KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — LSU’s 15th-ranked Lady Tigers basketball team fell 85-62 at second-ranked Tennessee Sunday afternoon in the regular season finale in Thompson-Boling Arena, but the Lady Tigers secured the No. 2 seed in next week’s Southeastern Conference Tournament.
Tennessee (25-2, 14-0 SEC) jumped out to an early 8-0 lead and LSU (22-6, 10-4 SEC) never got closer than six points through the remainder of the game. The Lady Vols have now won 54 straight SEC games at home.
The Lady Tigers stayed close in the first half and trailed 35-27 at the break, but Tennessee pulled away late in the game with a 20-8 run for the 23-point victory.
Doneeka Hodges led LSU with 18 points, while Temeka Johnson recorded her seventh double double of the season with 16 points and 11 assists, adding five rebounds. Seimone Augustus added 12 points and Scholanda Hosted had 11 points off the bench.
Shyra Ely led Tennessee with 25 points and nine rebounds, while LaToya Davis added 13 points and Tasha Butts had eight points and nine rebounds.
LSU shot just 36.4 percent from the floor in the game and 31.4 percent in the first half. Tennessee connected on 56.1 percent of its shots, including 63.3 percent in the second half. The Lady Vols also outrebounded the Lady Tigers 44-28.
The Lady Tigers, as the No. 2 seed in the SEC Tournament, will play the winner of Thursday’s first round game at 2:30 p.m. CST between No. 7 seed Ole Miss and No. 10 seed Alabama. LSU’s second-round game will be on Friday at 2:30 p.m. CST in the Gaylord Entertainment Center in Nashville.