BATON ROUGE — LSU coach Sue Gunter goes after career win No. 599 on Thursday as the 16th-ranked Lady Tigers play host to second-ranked Tennessee in a rematch of last year’s classic matchup in Baton Rouge. Tipoff for the contest is set for 7 p.m. at the Maravich Assembly Center.
Last year, Tennessee was ranked No. 1 in the nation when the Lady Tigers posted a 72-69 upset-win in Baton Rouge. The win last year marked LSU’s first-ever over a team ranked No. 1 in the nation.
The game will be televised live to a regional audience on College Sports-Southeast. The game can also be heard on the LSU Sports Network – 107.3 FM in Baton Rouge. The game can be found on the internet at www.LSUSports.net.
LSU enters the contest with a 10-2 overall mark and a 1-0 Southeastern Conference record. Tennessee has won 10 straight games since losing to Louisiana Tech to open the season. The Lady Vols are 10-1 overall. This is Tennessee’s conference opener.
LSU will carry a 16-game home court winning streak into Thursday’s contest. LSU has also posted wins over Tennessee in its last two trips to Baton Rouge and the Lady Vols have not won in the Maravich Assembly Center since January of 1995. LSU beat Tennessee 83-78 in Baton Rouge on Feb. 21, 1997 before winning again last season.
“Tennessee has a very solid team,” LSU coach Sue Gunter said. “I think they are better (this year). I think they got into a mold with Chamique (Holdsclaw). This year’s team appears to play a lot looser and they have more balance. That’s not to minimize the effect of a Holdsclaw because she was a great player with three national titles and player of the year awards.
“This year’s team very much has its own identity. They have outstanding balance and they have a very good bench.”
If LSU to be successful against Tennessee the Lady Tigers will have to keep the league’s second-best rebounding team off the glass as well as limiting the turnovers. Last year, LSU turned the ball over only 11 times in its win over the Lady Vols. On the other hand, Tennessee outrebounded LSU, 48-23.
Tennessee is averaging nearly 45 rebounds a game, while LSU hauls in 36 boards a contest.
“You really have to execute against Tennessee,” Gunter said. “If I had to pick out two keys for us is that we have to control the defensive boards and we have to value the basketball. Their pressure is very good.”
The Lady Tigers continue to be led by 5-11 senior forward Katrina Hibbert and 5-9 junior guard Marie Ferdinand. Ferdinand ranks second in the SEC with 18.8 points a game and her 3.75 steals are tied with Hibbert for the league lead. Hibbert is averaging 14.2 points a game and she leads the SEC with 7.4 assists and 3.75 steals.
Rounding out the LSU lineup will be 5-11 junior point guard Angelia Crockett (3.6 points, 3.9 assists), 5-11 junior forward April Brown (11.8, 4.8 rebounds) and 5-11 sophomore center DeTrina White (11.4, 9.0). White is coming off a 16-point, 13-rebound effort against Tulane. White’s 9.0 rebounds a game ranks second in the SEC, while she along with Hibbert are tied for second in the league with three double-doubles.
Tennessee is paced by 6-1 junior forward Tamika Catchings (16.8, 7.6) and 5-10 junior guard Semeka Randall (15.5, 5.5). Last year, Catchings led the Lady Vols with 16 points and 17 rebounds against LSU.
Rounding out the Lady Vol lineup will be 5-11 junior guard Kristen Clement (8.6, 2.7), 5-9 freshman guard Kara Lawson (14.6, 4.6) and 6-5 sophomore center Michelle Snow (10.0, 6.2).
“I’m not looking at the Tennessee game much different than I looked at it last year,” Gunter said. “You can’t focus on just any one game in an SEC schedule. To beat Tennessee would be absolutely wonderful, but if we don’t beat them we still have 12 SEC games left on our schedule.
“In the grand scheme of things, this game is no more important than our Mississippi State game on Sunday. It’s an SEC game so therefore it’s important.”