Roaring Into The Postseason: LSU Women's Basketball

after a 6-game win streak (including victories over #7 Kentucky, #9 Georgia, and #13 Texas A&M), the LSU women's basketball team is now ranked #22 in the AP Poll

...and they are now on the front page of ESPN's women's basketball home page with the headline "Roaring Into The Postseason: Riding a six-game win streak, not many teams are hotter than LSU as the postseason arrives"
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and a sub-heading of "Champ Week: LSU on tear"

and it links to an article titled "Red-hot LSU heads to SEC tourney" which says:

This season didn't start well, and the middle was rather shaky too. But the closing stretch has been very strong: LSU goes into the SEC tournament on a six-game winning streak.

"You look at LSU, who is the sixth seed, and I can see them winning the tournament," said Matt Mitchell, coach of No. 2 seed Kentucky.
...
"Everybody is doing what they need to do," Caldwell said of LSU's surge. "We're a better defensive team, a better rebounding team. [The players are] liking more playing with each other, and that's been key for us. So it's been an interesting year: losing what we lost last year, and then the players that have emerged."

LSU lost six players, including top scorer LaSondra Barrett, after Caldwell's inaugural season with LSU, which went 23-11 and fell in the NCAA tournament's second round to Penn State.

Entering this season, Caldwell felt sure she could count on three veterans: seniors Adrienne Webb and Bianca Lutley, and junior Jeanne Kenney. They have come through. Webb is averaging 13.9 points, Lutley 10.2 and Kenney, the point guard, directing the squad with 119 assists to 60 turnovers.

But after those three, Caldwell really didn't know who would step forward. Several have, in particular junior center Theresa Plaisance, who leads the team in scoring (17.6 ppg) and rebounding (8.2 rpg) after averages of 4.5 and 1.9 last season. And freshman guard Danielle Ballard (12.6 ppg, 6.7 rpg) has been a big boost too.

The 6-foot-5 Plaisance didn't start last season and averaged just 11.7 minutes. She never seemed very comfortable or confident on court. But she has transformed herself into a first-team All-SEC player this season. Ballard made the SEC's all-freshman team, and both she and Plaisance were on the league's all-defensive squad.

"I couldn't tell you how important Danielle Ballard's play has been to our team," Caldwell said. "And statistically, where Theresa Plaisance was last year compared to where she is this year -- I've not been around another player that's made that type of jump in their game and has been very efficient in everything she's done."

Other coaches have noticed that too, including Texas A&M's Gary Blair..."I just think she's a complete player now," Blair said (about Plaisance). "It's mind-boggling where she was as a freshman compared to where she is now."

All the Lady Tigers have to pitch in, though, because the team is down to just eight healthy and eligible players. But there is a silver linings even to that.
"They get more attention with the four of us," Caldwell said of the coach-to-player ratio. ...their attention span has been a lot more focused as well. We have a little slogan that we're going by that 'Eight is enough.'"
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Incidentally, eight would also be enough -- eight straight victories, that is -- to give LSU the SEC tournament title and a berth in the Final Four, which is being held just down the road in New Orleans.
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The Lady Tigers now seem sure to get an NCAA tournament invitation, no matter what happens in Duluth (at the SEC Tourney). A month ago, it looked as if LSU would be hosting early-round games in the Maravich Center without the Lady Tigers playing.

The steady hand on the rudder during the rough times this season is Caldwell's
...

 

those five are basically the whole team (statistically), and all five of them were big-time recruits. this is where the five of them rated on the ESPN100 coming out of high school:

No. 25 overall -- G Ballard

No. 25 overall -- G Lutley (Florida Association of Basketball Coaches Player of the Year, Florida Class 4A Player of the Year)

No. 31 overall -- PG Kenney (Louisiana Class 4A Most Outstanding Player)

No. 40 overall -- C Plaisance (McDonald's All-American, two-time Louisiana Gatorade Louisiana Player of the Year, Louisiana Miss Basketball, Louisiana Class 4A Player of the Year)

No. 56 overall -- G Webb (2009 Gatorade Alabama Player of the Year)

what's interesting is the two juniors (the C and the PG), the only 2 of the 5 from Louisiana, the only 2 white girls of the five...both played in Louisiana 4A... one won 4A player of the year as a junior, the other won it as a senior... and they both led their teams to the 4A Championship game where they faced off against each other. the PG is from Baton Rouge, the C is from Thibodaux, where her mother is the head women's basketball coach at Nicholls State

the other three (the three guards, the three black girls) were big-time recruits that came to LSU from all over the South:
Lutley (#25 on ESPN100) -- near the Florida/Alabama border
Ballard (#25 on ESPN100) -- Memphis, TN
Webb (#56 on ESPN100) -- near the Alabama/Tennessee border

 

LSU's last loss was 62-64 L to #12/#13 Tennessee in the PMAC

“That loss to Tennessee sparked something in us,” starting forward Shanece McKinney said. “That game should have been ours. We made a vow that from here on out, it’s on. We’re not losing anymore. Everything that comes our way, we’re smashing it.”

 

SEC Tournament

LSU's Bracket (with national rankings):
25-4 -- #7/#7 Kentucky -- Preseason: #6/#6
24-5 -- #12/#12 Georgia -- Preseason: #10/#11
19-10 -- #22/#28 LSU -- Preseason: #32/#35
20-10 -- #33/NR Vanderbilt -- Preseason: #16/#17
17-14 -- NR Missouri
16-13 -- NR Auburn

The Other Bracket (with national rankings):
23-6 -- #9/#9 Tennessee -- Preseason: #16/#20
23-6 -- #14/#17 South Carolina -- Preseason: #27/#44
21-9 -- #19/#19 Texas A&M -- Preseason: #12/#15
18-12 -- NR Arkansas -- Preseason: #40/NR
18-13 -- NR Florida
13-18 -- NR Alabama

LSU plays Auburn, with the winner facing #12/#12 Georgia (who sat out and rested tonight with a 1st Round bye)

the SECT is in Duluth, GA... which give the fans of first two teams LSU would have to play a huge advantage:

Driving distance to SECT
1 hour -- Georgia
2 hours, 10 min -- Auburn
3 hours, 20 min -- Tennessee
3 hours, 20 min -- South Carolina
3 hours, 30 min -- Alabama
4 hours -- Vanderbilt
5 hours -- Starkville
5 hours, 15 min -- Florida
5 hours, 30 min -- Ole Miss
5 hours, 50 min -- Kentucky
8 hours -- LSU
10 hours, 10 min -- Missouri
11 hours -- Arkansas
13 hours -- Texas A&M

 

tweet from LSU Women's Basketball a couple hours ago:

Huge collection of #LSU fans singing Callin Baton Rouge here at hotel as team heads for the arena. Tipoff 2 hours

 

LSU is 0-5 vs Auburn in the SECT. This season, this is the second meeting between Auburn and LSU with LSU winning 59-55 @ Auburn, when Auburn was in the midst of an eight-game losing streak (but Auburn has since recovered to win 3 of it's last 5). LSU escaped Auburn with a 59-55 win behind a game-high 21 points from Alabama native Adrienne Webb. Auburn had a chance to tie in the final 20 seconds, but Ballard picked up a key steal and made two free throws to preserve the victory for LSU.


Auburn coach:

"After going on an eight game losing streak everything seems tough and just getting that win against Alabama really helped," said Williams-Flournoy. Even in the losing streak we were not really getting beat down. We were in some really close games and had some chances to win some games. I think they just needed that win to get over the hump and that was the biggest thing."

on LSU:

"I thought our young ladies played a very good game (vs LSU) here at home," said Auburn head coach Terri Williams-Flournoy. "You look back at some of the mistakes; the costly turnovers are really what cost us the game. We did not really play that well in the first half, but we played well enough to continue to stay within the game."

The Auburn coach is extremely pleased about the way her team finished the season defensively. Auburn forced Vanderbilt into 26 turnovers and then finished off the season by forcing 31 turnovers against Mississippi State, which is the most ever forced by Auburn against an SEC opponent.

"You look at our last two games where we really made a conscious effort to up our defense," said Williams-Flournoy. "Even though we did not win at Vanderbilt, we forced them into 26 turnovers but the thing I wanted out of that was for them to realize how many points did we score off of turnovers and that was thing that we did much better in against Mississippi State.
"We forced them into 31 turnovers and had 31 points off of those turnovers. They really are beginning to understand that it is our defense that is going to win more games for us because on our offensive end, sometimes you just do not know what you are going to get."


LSU coach:

“They’re long and athletic, so we have to take care of the basketball,” Caldwell said. “Give ourselves the opportunities we need on the offensive end, and try to be more aggressive, not passive.
“On the other end, we have to defend them. They’re a very balanced team with their guard play and post play. They really muscled us around in the last game. If they wanted a position on the block, they got it. But hopefully our post defense has become a little better as of late.”

 

tonight's game vs Auburn will be televised on Fox Sports Louisiana (cable channel 1079 HD for Cox Communications subscribers in Baton Rouge) and it will also be streamed live on ESPN3.com and the Watch ESPN App for tablet users.

 

LSU currently up 35-22 with 1:20 to go in half

 

"I am extremely excited for the opportunity to lead the women's basketball program at Auburn," Williams-Flournoy said.

Auburn's new head coach, Terri Williams-Flournoy, has a formidable resume:

2012-13 -- 1st year at Auburn
2011-12 -- 23-9 record as HC of Georgetown -- NCAA Second Round
2010-11 -- 24-11 record as HC of Georgetown -- NCAA Sweet 16
2009-10 -- 26-7 record as HC of Georgetown -- NCAA Second Round
2008-09 -- 20-14 record as HC of Georgetown -- WNIT Quarterfinals
...
...
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2001-02 -- 19-11 record as Asst Coach at Georgia -- NCAA First Round
2000-01 -- 27-6 record as Asst Coach at Georgia -- NCAA Second Round, SEC Tournament Champs
1999-00 -- 32-4 record as Asst Coach at Georgia -- NCAA Elite Eight, SEC Champions
1998-99 -- 27-7 record as Asst Coach at Georgia -- NCAA Final Four
1997-98 -- 17-11 record as Asst Coach at Georgia -- NCAA First Round
1996-97 -- 25-6 record as Asst Coach at Georgia -- NCAA Elite Eight, SEC Champions

http://www.auburntigers.com/sports/w-baskbl/mtt/williamsflournoy_terri00.html

 

LSU up 39-24 on Auburn at the half