The last time Tennessee and Kim Mulkey’s Tigers played; the result was a two-point loss in the Southeastern Conference Tournament.

On this occasion, though, LSU women’s basketball traveled to Knoxville and prevailed 75–60.

The Tigers had to change for survival. Tennessee’s ability to restrict LSU in the paint and limit the Tigers at the foul line was crucial to their victory. The Volunteers were effective in doing that during the first half.

In order to maintain its advantage and win the game, LSU had to gradually increase its lead as Tennessee got closer to in the end, LSU shot 6-for-15 (40%) from three-point range and 29-for-88 (33%) overall.
LSU led by Hailey Van Lith in the second half.

Van Lith scored a team-high 26 points in the end, which is her highest point total since moving to LSU.

The transfer guard from Louisville, Kentucky finished with three assists, seven rebounds, and a 9-for-18 field goal and 4-for-5 three-point shooting percentage.

However, as Tennessee began to pick up steam in the second half, Van Lith’s scoring output was especially crucial. In the second half, she scored two of her four 3-pointers and sixteen of her 26 points scoring multiple times in the second half.

“Hailey has received a great deal of criticism, and it must end. She’s getting used to a new role,” Mulkey remarked. “She made big shots when we needed them.”

Van Lith appeared to have the ideal blend of playing her game and playing the point, which is different from how she usually plays at Louisville. Van Lith could pass the ball, but she also assumed accountability for efficient scoring when the team needed it.

LSU women’s basketball explosive fourth quarter

 

After being outscored in the third quarter, Van Lith assisted LSU in mounting a comeback of their own. In the fourth quarter, the Tigers outscored Tennessee 27–15, shooting 50% from three and 45.5% from the field.
In the fourth quarter, Mikaylah Williams also contributed. She shot 1-for-5 from three and 7-for-18 from the field to complete the game with 15 points, five rebounds, and five assists. The fourth quarter saw her score six of her fifteen points.

Despite being scoreless from beyond the 3-point line, Flau’jae Johnson had an impact with her nine points, seven rebounds, and three assists. In the fourth quarter, she scored five of her nine points.
Up until that point, Angel Reese was restrained.

Angel Reese needed to be contained at the foul line and in the paint as an all-around player for Tennessee. The Volunteers managed to do that in the first half.

In the second half, though, Reese discovered an opening and seized it.
Her final stats were 11 points and 16 rebounds, with a double-double coming on 4-for-19 shooting from the field and 3-for-6 foul shooting. During the second half, she scored eight of her 11 points.

Reese’s only field goal of the second quarter came from a jumper that was made from just outside the key, and it took him just over seven minutes to score. In the opening minute and a half of the second quarter, Reese made one of her two free throws when she first appeared at the foul line.

The Tennessee center Tamari Key’s defensive efforts in the paint deserve a lot of the credit for this. With 10 points and 5 rebounds, Key completed the game.
“Tamari Key has a good height. We anticipated that she would be defending Angel,” Mulkey remarked. “Her size altered shots.”
Reese’s rebounding presence remained potent even as Tennessee limited her scoring. 16 of LSU’s 57 team rebounds were gathered by Reese.

In light of Tennessee’s attempts to limit LSU’s scoring in the paint, Aneesah Morrow tried to contribute as much as he could. Her final stats were 13 rebounds and 8 points.

The third quarter saw the Volunteers’ scoring come to life as they whittled down LSU’s advantage to just two points. In the third quarter, Tennessee outscored the Tigers 19–10, with LSU shooting 4–18 overall.
Mulkey stated, “We lost our composure a little bit in the third.” However, Tennessee caused us to become agitated. You tend to play a bit harder when you’re down.”

But in the end, Tennessee shot only 16% from three-point range and 31% from the field. The group attempted and made three of its eighteen 3-point attempts.

Apart from not making any 3-pointers, Tennessee committed 10 turnovers as opposed to LSU’s 7. LSU defeated Tennessee 12-3 in points off of turnovers and 21-8 in fastbreak points.
These kinds of barriers prevented the Volunteers from sustaining their third quarter surge.

Finalizing with a team-high 16 points and nine rebounds, Rickea Jackson is expected to be selected first overall in the WNBA Draft. Three quarters of her 16-point game was spent scoring.

With 3-for-6 field goals and 2-for-5 three-pointers, Tess Darby scored nine points.

Six rebounds, seven assists, and eight points were provided by Jasmine Powell, and eight points and eight rebounds were added by Sara Puckett.

Next in line?

Traveling to Athens to play the Georgia Bulldogs on Thursday, the Tigers will continue their road trip.

Kickoff from Stegman Coliseum is scheduled for 8 p.m. C.T.; ESPN2 will broadcast the game live.

https://youtu.be/vCLuoCHTByE?si=4YeM_iK5ugD9jSoE