By RON HIGGINS, Journal Sports
BATON ROUGE – LSU’s Angel Reese has just lost once on the Tigers’ homecourt in two seasons.
So, she certainly wasn’t going to be defeated on Senior Day Sunday afternoon in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center.
Reese had 22 points, 14 rebounds, 5 blocked shots and 3 steals, running her PMAC homecourt record to 33-1 as the No. 7 Tigers handled Kentucky 77-56 to close regular season play.
While LSU (26-4, 13-3 SEC) will likely host NCAA regional first and second-round games in three weeks, Reese, a junior who transferred to LSU last season from Maryland and led the Tigers to a national championship, participated in Senior Day activities.
She hasn’t announced whether she’ll follow her pre-determined plan of entering the WNBA draft, so Sunday’s crowd of 13,044 repeatedly chanted “One more year” as Reese exited the court after the halftime ceremony honoring her and Louisville grad transfer Hailey Van Lith, who is also eligible to return for another season.
“It was a lot of pressure,” Reese said with a smile after hearing the public cry for her to return to LSU for another season. “This fan base is amazing. I probably will never see anything like this again. You think about that when you’re trying to make a decision. The support here made me who I am. I am the Bayou Barbie because of LSU.”
Reese and Van Lith both said they won’t decide on their futures until the season concludes.
“I’m not thinking about anything but trying to win a national championship,” Van Lith said.
Reese’s mom and LSU basketball legend Shaquille O’Neal, wearing matching Angel T-shirts honoring Reese’s daughter, accompanied her to midcourt for the halftime presentation. Everyone roared long and loud when Reese got her curtain call, exiting the game with 2:20 left with LSU holding a 22-point lead.
Freshman guard Mikaylah Williams of Bossier City and Parkway High, until Sunday the only LSU player to start every game this season, did not play because of plantar fasciitis. She sat on the Tigers’ bench wearing a walking boot. Coach Kim Mulkey said it was a precaution, but it was also a problem for her team.
Williams’ 3-point shooting, mid-range jumpers and precision entry passes to the post were greatly missed.
The Tigers went 1 for 12 in 3s and the lack of mid-range jumpers allowed Kentucky’s defense to crowd LSU’s post and result in the majority of the Tigers’ 17 missed layups and a large portion of their 15 turnovers.
It forced LSU to find other ways to score, many buckets off defensive plays. Guard Flau’jae Johnson had 21 points, 7 rebounds and a team-high 4 steals, forward Annesah Morrow added 15 points and 10 rebounds and Van Lith contributed 15 points and 2 steals.
“I felt like we played the entire game like we could not be beat, and I don’t like coaching kids like that,” said Mulkey, whose team finished second in the SEC.
“We get offensive boards, and we kick it out for 40-footers. We get another ball, and we kick it out. But that’s what they see in the pros. That’s the kind of basketball that will get you beat down the stretch.”
Kentucky (11-19, 4-12 SEC) was led by former LSU forward Ajae Petty, who had 13 points, 15 rebounds and 3 blocked shots.
Wildcats’ coach Kyra Elzy was proud her team didn’t let the game get away until the final two minutes, even though 23 UK turnovers led to 26 LSU points.
“The two words we used to prepare for this game were purpose and passion,” Elzy said. “I thought we came in and did that. We had fight in us and we needed it.”
Without Williams available, Mulkey adjusted by moving starting point guard Van Lith to shooting guard and inserting Last Tear-Poa at the point.
Though the Tigers missed 8 of their first 10 shots, they managed to find a rhythm with their defense. They converted 9 UK turnovers into 10 first-quarter points as LSU established a 20-9 lead heading into the second quarter.
When it appeared that the Tigers would pull away for a 20-point plus halftime lead after a 10-2 run inflated LSU’s lead to 17 at 31-14 with 6:28, the Wildcats dug in.
LSU missed 9 of its last 10 field goal attempts and committed 3 turnovers, fueling UK’s first half closing 13-2 rally. It sliced the Tigers’ lead to 33-27 at the break.
LSU re-focused and opened the third quarter hitting its first seven shots. UK missed 7 of its first 10 shots. LSU pushed the lead back to 19 points at 50-31.
But the Tigers never got the spurt to blow the game open with a 20 points-plus lead until the game’s final three minutes.
LSU doesn’t play again until next Friday as it earned a double bye in the SEC tournament that starts Wednesday in Greenville, S.C.
Mulkey said although Williams could have played Sunday with her aching foot, she also may sit her out of action for the SEC tourney.
“This is March Madness now,” said Mulkey, whose 60 NCAA tournament wins ranks fourth all-time among Division 1 head coaches including the best Final Four winning percentage (8-1, 88.9 percent). “You make sure you’re rested enough, and you stay sharp on the floor. You make sure you rest any aches and pains. That’s why I did it with Mikaylah. Today and the next games (in the SEC tournament) are not more important than the NCAA playoffs.”
Contact Ron at ronhigginsmedia@gmail.com