After avenging its three loses in en route to the Southeastern Conference Tournament crown, the third-ranked LSU women’s basketball team was awarded with a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament’s West Region and will face Southwest Texas State in Eugene, Org., at approximately 10:30 p.m. CST on Saturday, March 22.
All-session tickets are $26 for the three games. Single-session reserved tickets will go on sale Tuesday for $13, while general admission single-session tickets are $10 for adults and $6 for children/seniors. To order tickets, call 1-800-WEBFOOT.
The No. 1 seed is the first in school history for the Lady Tigers (27-3). LSU faced the Bobcats on Dec. 21, 2002, in Baton Rouge and won 91-40. LSU holds a 2-1 all-time advantage in the series.
In the earlier meeting between LSU and Southwest Texas this season, the Lady Tigers led by 36 at halftime and would go ahead by as many as 55. Only one player — reserve point guard Kisha James — saw more than 20 minutes of action in the contest, as LSU shot 69.2 percent from the field (38 of 58) and held the Bobcats to only 25.9 percent shooting (15 of 58).
Should the Lady Tigers get by Southwest Texas, they would face the winner of No. 8-seeded Wisconsin-Green Bay (27-3) and No. 9-seeded Washington (22-7) in the second round on Monday, March 24. The Sweet 16 in the West Region will be held in Stanford, Calif., on March 30.
LSU has not met UW-Green Bay in the history of women’s basketball, and the Lady Tigers have only met Washington once, a 63-57 loss in Seattle, Wash., on Dec. 7, 1991.
QUOTES FROM LSU HEAD COACH SUE GUNTER
On being a No. 1 seed …
“It’s great. The kids worked very hard for it. You never really know what a committee is going to do, but I think it’s very fair. But, my goodness, when I looked down and looked at the strength of that as compared to the other three regions, it’s a little overwhelming. But, there are no bad teams in the tournament, but we are going to just try and take them old proverbial one game at a time.”
On waiting until the end (of the show) to find out their fate …
“I thought we would perhaps know a little bit sooner, but I’m excited, I really am. It’s wonderful for our fans, it’s a great reward for all that we have gone through this year as far as the crowds, it’s sort of a culmination of a great year for us. Now, we just have to handle our business, we got to take care of business now, that’s what we are.
“I was an absolutely nervous wreck because I never know, are we going to be a one or we going to be a two, where they are going to place us, etc. The fact that we are going to Eugene, Ore. is a little far but still is a totally neutral site, so I think that’s good too; I’m pleased. Everybody’s good, we got to win six games to do what we want to do and by now then we have some idea of who we are going to have to play.”
On the possibilities that a No. 16 can beat a No. 1 …
“It can happen, I don’t think there is any doubt about that. I don’t think they will take anybody for granted.”
On being a No. 1 seed for the first time …
“For the first time ever to be a one seed is a reward to the kids. When you think about where we started, how many ranked teams we played this year, how many good teams we’ve invited to our place, how many times we’ve gone away and played good teams, it’s just the way it should have been. I think out of the teams ranked in the top 25, I think we have 11 wins against them, 11-3, I think is our record, and it would have been a shame if we did that and not have been a No. 1 seed. Stranger things have happened and we are going to take it and run with it, but it’s a tough bracket.”