KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — The LSU women’s basketball team opens SEC play at 6 p.m. CST Thursday, as the 11th-ranked Lady Tigers face No. 2 Tennessee in Knoxville. LSU (9-3) has won seven consecutive games, including an 82-57 victory over North Texas last Saturday in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center.
Tennessee (12-1) defeated No. 7 Rutgers, 58-51, Tuesday night at Madison Square Garden in New York. The Lady Vols’ only loss this season was a 81-76 defeat at No. 1 Connecticut last Saturday.
The LSU-Tennessee game will be televised by College Sports Southeast, and it can be seen in Baton Rouge on Cox Cable Channel 18. The game can also be heard in Baton Rouge on WTGE 107.3-FM and on the Internet at www.LSUsports.net.
Tennessee leads the overall series with LSU, 26-5, and the Lady Vols hold a 13-0 advantage in games played in Knoxville. Tennessee dominated LSU in the teams’ two meetings last season, posting an 86-50 win in Baton Rouge and an 80-48 victory in Knoxville.
This year’s game matches two teams who played deep into last season’s NCAA Tournament. LSU reached the Elite Eight before falling to Connecticut, and Tennessee lost to UConn in the national championship game.
“Tennessee is awfully good, and we expect them to play well,” LSU head coach Sue Gunter said.
“I’d like for us to go up there and play well; we didn’t play well there last year. I think it’s one thing to lose a game, but when you go out and don’t perform, it was a little bit of an embarrassing situation last year. Tennessee is probably better than they were last year, but I think we’re better as well.”
LSU is expected to start 5-9 senior Marie Ferdinand (20.7 ppg, 5.5 rpg) and 5-11 senior Angelia Crockett (2.2 ppg, 3.2 apg) at the guards, 5-11 senior April Brown (10.4 ppg, 4.7 rpg) and 5-11 freshman Roneeka Hodges (11.4 ppg, 6.2 rpg) at the forwards, and 5-11 junior DeTrina White (7.7 ppg, 6.3 rpg) at center.
Tennessee will counter with 6-2 sophomore Gwen Jackson (11.5 ppg, 6.6 rpg) and 6-1 senior Tamika Catchings (14.7 ppg, 8.4 rpg) at the forwards, 5-9 sophomore Kara Lawson (8.2 ppg, 3.3 apg) and 5-11 senior Kristen Clement (6.5 ppg, 1.5 apg) at the guards, and 6-5 junior Michelle Snow (9.8 ppg, 7.7 rpg) at center.
The Tennessee game represents the beginning of a very difficult stretch for LSU, as three of the Lady Tigers’ next four contests are against ranked SEC teams. After facing Tennessee, LSU plays Sunday at No. 16 Mississippi State, and the Lady Tigers play host to Arkansas (Jan. 11) and No. 4 Georgia (Jan. 14).
“I don’t want to make too much of this (Tennessee) game,” Gunter said. “I don’t want to over-emphasize it or de-emphasize it. We have 14 conference games, and this is the first one. Regardless of the outcome, the game won’t impact us any differently than the other 13 games. We need to look at that and not get carried away one way or the other with it.”