Game 1: LSU def. West Virginia, 64-25
BATON ROUGE — LSU’s 10th-ranked women’s basketball team used a 33-0 run in the middle of the game on their way to a 64-25 victory over West Virginia in the season opener and the first game of the Basketball Travelers Classic on Sunday in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center.
The Lady Tigers (1-0) opened the game on an 8-0 run over the first six minutes, but West Virginia (0-1) tied the game with an 8-0 run of their own. LSU then outscored the Mountaineers 22-2 to end the half, including a 19-0 run to finish the first 20 minutes.
“We were disciplined in our defensive attack, which is extremely important because we got off to a slow start offensively,” LSU head coach Pokey Chatman said. “We were able to get a little momentum offensively going into the half, but we specifically told the team at halftime to have a sense of urgency on offense especially in transition and in our half court attack. It was so nice to see us shoot 55 percent in the second half being that we had a lot of different combinations of players.”
LSU led 30-10 at the break and expanded the lead by opening the second half with a 14-0 run.
The Lady Tigers’ defense proved to be the difference. WVU was held without a point for the final eight minutes of the first half and the first five of the second half. LSU also forced 24 turnovers and held the Mountaineers to 20.5 percent shooting from the field.
“I am very embarrassed and very ashamed to come out and play like that,” WVU coach Mike Carey said. “Not just because it is LSU, it’s whoever we play. We are going to learn a lot from this tape. We are going to learn about how to recover and if we don’t it’s going to be a long year.”
Sylvia Fowles led all scorers with 12 points for the Lady Tigers. The 6-6 junior center was a perfect 6-6 from the floor, grabbed a game-high six rebounds and blocked three shots.
Fowles is now just five points shy of 1,000 in her career and two blocked shots away from the break LSU’s career record.
RaShonta LeBlanc added 11 points for LSU, while Katie Antony added nine off the bench.
Chakhia Cole led WVU with six points.
LSU shot 47.9 percent from the floor, including 54.5 percent in the second half. The Lady Tigers also outrebounded the Mountaineers, 39-24.
LSU will face Howard at 7:15 p.m. CST in the second day of the three-day Basketball Travelers Classic in the Maravich Center. West Virginia will battle Virginia Tech at 4:45 p.m. on Monday.
Game 2: Virginia Tech def. Howard, 97-78
BATON ROUGE — Virginia Tech’s women’s basketball team defeated Howard, 97-78, in the second game of the 2006 Basketball Travelers Classic on Sunday in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center.
The Hokies (1-1) led 49-32 at the end of the first half and outscored the Bison by two in the second 20 minutes.
Nare Diawara led the way for Virginia Tech with a career-high 24 points, nine rebounds and six assists. Britney Amber added 13 points and six boards.
Shannon Carlisle led Howard with 29 points and five assists, while Christina Aden added 19 points.
Virginia Tech shot 51.7 percent from the floor in the game and held Howard to 33.0 percent. The Hokies outrebounded the Bison 51-42.
Howard will face host LSU on Monday, the second of three days of the Classic, at 7:15 p.m. CST following the West Virginia vs. Virginia Tech game that begins at 4:45 p.m. in the Maravich Center.
LSU HEAD COACH POKEY CHATMAN QUOTES
Opening statement…
”After talking with our kids in the locker room, we knew that they were going to come out with energy and effort, but it was intelligent energy and intelligent effort from the standpoint of on the defensive end we were able to take West Virginia out of some of its offensive sets. We were disciplined in our defensive attack, which is extremely important because we got off to a slow start offensively. We were able to get a little momentum offensively going into the half, but we specifically told the team at halftime to have a sense of urgency on offense especially in transition and in our half court attack. It is so nice to see us shoot 55 percent in the second half being that we had a lot of different combinations of players.”
On the team’s slow start on offense…
“I am not as concerned with the slow start on offense because we knew how West Virginia was going to try and play us. We have a certain script on offense that we try to go by in our first five possessions. It is one of those things where you can run good offense and you still might not hit the shots, but you can always turn it around by giving strong effort and that is what they did today.”
LSU PLAYER QUOTES
On the team’s slow start on offense…
“I don’t think we had any specific problems, it is just that West Virginia is a very aggressive team and they played us hard and they contained us early in the game.”
On the large margin of victory…
“We were mentally ready to go out there and do what we had to do. Not to take anything away from West Virginia, but we were ready for this game and we stayed focused throughout the game.”
On coach Chatman’s intensity…
“That is her job. She is greedy in the sense that even though we did a good job she expects more out of us because she knows what we are capable of. Coach Chatman is never satisfied with anything we do and we congratulate her on that because it makes the team better.”
On providing a spark when she comes off the bench…
“When I go out there I try to get our team together and work hard and do whatever I can whether that be getting rebounds or making shots.”
On playing her first regular season game as a Lady Tiger…
“It was exciting finally being able to dress out and get out there. When I got in the game I was a little nervous because it had been a year since I played. I thought it was a good start for all of us against a team like West Virginia to start the season.”