointing,” head coach Vic Schaefer said after the loss to LSU.

With Oldacre likely to get more paint touches, Thursday’s game will come down to who controls the paint, which is where LSU has dominated teams recently.

6-5 sophomore forward Kate Koval has led the charge inside for the Tigers as of late. Over the last four games, Koval is averaging 9.8 points, 9.8 rebounds and 2.5 blocks per contest.

“I feel like just focusing on defense, finishing, running the floor, continue watching film, doing all of those little things just really helps me and overall, the team as well,” Koval said after the win against Alabama.

Koval will need a stronger performance than in the first meeting, when she finished with no points and just one rebound.

Ball security will also be critical for Mulkey’s squad on Thursday. LSU turned the ball over 16 times in the first matchup, and Texas’ defense is expected to intensify in the second meeting.

Another key factor will be LSU’s defense on Texas graduate student guard Rori Harmon. Harmon, who is known as the Longhorns’ engine on offense, was held to two points and two assists in Baton Rouge. She has turned up the heat recently, as she’s averaging 11 points and 4.5 assists per game in the last four games.

Thursday’s showdown could serve as the first domino to fall in a tightly packed SEC race, with LSU entering the night in second place and Texas sitting right behind in third. A massive road win would allow the Tigers to separate themselves from one of the SEC’s top challengers.

“We don’t have to rely on anybody else winning or losing,” Mulkey said. “Go win seven ball games and you might win your first SEC title.”