CORAL GABLES, Fla. – The LSU women’s basketball team battled back to erase a 16-point halftime deficit and took the lead midway through the second half before the Lady Tigers were dealt a 76-71 loss by Miami during Monday’s championship game of the Miami Holiday Tournament at the BankUnited Center.
Jenna Deemer and DaShawn Harden fueled LSU’s comeback effort and poured in 22 points ignited by a quartet of three-pointers during the second half. Deemer, an All-Tournament Team pick, racked up a season’s best 17 points over her 20 minutes of action whereas Harden came away with 18 points and three steals. For Deemer, it was third consecutive game in double figures.
Raigyne Moncrief turned in a solid all-around effort with 14 points, seven rebounds and three assists playing through foul trouble for a majority of the second half. LSU’s post play was led by Sheila Boykin‘s nine points and Akilah Bethel‘s six rebounds, while Rina Hill tacked on four points and two assists.
As a team, LSU (6-5) was an efficient 30-of-56 from the floor and converted on 18 of its 32 shot attempts in the second half. The Lady Tigers also buried 8-of-13 from three-point territory. The 53.6 percent shooting clip and eight triples were a season-highs for LSU.
Miami (10-3) was led by Adrienne Motley, who tallied 16 points and five rebounds en route to the tournament’s MVP award. The Hurricanes also received 15 points from Necole Sterling. A big difference for Miami was a 14-point advantage at the free throw line where the Hurricanes made 17-of-22 opportunities compared to LSU’s 3-of-7.
“We got off to a very flat start,” head coach Nikki Caldwell said. “A lot of credit goes to Miami for being very intense on the defensive end and turning us over during the first two segments of the game. Again, we’re a team that knows that we can come from behind. We know we have the capabilities of getting our defensive stops. Once we’re able to do that, we’re able to thrive offensively. We have the start the game that way. We have to play for 40 minutes. Right now, we’re about a 30-minute basketball team, and we have to decide not to let those two segments get away from us.”
Trailing 46-30 at halftime, the Lady Tigers opened the second 20 minutes with a bang as Harden sank a three-pointer from the top of the key. Boykin followed with a midrange jumper, and Moncrief drove the lane for a contested left-handed layup to bring LSU back within 46-39 with 17:28 remaining.
The Lady Tigers continued their charge as Hill scooted through the lane and hit a finger roll. Harden tacked on another trifecta, and Moncrief connected on a jumper after a Boykin steal to make it 46-44 with 15:48 to go.
LSU completed its 21-3 spurt with a Deemer triple and step-in jumper from the left baseline. Harden vaulted the Lady Tigers ahead 51-49 with 12:20 left after she went coast-to-coast for a layup off a steal.
“The one thing that (Jenna) Deemer can do is knock down shots,” Caldwell said. “She does a nice job of being accurate. It doesn’t take her a lot of shot attempts to get to double digit as far as her scoring is concerned. It’s nice to have a spot up shooter like Deemer because you have players that are looking for her. They are making a conscious effort to find her. We talked about sharing the ball and riding someone when they have the hot hand. I thought we did a much better job of that in the second half.”
With the score knotted at 60-60 at the 7:16 mark, Miami pieced together seven straight points to regain a 67-60 advantage. Sterling hit a three-pointer, and Motely knocked down four three throws. The Hurricanes were 7-of-8 at the free throw line inside the final 82 seconds to close out the 76-71 decision.
Miami came out clicking on all cylinders and built a 30-12 lead during the game’s first eight minutes on the strength of a 12-for-18 shooting effort aided by five three-pointers. The Hurricanes amassed 22 of the game’s 26 points in the paint during the opening half and took a 36-20 edge into halftime.
“We played ball in the second half, and we challenged the players at halftime not to be scared to win,” Caldwell said. “When you come into a hostile environment and play on the road, you have to enjoy the grind of winning. You have to like the fact that it’s going to be ugly, it’s going to be hard and it’s going to be tough. Every loose ball matters, and every box out matters.”
The Lady Tigers head into the SEC portion of their schedule and meet Florida for Friday’s conference opener. Tipoff is slated for 6 p.m. from the Stephen C. O’Connell Center. The game will be carried online only by SEC Network Plus courtesy of www.WatchESPN.com and the Watch ESPN app.
The LSU Sports Radio Network will broadcast Monday’s game on its flagship station Talk 107.3 FM in Baton Rouge. The broadcast featuring Patrick Wright, the voice of the Lady Tigers, also will be available for Geaux Zone subscribers at www.LSUsports.net/live.
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, visit www.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.
2014 Miami Holiday Tournament Team
Olivia Antilla – Florida A&M
Jenna Deemer – LSU
Lucy Mason – UNC Greensboro
Necole Sterling – Miami
MVP: Adrienne Motley – Miami