BATON ROUGE — Behind smothering defense and a tenacious offensive attack, the ninth-ranked LSU women’s basketball team dominated No. 5 Ohio State, 75-51, in front of the sixth-largest crowd in Maravich Center on Sunday.
For the second time in as many seasons, LSU (10-1) handed Ohio State (7-1) its first loss of the season. This time, a crowd of 10,677 Lady Tigers fans were on hand to watch.
On Dec. 15, 2005, LSU put forth its best effort of the season to shut down the Buckeyes at St. John’s Arena in Columbus.
“Today’s game was an example of our team raising its play when faced with stiff competition,” LSU head coach Pokey Chatman. “We had a top team come in here with quality players that are coached well and we established some things early on to get the tempo going. I think what played a lot into our performance today was that we had a week of practice to prepare for this game and it was nice to see some of that nice practice to carry over into the game.”
Today was the first time in the post Seimone Augustus era that the Lady Tigers were tested by a Top-10 national powerhouse. The Lady Tigers answered on both ends of the court and outscored the Buckeyes 53-29 in the final 27 minutes of the contest.
The much-anticipated matchup of LSU’s 6-6 center Sylvia Fowles and Ohio State’s 6-5 center Jessica Davenport lived up to its billing.
Fowles finished with 18 points and 16 rebounds, while Davenport tallied team-bests of 14 points and 13 rebounds. Each blocked one of the other’s shots, but it was Fowles’ stare down after throwing back Davenport’s jumper that ignited the crowd.
Though the battles in the middle were exciting, it was the LSU perimeter defense that stole the show.
The Lady Tigers starting guards — point guard Erica White and wings RaShonta LeBlanc and Quianna Chaney — had nine of LSU’s 11 steals and two blocked shots to go along with countless deflections, as Ohio State struggled to run their offense through Davenport.
Consequently, the Buckeyes made only 4-of-19 three-point shots (21.1 percent) while finishing the game 21 of 65 from the field (32.3 percent). Ohio State committed 12 turnovers which led to 22 LSU points.
Meanwhile, the LSU offense was calculating and exacting.
LSU shot 50 percent from the field (30 of 60), making five three pointers and outscoring Ohio State 16-0 in transition.
Chaney used dribble penetration and quick moves to the goal to score 17 points. LeBlanc had a career-best eight assists to go along with seven points and two steals. Soft-spoken forward Ashley Thomas quietly added nine points.
White was the third Lady Tigers player in double figures scoring with 10 points, while dishing five assists and leading her team with four steals.
Outside of Davenport, Ohio State had little offensive punch. Buckeyes’ guard Brandie Hoskins was held eight points below here season average, making only 4-of-13 shots for nine points.
After falling behind 7-6, the Lady Tigers used a 16-5 run to lead 22-12 with 9:33 to play in the half. However, Ohio State answered quickly, making up the 10-point deficit in just more than two minutes to tie the game at 22-22 at the 7:04 mark of the half.
LSU then closed the half on a 12-2 run to lead 34-24.
The second half started much the same as the first ended. LSU extended the lead to 20 by the 11:29 mark, 53-33, and Ohio State would get no closer.
LSU returns to action on Sunday, Dec. 17, when the Lady Tigers travel to face No. 20 Michigan State at 1 p.m. in East Lansing.
GAME NOTES
* Today’s attendance of 10, 677 is the sixth largest to watch a women’s game in the Maravich Center.
* LSU extended its nation’s best home court win streak to 37 straight games.
* LSU has now won 26 straight games in the month of December.
* The Lady Tigers have now won 40 straight non-conference home games.
* Sylvia Fowles scored in double figures for the 65th time of her career with 18 points today.
* Fowles recorded the 40th double double of her career with 18 points and 16 rebounds. Her 16 marked the 43rd time in her career to reach double figures in rebounds.
* RaShonta LeBlanc equaled her career-high with eight assists today.
* LSU has now won 77 or the last 78 games when reaching the 75-point plateau.
LSU HEAD COACH POKEY CHATMAN
Opening statement…
“Today’s game was an example of our team raising its play when faced with stiff competition. We played ten games before this and we have a top team that comes in here with quality players and they are coached well and we established some things early on to get the tempo going. I think what played a lot into our performance today was that we had a week of practice to prepare for this game and it was nice to see some of that nice practice to carry over into the game.”
On team’s rebounding…
“We knew we had to take away the paint and we thought if we could win the battle in the paint that we would win the basketball game. Most importantly, not only do they have Jessica Davenport but they have a number of quality players. What we were trying to do was run on them because we wanted to use the great speed we have to execute the game plan.”
On how the team showed improvement in today’s game…
“We didn’t do anything extraordinary today. Sylvia (Fowles) didn’t have a phenomenal basketball game; she did what she is capable of. Erica (White) didn’t have spectacular game, but she did what she is capable of. I am not trying to downplay anything they did today; I am indirectly complementing their play. I want them to instill the confidence that they are going to need with the tough stretch of games we have coming up.”
LSU PLAYER QUOTES
On if the team made a statement today …
“We did. We showed that if you give us time to prepare and lock in, we can take on anyone and execute.”
On what the team’s defensive goals were …
“We wanted to take away the paint. We wanted to take away their half-court offense. We wanted to take away transition. We wanted to not let (Ohio State C Jessica) Davenport get involved too much. (Ohio State G Brandie) Hoskins likes to get out and get transition buckets. She likes to leave early. We wanted to take that away, and we did that. I’m not sure how many points they got in transition, but I’m sure it wasn’t a lot.”
On if the team got out in transition as much as they wanted …
“We knew our speed would be something that would be difficult for them to handle, so we definitely wanted to get out and run. And it was there early; it was there late, and we did it – got it done.”
On her goal against Jessica Davenport …
“Basically, just trying to get into her head and distract her as much as possible, not even by trash-talking, just making her work for everything she gets.”
On how she came to play today …
“I must say: I came out beast mode tonight. I had my mind right, and I had my gameplan ready to go. And I was physically and mentally ready, and I went out there and showed my team that.”
On her tough mindset against Davenport …
“That was my gameplan. I wasn’t showing no pity. That was the whole gameplan, just go out there and work.”
On how well her shot fell today …
“I really wasn’t expecting it because my shot has been off for the last couple of games, so that really put me in shock when I came out and hit the first couple of jumpers. But I’m glad I was able to help my team with shooting-wise and defense and getting the ball to Sylvia (Fowles).”
OHIO STATE HEAD COACH JIM FOSTER
Opening Statement
“I thought they played very, very well, and I thought we were on our heels. Brandie (Hoskins) is a very good passer. When you see her not having assists, you know we are struggling. She creates a lot of our opportunities for us. Freshman point guard (Maria Moeller) out there. She competed but was confused at times. That’s when you need the upperclassmen to step up and show the way. I think this will give us an opportunity to start to understand what that means.”
On if LSU surprised them …
“No. They got a little bit confident later in the game making some shots but nothing I would say that is a surprise. When you come into a game and see (Quianna) Chaney 7-for-43 for three, you know that is not going to last. She is going to start to make some shots at some point in time. She’s too talented a player not too. Sylvia Fowles, nothing about her should surprise you. She’s a real presence in the paint, and she did a terrific job on the glass. I thought when Jessica (Davenport) turned and faced up she had some success. We probably should have done a little bit more of that.”
On the LSU transition game …
“Transition came from some mistakes and over penetration by not having the proper floor space. I think (Erica) White’s quickness probably got a couple of them. I think our lack of positioning was responsible for most of them. She’s very, very quick. If she gets an opportunity, she will create.”
OHIO STATE PLAYER QUOTES
C Jessica Davenport
On what she can take from the loss …
“There are some things that we need to do like getting back on defense and moving the ball on offense. We can take that back and work on that so that when we get back into our next game in conference play we can use that to our advantage because we worked on it.”
On playing against Sylvia Fowles …
“It was a game. We are not going to go out there and be friends with each other and pat each other on the back. You go out there and compete.”