COLLEGE STATION, Texas – Akilah Bethel secured her first career double-double with 13 points and a career-high 10 rebounds, but No. 9 Texas A&M used a strong second half to rally for a 55-48 victory over the LSU women’s basketball team on Sunday afternoon at Reed Arena.
LSU (8-8, 2-2 SEC) was unable to protect a seven-point halftime advantage as the Aggies (15-3, 3-1 SEC) connected for a 12-for-27 shooting clip and outscored the Lady Tigers by a 37-23 margin during the second half.
For Bethel, the 13 points was her second-highest scoring output on the season. She garnered seven on her 10 rebounds on the offensive end. She played a key role to LSU’s 26-18 advantage in paint points and 20-12 edge in second-chance points.
Sheila Boykin added 11 points, six rebounds and two blocks for the Lady Tigers. The Boykin-Bethel combo was a combined 8-for-12 from the floor and knocked down 8-of-9 at the free throw line.
“I thought our post game played tough,” head coach Nikki Caldwell said. “We battled inside, and Bethel gave us great minutes. I thought Sheila did a nice job for us as well. We have to get more board play from our guards. We can’t leave it up to our post game to rebound because we’re not a big team. Everyone has to be accountable for not only for the defensive boards but also getting in there for those offensive rebounds. We missed opportunities to get all over the glass. This is a good test for us. Going into this game, we knew that we could be successful if we did certain things. We executed our gameplan and stayed true to our gameplan in the first half.”
Raigyne Moncrief secured eight points and four assists, while Danielle Balllard came away with four points and seven rebounds. LSU’s top scorer, DaShawn Harden, was limited to four points on a 2-for-9 shooting clip. It was her lowest scoring output since LSU’s season opener against Arkansas-Little Rock.
As a team, LSU was 20-of-56 from the floor but misfired on all eight of its three-point attempts. The Lady Tigers were 8-for-12 at the charity stripe.
Texas A&M was led by Jordan Jones’ 12 points and eight assists. Curtyce Knox also secured a career-best 10 points off the bench for the Aggies. They racked up 20 of their 22 points on a crisp 7-of-10 shooting and each buried a pair of three-pointers during the second half.
LSU’s defense held A&M’s top two scorers who were ranked among the SEC’s Top 10 going into the game, Courtney Walker and Courtney Williams, to eight points apiece. It marked the first time on the season that either Walker or Williams failed to reach double figures for the Aggies.
LSU erased an early 6-0 deficit with six consecutive points of its own. Jenna Deemer hit a runner on the left baseline to knot the score at 6-6 with 15:34 remaining.
Trailing 10-8 at the 13:51 mark, the Lady Tigers reeled off another seven straight points highlighted by a traditional three-point play courtesy of Boykin. A Moncrief layup put LSU ahead 17-12 with 8:44 to go.
The Lady Tigers maintained their lead, and an acrobatic up-and-under layup from Ballard vaulted LSU a 25-18 advantage heading into the locker room.
Texas A&M rattled off 13 of the first 19 points of the second half aided by a trio of three-pointers from Jones and Knox to draw even at 31-31 with 14:28 left.
The Lady Tigers weathered the storm behind Bethel and Boykin who provided back-to-back putback layups coupled with a Moncrief jumper just inside the free throw line to enable LSU to regain a 37-31 edge at the 11:56 mark.
Texas A&M regained the momentum and fired back with seven straight points capped by a Knox layup to go back up 38-37 with 9:55 remaining. After four lead changes, a Jones three-pointer gave the Aggies a two-possession lead at 45-41 with 6:18 left.
LSU got within two points on two occasions, the latest at 50-48 after Boykin drilled a runner off the glass from the left wing at the 1:18 mark.
After a defensive stop, the Lady Tigers had an opportunity to tie the score. A Ballard turnover led to an A&M transition layup from Knox set up by a Jones outlet pass. The Aggies went 3-of-5 at the foul line to close out the 55-48 win.
LSU continues its stretch of four straight games against ranked opponents and travels to No. 14 Mississippi State on Thursday. Tip time is slated for 7 p.m. from Humphrey Coliseum, and 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 the 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
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.