KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – The LSU women’s basketball team wraps us a stretch of four consecutive games against ranked opponents as the Lady Tigers square off with No. 5 Tennessee on Thursday evening.
Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. CT from Thompson-Boling Arena, and the game will be televised by the SEC Network. The telecast also will be available on http://www.watchespn.com/ and the Watch ESPN app. Cara Capuano and Gail Goestenkors will serve as the announcing team.
The LSU Sports Radio Network will broadcast the game on its flagship station Talk 107.3 FM in Baton Rouge. Patrick Wright, the voice of the Lady Tiger, will call the action. The broadcast also will be available for Geaux Zone subscribers at www.LSUsports.net/live.
Last time out, the Lady Tigers (10-8, 4-2 SEC) racked up a season’s best 84 points and collected an 84-79 victory over No. 10 Kentucky. Tennessee (15-3, 5-0 SEC) is coming off an 88-77 loss at No. 6 Notre Dame which snapped an 11-game winning streak for the Lady Vols.
For the second consecutive game, LSU’s coaching staff will wear its “We Back Pat” shirts in support of the Pam Summitt Foundation and the SEC’s “We Back Pat” week which is taking place across the conference from January 18-26.
“In playing Tennessee, obviously there is a personal feeling that I have towards that program with the relationship I have, not only with the staff but obviously Coach Summitt,” head coach Nikki Caldwell said. “What she has meant, not only to many of us as former players, but just what she has meant to the women’s game. Our team, we are playing extremely hard, and we are playing this game with togetherness and unity. I know that Coach Summitt is going to be there watching in the stands, and I know that she’s going to feel proud of the work that we are doing here at LSU.”
Tennessee is led by Ariel Massengale who provides a team-leading 11.8 points and 2.2 assists per game off the bench. She has dialed up 37 of her 63 field goals from beyond the three-point arc and her 42.5 three-point percentage is ranked second on the SEC leaderboard. Cierra Burdick has secured 9.7 points, 6.9 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game.
On the interior, Isabelle Harrison has collected 11.4 points and 8.9 rebounds per game followed by Bashaara Graves’ 10.0 points and 7.2 rebounds per game. The Lady Vols have feasted on offensive rebounds and crash the glass for 17.6 offensive boards per game.
Tennessee has compiled a 46-13 series advantage over the Lady Tigers and won two of the three meetings between the two teams last season. LSU secured an 80-77 victory over No. 5 Tennessee in Knoxville behind Danielle Ballard‘s 25 points.
The Lady Tigers will attempt to become the first SEC team to win back-to-back games in Knoxville during consecutive seasons. Only LSU (2006 & 2008) and Ole Miss (1984 & 1987) have notched consecutive wins at Thompson-Boling Arena.
“It’s going to be a hard fought game, like any SEC opponent,” Caldwell said. “There is going to be certain keys to the game. One of them, obviously, is controlling the boards. We’ve got to raise our level of toughness on the boards to be able to play with a team like Tennessee who gets all over the offensive glass and play as though we can eliminate some of those second and third opportunities that they get. That will disrupt some of their offensive execution. Transition defense is going to be a key as well. If we can really hone in on those two areas, we can walk away from that game with a victory.”
Ballard is the reigning SEC, ESPNW and USBWA Player of the Week after she amassed 24.5 points, 7.0 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 3.0 steals per game. She equaled her career-high with 25 points coupled with a season’s best five assists and five steals against No. 10 Kentucky. The 25 points was the second-highest scoring output by a player in a SEC game on the season.
DaShawn Harden has posted 11.5 points and 2.4 steals per game. Her 2.4 steals are third in the SEC rankings. She has knocked down 1.5 triples per game and upped her scoring average to 12.7 points per game over her last seven outings.
Raigyne Moncrief has turned in 11.0 points, 6.9 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 2.2 steals per game. She is one of five players to be ranked among the SEC’s Top 15 in three categories. Moncrief has boosted her average to 13.5 points per game over her last four appearances and equaled her season-high with 18 points at No. 15 Mississippi State.
LSU’s post play is sparked by Sheila Boykin‘s 7.5 points and 6.8 rebounds per game. She matched her career-high 14 points and notched 11 rebounds versus No. 10 Kentucky. Over her last nine outings, Boykin has drained 61.5 percent of her shots.
Akilah Bethel has added 6.8 points and 5.4 rebounds per game. She has upped her mark to 7.8 points and sank 66.7 percent of her attempts over her last four efforts off the bench.
Rina Hill has secured 3.7 points and 1.4 assists per game as LSU’s starting points guard. The Lady Tigers have received solid performances from Jenna Deemer and Jasmine Rhodes off the bench. Deemer has picked up 7.9 points per game with 15 treys over her last nine appearances, while Rhodes is coming off a season-high 8 points against No. 10 Kentucky.
“I think just Ballard’s presence on the floor exudes confidence for our team whether she’s in the best shape – she’s not even in her best shape right now because they know the road that Danielle (Ballard) has taken and traveled to get back to the team,” Caldwell said. “There’s a deeper appreciation. I know (Raigyne) Moncrief is thrilled to have her back for more reasons than one but obviously to carry the burden of carrying the team. Ballard gives us that. Her being able to practice and still be around the team also kept her engaged with the team. Her teammates have done a tremendous job without her. They stayed the course. Although our record didn’t reflect that, you could see the growth that was happening within our team. We’re going to continue grow. We’re a young team, and it’s just great to have everybody back.”
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.