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The clock has officially struck midnight on the LSU women’s basketball team’s Cinderella run in the NCAA Tournament.
The glass slipper was splattered on Sunday afternoon by the home standing and hot shooting Louisville Cardinals.
The No. 7-seed Lady Tigers surprised many bracketologists last week when they upset No. 2-seed West Virginia and surged into the NCAA Tournament’s Sweet 16 for the second-straight season.
But after the Second Round upset, LSU’s magical run came to a screeching halt at the hands of the Lady Cardinals who made 12 3-pointers in a dominant 73-47 thrashing of the Lady Tigers – the second time this season that Louisville hands LSU a decisive defeat.
For Louisville, championship ambitions remain. For LSU, the loss ended the team’s season with a 21-13 record. It also ends the collegiate career of Vandebilt Catholic High School standout Theresa Plaisance, who scored 7 points and pulled down 12 rebounds in the defeat. Plaisance will likely have nightmares about her final collegiate game, as she shot just 1-of-13 from the field in the game.
“I’m extremely proud of this group,” LSU women’s basketball coach Nikki Caldwell said minutes after the Lady Tigers’ season came to its completion. “They have an unbelievable spirit about them. They have shown not only to our fans and families, but to the basketball community, that they can achieve when people think that we can’t.”
LSU knew going into Sunday’s game that it faced an uphill battle, as senior guard Jeanne Kenney (concussion) and freshman guard Raigyne Moncrief (knee) were ruled out for the season. Kenney and Moncrief are two of the Lady Tigers’ top four scorers, and their departures left LSU with just eight active players.
But even with the lack of depth, the Lady Tigers controlled play in the earliest minutes of the game, taking a 12-9 lead at the 12:31 mark in the first half.
Louisville quickly turned that score around with a furious 18-4 run over the next five-plus minutes, sparked by the 3-point line. The Lady Cardinals stroked 3’s consistently throughout the game, playing a fast-paced offensive game designed to both wear out LSU’s thin lineup and get clean looks at the basket.
The Lady Cardinals got both, taking control of the rest of the half en route to an easy 41-23 halftime lead.
“This team did all that they could do considering (the lack of depth),” Caldwell said. “Our bench, they came in and they tried their best. I’m proud of them for that. We didn’t execute as well as we wanted to, but it wasn’t that they were fearful. I just think that when you look at Louisville, they’re a very experienced team.
“Their transition game is one of the best in the country, and they got out quickly.”
The Lady Tigers made a couple of surges in the second half to bring the Louisville lead into the mid-teens. But the Lady Cardinals were relentless. With every run LSU made, Louisville made one of its own that was bigger than LSU’s surge.
The Lady Cardinals went ahead by 20-plus points in the second half and never looked back late in the game, easily coasting to victory.
With the win, the Lady Cardinals will move on to take on No. 4 Maryland – a team that upset No. 1 Tennessee in the Sweet 16 just minutes before the Lady Tigers’ meeting with Louisville.
But the brackets and the matchups don’t mean anything to LSU anymore, as the Lady Tigers headed home and officially started their offseason.
LSU’s future seems to be bright going forward as the team loses just three players from its roster (Plaisance, Kenney and Shanece McKinney).
But the meat of LSU’s guards will return, including Moncrief and sophomore guard Danielle Ballard, who exploded in the NCAA Tournament, scoring more than 20 points in all three LSU games.
Ballard had 24 points and 10 boards against the Lady Cardinals, scoring on 12 field goals.
Caldwell said she thinks the future is bright, as well. But she said she hurt for Plaisance, Kenney and McKinney, stating that she will miss the senior trio next season.
“We played a very tough Louisville team that played extremely well,” Caldwell said. “It just wasn’t our night, but I can’t say enough how proud I am with this group for the challenges and the adversity that they had to overcome.”
LSU men falter in NIT, end 2014 season on bitter note
While the LSU women’s basketball team fell flat in Louisville, the Tigers men’s team also saw their season come to its completion this past week.
LSU lost its Second Round game at the NIT Tournament at the hands of No. 1-seed SMU.
Like the women, the Tigers started hot, but faded late, squandering a first-half lead before being soundly defeated 80-67.
The loss ends the LSU men’s basketball team’s season with a 20-14 record.
The Tigers won their First Round NIT game on the road against San Francisco. But road woes plagued the team all season, as LSU won just three games as a visitor in the entire 2013-14 season.
“They did a great job of controlling the tempo,” LSU coach Johnny Jones said. “They knocked down shots and made great defensive plays.”
But even with the defeat, the only thing LSU supporters want to talk about is the future.
The Tigers are expected to return the core of this year’s team, including dynamite freshmen Jordan Mickey and Jarell Martin, both of whom are expected to return to the team, despite temptation from the NBA.
Junior forward Johnny O’Bryant III is also expected to make a decision soon regarding his future. The Tigers’ forward is expected to consider coming back after a down junior season.
In the 2014-15 season, LSU will benefit from transfer guard Keith Hornsby, who joins the Tigers’ team after averaging 15 points per game at UNC-Asheville.
LSU women’s basketball player Theresa Plaisance walks through the Lady Tigers’ hotel while the Golden Band from Tigerland plays a tune to get the team fired up for play. LSU lost in the Sweet 16 to Louisville, a loss than ends Plaisance’s collegiate career. She will now head to the professional ranks.
