No. 6 LSU outlasted No. 16 Tennessee in an 89-87 thriller on Thursday night to hand the Lady Vols their second straight loss.
This clutch game-winner from junior guard Kailyn Gilbert with 0.7 seconds remaining gave her 22 points off the bench and sealed the victory for LSU.
LSU had three players in double figures. Senior guard Aneesah Morrow led the way with 23 points and 21 rebounds, which marked her 16th double-double in 18 games and her second 20-20 game of the season.
Along with Gilbert’s 22 off the bench, junior guard Flau’Jae Johnson had 20 points, including this putback that extended LSU’s lead to 34-19 with 7:42 to play in the first half.
The Tigers led 37-19 with 6:32 remaining in the first half before Tennessee made a run to get back in the game.
LSU shot 49.4%, outrebounded Tennessee 46-38 and doubled-up the Lady Vols, 60-30, in the paint. Considering the Tigers were an abysmal 1-for-8 from long-range, the dominance under the basket served them well in a tightly contested game.
After starting 13-0, Tennessee has dropped back-to-back conference games. The Lady Vols made 11 threes in the game. Senior guard Jewel Spear hit five of those long-range shots and led the team with 25 points.
LSU (18-0, 3-0 SEC) had only faced one ranked team prior to Thursday night when it defeated then-No. 20 NC State, 82-65, on Nov. 27. After a signature conference win against Tennessee, the Tigers face Vanderbilt on Monday and Florida on Jan. 19 before their next ranked matchup against No. 2 South Carolina on Jan. 23.
Tennessee (13-2, 1-2 SEC) will look to regroup on Sunday at Arkansas. The Lady Vols must be more competitive in the paint going forward than they were Thursday night if they are going to contend in the SEC.
