By ANDRE CHAMPAGNE, Tiger Rag Staff Reporter
The No. 5 LSU women’s basketball team bounced back from Thursday’s loss to No. 4 Texas, defeating Auburn 77-44 with ease on Sunday afternoon at Neville Arena.
“I saw what I expected,” head coach Kim Mulkey said after the win. “We’re not the kind of team that just throws a pity party. Just lost our composure at the end of the Texas game and I thought we had a great practice last night here and just keep getting better. But yeah, I mean, it was pretty much a game where we did our job and we gave everybody an opportunity to play.”
LSU (22-3, 8-3 Southeastern Conference) held Auburn (13-12, 2-9 SEC) to just 44 points on 15-of-60 shooting (25%). It marked the fewest points the Tigers have allowed in SEC play this season.
Freshman forward ZaKiyah Johnson led LSU with 16 points while also grabbing eight rebounds and recording one block. Three other Tigers scored in double figures: junior guard Mikaylah Williams (12), senior guard Flau’jae Johnson (10) and senior forward Amiya Joyner (10).
Freshman guard Divine Bourrage scored LSU’s first points of the fourth quarter with a three-pointer to make it 64-33 with 8:13 remaining. Joyner later added a layup to reach 10 points, capping a 9-0 run that gave LSU a 70-33 lead with 6:29 to play. LSU and Auburn played even in the fourth quarter, each scoring 16 points.
Sophomore guard Jada Richard knocked down a three-point jumper from the top of the key to give LSU a commanding 43-14 lead with 7:15 remaining in the quarter. ZaKiyah Johnson hit a pair of free throws to extend LSU’s lead to 55-21 with 2:58 left in the period. Later, junior guard MiLaysia Fulwiley dished a pass to senior forward Amiya Joyner, who finished easily at the rim to give the Tigers a 61-28 lead heading into the fourth quarter. ZaKiyah Johnson added eight points and three rebounds in the frame.
Both offenses struggled in the opening minutes of the second quarter. LSU extended its lead to 15 when freshman guard Bella Hines hit an eight-foot jumper after grabbing her own miss, giving the Tigers a 25-10 lead with 4:40 remaining before halftime. LSU ended the half on an 8-0 run to take a 36-13 lead into the break. The Tigers held Auburn to just 13 first-half points – the fewest LSU has allowed in a half during SEC play this season.
Mulkey opened the game with a small starting lineup that featured Richard, Flau’jae Johnson, Williams, ZaKiyah Johnson and freshman forward Grace Knox. The change benefited the Tigers as they jumped out to an early 11-2 lead in the opening five minutes. Williams scored LSU’s first five points. The Tigers closed the quarter on a 5-4 run to take a 16-6 lead into the second quarter. Both Williams and ZaKiyah Johnson had five points in the frame.
LSU will have about a week to prepare for No. 3 South Carolina (24-2, 10-1 SEC) as the Tigers host the Gamecocks on Saturday at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center (7:30 p.m., ABC).
South Carolina handed No. 19 Tennessee (15-6, 7-2 SEC) its worst loss in program history, defeating the Lady Vols 93-50. The Gamecocks shot 69% from the field, their highest mark of the season.
Saturday’s top-10 clash in Baton Rouge will be a decisive game for the SEC standings.
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