Michael Bacigalupi
By Rivers Hughey
BATON ROUGE, La. – In front of 13,200 rabid fans in attendance, the 12th-ranked LSU women’s basketball team took down the second-ranked Texas Longhorns, 70-65, behind junior Mikaylah Williams’ clutch performance Sunday afternoon inside the Pete Maravich Assembly Center.
With the victory, LSU picked up its second-straight SEC win and improved its record to 16-2 overall and 2-2 in league play. With the loss, Texas was handed its first loss of the season, dropping to 18-1 on the year and 3-1 in the SEC.
With the Tigers’ bye occurring on Thursday, Jan. 15, LSU will return to action in a week when it heads to Norman to take on No. 5 Oklahoma. The contest is scheduled to begin at 2 p.m. CT on ESPN or ESPN2 Sunday, Jan. 18. Fans are encouraged to tune into the LSU Sports Radio Network with Patrick Wright and Shaeeta Williams calling the action.
LSU’s victory over the No. 2 team in the Associated Press poll marks the program’s first AP Top 2 win since 2008 when the Tigers defeated No. 2 North Carolina, 56-50, in the NCAA Elite Eight. LSU’s win over the Longhorns snapped a 17-game losing streak against teams in the Top 2.
The last time LSU defeated an AP Top 5 opponent was in the 2023 National Championship where the Tigers downed Iowa by a score of 102-85 to claim its first national title.
LSU’s victory in front of 13,200 fans signaled the ninth-largest crowd in program history.
“If you’re a true basketball junkie, that was an enjoyable game to watch because both teams had just hard-nosed defense,” Coach Kim Mulkey said. “Everything came hard in what you tried to do, and it was just good hard-nosed basketball. The first thing you better always do against Texas is take care of the ball.”
Williams, a Bossier City, La. native, displayed her clutch gene all day, knocking down big shots and defending the Longhorns top player in Madison Booker. The 6-0 guard finished with 20 points, seven rebounds, four assists and five steals. Williams’ five steals were a career high as she had previously recorded four steals in six career games.
Williams shot 7-of-13 from the field, knocked home two important three-pointers and went 4-of-6 from the charity stripe.
Joining Williams, four other Tigers finished with double digits in scoring including senior Flau’jae Johnson (10), sophomore Jada Richard (10), junior MiLaysia Fulwiley (10), and freshman ZaKiyah Johnson (10).
LSU’s defense was able to hold the Longhorns to 25-of-57 shooting, 4-of-12 from behind the arc, and 11-of-18 from the free throw line. LSU’s ability to garner second chances at a high clip led to the Tigers ability to get up extra shots, as the Longhorns allowed the most second chance points this season (13) against LSU.
In addition, LSU forced 17 turnovers, the most by the Longhorns this year.
“I thought (Jada Richard’s) defense was as good as Mikaylah’s was on Booker,” Mulkey said. “Jada went and guarded Booker some. You’re not going to just stop Booker, but if you can just keep making her work. I thought we did a good job on (Rori Harmon). That’s a fifth-year senior that’s having a great year. Jada will guard you. Jada takes things that you say and tries to be the coach on the floor, even at a young age. I think Mikaylah is growing with her leadership on the floor. So, yeah, I want the ball in Jada’s hands. She’s the best free throw shooter we have.
Through the first two quarters, both teams possessed a stout defensive effort, finishing the first quarter tied at 11. Flau’jae got the scoring started with a three-pointer. The Tigers would take four leads in the first, but the period closed all knotted up. The 11 points for both teams is the lowest scoring total in a first quarter this season on either side.
In the second quarter, LSU started 0-for-7 from the field but finished the period going 8-for-9, which gave the Tigers’ ability to take a 30-25 lead into the half. LSU closed out the quarter, heading into the second half, shooting 9-for-12. The Tigers out-rebounded the Longhorns, 12-4, in the second period.
Coming out of the first half, LSU’s scoring continued with it working on a 20-9 run that began in the second quarter. Most notably, the Tigers’ shots began to fall after starting 7-for-26 from the field. LSU was able to push its lead to nine which was the largest deficit Texas has faced all season.
In the fourth quarter, Texas battled back to a three-point deficit, but LSU was able to keep the Longhorns at arm’s length to maintain the lead. The Tigers held the lead for 26:52 compared to Texas’ 7:17.
As the final minute waned down, Williams hit her toughest shot of the day, as she drained a three-pointer with one second left on the shot clock and 1:20 left in the game. The bucket gave LSU the 66-59 lead, and Richard was able to ice the contest away with four made free throws down the stretch. LSU came out victorious, 70-65.
