KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — The Lady Tiger basketball team went into Knoxville, Tenn. with an upset on their minds and for most of the game it looked like they might pull it off, but in the end LSU could not hold off the second-ranked Tennessee, 79-67 on Sunday afternoon.
The Lady Tigers drop to 8-6 overall and 1-2 in the SEC while Tennessee improves to 14-1 overall and remains undefeated in conference play at 3-0.
For the second straight game Doneeka Hodges poured in 20 points, nailing four three-pointers in the second half a along with six rebounds and three assists. Aiysha Smith added 17 points and six rebounds, while Temeka Johnson dished out eight assists. Kara Lawson led the scoring for Tennessee with 17 points, followed by Michelle Snow with 14 points.
“I thought our game plan was good and I thought we played well today,” said LSU head coach Sue Gunter. “We hung tough, but not tough enough since we came here looking for the win. We almost put ourselves in a position to come away with the win, but just couldn?t hold on.”
The difference in the game was the offensive rebounding of the Lady Vols in the second half. After only pulling down eight offensive boards in the first half, Tennessee finished with 22 offensive rebounds and scored 26 second-chance points.
“The rebounding of Tennessee in the second half was the difference in the game,” said Gunter. “We can not allow them to have 2-3 shots per possession and the way they rebounded offensively, they were getting those added shots. We also had more turnovers than we can afford with 19.”
Short runs by both teams marked the first half, with neither team able to take a substantial lead. LSU led by as many as seven points midway through the first half, while Tennessee?s largest lead of the half was four points very early in the game.
Poor shooting by both teams kept the score low to start the game. With just over 11 minutes remaining in the first half, both teams were shooting just 25 percent and the score was tied at eight.
LSU took its first lead of the game at the 10:47 mark, breaking the 8-8 tied. Smith converted the old fashioned three-point play when she made the free throw after being fouled on her three-foot jumper. LSU extended the lead to 15-8 as part of an 11-0 run, the largest lead by either team in the first half.
Tennessee regained the lead, 20-19 at the 6:28 mark, but could pull away by no more than three points before LSU went on a 8-0 run to retake the lead, 31-26 with 2:43 remaining in the first half.
Tennessee countered with a 7-0 run just before the end of the half that gave the Lady Vols a short-lived lead as Doneeka Hodges banked a three-footer off the backboard to tie the game at 33 as time expired in the half.
Johnson provided all the LSU points in the first three minutes of the second half, as she scored six points for the Lady Tigers. Tennessee took as much as a four-point lead before LSU battled back to tie the game at 43 on jumper by Smith.
After outrebounding Tennessee 21-18 in the first half, LSU got only one rebound in the first five minutes of the second half and the Lady Vols capitalized with eight second chance points.
LSU was cold from three-point range in the first half, going 0-for-3 as a team, but Doneeka Hodges nailed a trio of threes early in the second half that kept the Tennessee from taking more than a three-point lead.
As cold as the teams came out to start the game, they came out that hot to start the second half. Both teams were shooting hear 75 percent for the first eight minutes, LSU was 9-of-12 while Tennessee was 19-of-27.
The Lady Vols took their largest lead of the second half, 50-56 with just over 10 minutes remaining on a three-pointer by April McDivitt but Hodges answered with another three to cut the lead to one.
With 7:53 remaining, LSU took its second lead of the second half, 63-62 on baseline jumper by Smith. After a series of missed shots on both ends of the court, Tennessee retook the lead on a pair of free throws by Jackson and extended that led to five points, 68-63 on a pair of free throws and a layup by Lawson with 5:03 remaining.
LSU got cold from the field, going without a field goal for over six minutes and Tennessee took advantage on a 17-4 run that gave the Lady Vols a 12-point lead, the largest of the game.