BATON ROUGE — Lady Tiger point guard Temeka Johnson was named a preseason Third-Team All-America selection, as center Aiysha Smith earned preseason honorable mention All-America honors from womenscollegehoops.com.
Johnson, a junior from New Orleans, was an honorable mention Associated Press and womenscollegehoops.com All-America selection last season. The point guard ranked third in the nation in assists per game and finished second in LSU history in single-season assists despite missing the first six games of the year.
After stepping into the staring role in just her third collegiate game, the SEC All-Tournament team selection went on to break the school record for assists by a sophomore. The two-time LSWA Player of the Week and second-team All-Louisiana selection also broke the school single-game assist record with 15 against Florida.
Stepping up when it mattered, Johnson recorded a career-high 11 rebounds against Colorado in the NCAA Tournament and recorded a career-high 22 points in the SEC Tournament Championship game against Vanderbilt.
Smith, a senior from Detroit, Mich., recorded double figures scoring in 29-of-30 games last season, including a streak of 27 consecutive games to start the season, the fourth longest streak in LSU history.
Earning Louisiana Newcomer of the Year honors, Smith was also a First-Team All-SEC and All-Louisiana selection The transfer from Tyler Junior College led the team in scoring, rebounding, steals, blocked shots and field-goal percentage and ranked in the top 10 in the SEC in scoring and rebounding.
In addition, Smith ranked fourth in the SEC with eight double-doubles and recorded a career-high 23 points against Ole Miss and at Vanderbilt. Her career-high 17 rebounds against Arkansas were the most rebounds by a Lady Tiger since Nov. 24, 1998.
For the fourth straight season, the Lady Tigers advanced to the NCAA Tournament in 2001-02, despite playing with just seven players after being ravaged by injuries. As a sixth seed, LSU defeated 13th-seeded Santa Clara in the first round but fell to third-seeded Colorado in the second round.
The 2002-03 Lady Tiger team will return all seven players from last season and regain senior All-American candidate DeTrina White, who redshirted last season due to injury. Kisha James will return for her senior season after missing most of last season with a torn ACL sustained in the eighth game of the year.
LSU will also regain the use of Wendlyn Jones, who went down with a torn ACL before the start of the regular season, and Tillie Willis, who tore an ACL late in the season. Florence Williams will become eligible for the Lady Tigers after sitting out last season.
LSU also adds a pair of outstanding freshmen in Student Sports National Player of the Year Seimone Augustus and Louisiana Class 3A MVP Treynell Clavelle. Duke transfer Crystal White will become eligible in December to round out the Lady Tiger roster.