LSU women’s basketball’s quest for another championship begins next week and the No. 1 ranked team has high expectations coming into this season.
Over the summer, LSU grabbed two of the top recruits from the transfer portal, Louisville’s Hailey Van Lith and DePaul’s Annessa Morrow. The Tigers also signed the No. 1 recruiting class, according to LSU.
Kim Mulkey’s third season as a head coach has harder games for the Tigers throughout the season. She garnered some criticism last year when people commented on how soft the schedule was to start the season.
While LSU still has to play softer teams, there are some important games on the schedule to keep an eye on. These games will be true tests for the Tigers on the quest to repeat as champions.
1. Nov. 6 against No. 20 Colorado in Las Vegas
The season opens against a Colorado Buffaloes team that finished the season in the Sweet 16 of last year’s NCAA tournament, falling by 10 to Iowa. Head coach JR Payne is a strong strategist and only graduated three seniors. Pac-12 basketball gave the Tigers issues when they played Utah in the Sweet 16 tournament and only won by three. Colorado will be a feisty team for LSU to face so early in the season and it will be a good gauge of how they will handle tough teams.
2. Nov. 30 against No. 8 Virginia Tech in PMAC
Did someone call for a rematch? In a new SEC-ACC series over the Thanksgiving weekend, both teams will play at PMAC. Virginia Tech has a lot of its starting lineup returning, including exceptional shooter Georgia Amore and Elizabeth Kitley. Despite Angel Reese having another double-double, she got into foul trouble guarding Kitley because any attempt of a Reese rebound got blown thanks to a slight height differential. This will be the hardest game in the opening month because of their familiarity with one another.
3. Jan. 7 against Ole Miss in Oxford
LSU only beat Ole Miss by nine points last season. But the Rebels pulled off one of the most shocking upsets last tournament by beating Standford in the first round. Coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin, affectionately called Coach Yo, has a team of scrappy individuals who fought Standford until the bitter end and will do the same. Ole Miss likes to play physically and will have a wake-up call to it since the Rebels are the second game SEC game for LSU.
4. Jan. 25 against No. 1 South Carolina in PMAC
LSU has not won against South Carolina in the Mulkey era. This is a brand new South Carolina team now that the “Freshies” have moved on, but the expectations for the Gamecocks are still there. Head coach Dawn Staley is an exceptional coach who will have her team prepared and ready to challenge the Tigers.
5. Feb. 25 against No. 11 Tennessee in Knoxville
The Tigers split their games against the Lady Vols last season and lost by two in the final seconds of an SEC tournament semifinal. Despite Jordan Horston graduating, Tennessee still looks the same and all eyes will be on the matchup between Reese and Rickea Jackson. Jackson, like Reese, is a rebounding and posting machine. However, Jackson is a better shooter than Reese was last season, especially from the arc. Reese has said that her turnaround jumper one of the things she was working on over the summer.