BATON ROUGE – The LSU women’s basketball team used a balanced offensive attack as four players registered double figures led by Jenna Deemer‘s 26 points, and the Lady Tigers picked up a 93-71 victory exhibition victory over Loyola Wednesday at the Maravich Center.
“It was really interesting to come out tonight and really think about what we wanted to accomplish going into this game,” head coach Nikki Caldwell said. “There are a couple of areas that we really wanted to focus on – pushing the tempo and establishing our running game. I felt like we did that. Our offensive execution, we’ve had some really nice offensive plays and great screening but taking care of the basketball has got to be a priority for this team. Defensively, against a team like Loyola who statistically has really been one of the leaders in shooting the three-point ball, I thought we were challenged there. They did a nice job of picking up the defensive pressure to turn us over. This team is growing. We are young, but we are going to continue to grow and be better in each game that we play.”
Deemer, a true freshman from Ursuline Academy in New Orleans, was 7-of-10 shooting highlighted by five three-pointers. She also was 7-of-8 at the free throw line to go along with four rebounds and two steals over her 26 minutes off the bench.
Raigyne Moncrief put together a solid all-around performance with 15 points, eight rebounds, six steals and five assists during her first game back from a knee injury suffered in LSU’s opening round win over Georgia Tech at the 2014 NCAA Tournament.
DaShawn Harden chipped in nine of her 11 points in the second half. She also dished out seven assists and picked up three steals.
Rina Hill came away with 11 points, three rebounds and three assists as LSU’s starting point guard. The 11 points was her second-highest scoring output of her career.
Akilah Bethel tacked on eight points and a team-leading nine rebounds which included five offensive boards, while Anne Pedersen notched eight points, four assists and two steals. On the interior, Alliyah Fareo pumped in eight points on 4-of-5 from the floor coupled with six rebounds and two steals.
As a team, LSU was 33-of-67 shooting which included a 7-for-14 mark from three-point territory. The Lady Tigers were 20-of-32 at the charity stripe and controlled the rebounding battle by a 50-34 margin.
Out of the gates, LSU was clicking on all cylinders. The Lady Tigers amassed the game’s first 14 points capped by a Deemer triple on the left baseline and a Fareo putback layup.
LSU took its largest lead at 20-1 at the 12:41 mark of the opening half as Fareo hit another layup off a nice feed from Harden.
Loyola crept back into the game and secured 18 of the last 23 points of the first half to slice the LSU lead down to 42-34 at halftime.
The Wolfpack kept the momentum out of the locker room and used another 10-2 spurt to draw even at 44-44 with 16:15 remaining. Loyola was led by Janeicia Neely’s 24 points and Briana Oglesby’s 15 points. The duo was a combined 13-of-24 from the field, while the rest of the Wolfpack squad was limited to an 8-for-32 shooting clip.
“I talked about how we have to keep this game under control through defensive pressure,” Caldwell said. “You turn or create your run on the defensive end so we really kept talking about our pass away defense, or transition defense – firing and locating our players early. We switched up our defense a little bit and played a little bit more of our man defense towards the later part. To me, this team is capable of putting those runs together once they decided to really get after the basketball. We stated getting deflections and turnovers. We were rebounding the ball, and then we were out quickly. That’s what I really tied to emphasize to the team at that time.”
LSU fired back with 13 quick points to regain a 57-44 advantage with 13:44 left. Deemer and Pedersen opened the spurt with triples 40 seconds apart followed by a pair of Deemer free throws, a Moncrief jumper and another Deemer trey.
The Lady Tigers picked up their offensive efficiency and made 18 of their final 28 shots from the floor. Loyola cut the LSU elad down to eight points on two occasions, the latest was 61-53 at the 10:56 mark.
LSU ripped off another 10-point flurry over the next 2:06 to put the game out of reach. Harden buried a three-pointer, while Hill added a traditional three-point play. Harden and Moncrief followed with jumpers to make it 71-53.
Deemer put the finishing touches on her 17-point effort in the second half with a pair of three-pointers over the final two minutes to wrap up the 93-71 win.
The Lady Tigers also will play host to a free exhibition game versus Mississippi College at 1 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 9. Admission is free courtesy of the Advocate’s Geaux Free program. Following Sunday’s exhibition contest, LSU with Club South Runners will hold a 5K Banana Relay/Walk. Registration information is available at http://lsul.su/1o3H6aX.
Tip time is slated for 1:02 p.m., and the game will be carried online only by SEC Network Plus via www.WatchESPN.com and the Watch ESPN app. Lyn Rollins and Victor Howell will serve as the announcing team.
The LSU Sports Radio Network also will broadcast the game on its flagship station Talk 107.3 FM in Baton Rouge and inside at the Geaux Zone at www.LSUsports.net/live. Patrick Wright, the voice of the Lady Tigers, will call the action.
Season tickets are on sale for $75 online at http://www.LSUtix.net/. The LSU Athletics Ticket Office can be reached at (800) 960-8587 or (225) 578-2184 and is located on the first floor of the Moran Family Center for Athletics Administration Building. Hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays.
For all of the latest news and information on Lady Tiger basketball, visitwww.LSUsports.net/womensbasketball. Fans can also follow the program on its social media outlets at www.Facebook.com/LSUwbkb, @lsuwbkb and @NikkiCaldwell on Twitter, @LSUwbkb and @LSUNikkiCaldwell on Instagram.
LSU Women’s Basketball Postgame Quotes
Loyola vs. LSU – November 5, 2014
HEAD COACH NIKKI CALDWELL
Opening Statement
“It was really interesting to come out tonight and really think about what we wanted to accomplishing going into this game. There are a couple of areas that we really wanted to focus on, pushing the tempo and establishing our running game. I felt like we did that. Our offensive execution, we’ve had some really nice offensive plays and great screening but taking care of the basketball has got to be a priority for this team. Defensively, against a team like Loyola who statistically has really been one of the leaders in shooting the three-point ball, I thought we were challenged there. They did a nice job of picking up the defensive pressure to turn us over. This team is growing. We are young, but we are going to continue to grow and be better in each game that we play.”
On what she said to her team when Loyola tied the game in the 2nd half …
“I talked about how we have to keep this game under control through defensive pressure. You turn or create your run on the defensive end so we really kept talking about our pass away defense, or transition defense – firing and locating our players early. We switched up our defense a little bit and played a little bit more of our man defense towards the later part. To me, this team is capable of putting those runs together once they decided to really get after the basketball. We stated getting deflections and turnovers. We were rebounding the ball, and then we were out quickly. That’s what I really tied to emphasize to the team at that time.”
On changing up the team’s defense schemes …
“We will probably change it up a little bit and again. We’ve got new faces here, but we are going to have to continue to work at our matchup and at our man. Sometimes, we were in man and zone because Jenna (Deemer) was dropping down and making it look like we were in man but we were really in zone. She’s going to learn that and get better. We are going to keep working at it, but I think this team could really change it up. I think we could be that team that extends their defense and then come back and be a delay, disrupt type of defensive team as well.
On Danielle Ballard‘s suspension …
“There is obviously a disappointment there. We are a team. When a team member is suspended, you look for your teammates to step up. I thought these three ladies stepped up and really carried that load. I felt that (Jenna) Deemer really took to shoot the basketball and really opened things up. Ray (Moncrief), having the ability to move her up to point, took a little more stress off of Rina (Hill) and obviously DaShawn (Harden). When you’ve got Akilah (Bethel) who can take the ball of the blast and start the break for us, that also helps our transition game. Our team is going to continue to do what we need to do and to compete every night for LSU.
On the severity of Danielle Ballard‘s suspension …
“She is allowed to practice, and she is still part of our team. We are very disappointed that we had the violation and that she is suspended. But as coach, there is disciplinary action that you have to take. She will grow and learn from it.”
LSU Women’s Basketball Postgame Quotes
Loyola vs LSU – November 5, 2014
GUARD RAIGYNE MONCRIEF
On her performance …
“I was ready to play for my team, I didn’t think about my knee situation. I was just ready to play. Everybody was hyped about the game. It was exactly what I wanted, especially defensively and offensively to get up and down the floor.”
GUARD JENNA DEEMER
On what she takes away from this game …
“As a freshman, I look at it as a blessing to be able to play in front of my hometown and my home state – to have so many people support me. My team and I showed up tonight, and I’m grateful for what happened.”
GUARD AKILAH BETHEL
On her first game as a LSU Lady Tiger …
“It was exciting. I think I was a little anxious with traveling, but I’m definitely grateful to have a second chance and to be in an environment where they expect so much out of me and push me. I was excited and just happy to play with my team.”