Coach Jumper
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"Air Tamari"
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. -- No. 25/RV Tennessee (17-6, 7-3 SEC) and RV/RV LSU (17-5, 7-3 SEC) will meet for the second time this season, as they face off Thursday at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center in Baton Rouge, La., at 6:32 p.m. CT (7:32 ET). This will mark the 67th meeting in a series that began in 1977, with Tennessee leading 51-15 after the Lady Vols defeated the Tigers, 63-58, in Knoxville earlier this season on Jan. 26. UT and LSU enter the game tied for third in the Southeastern Conference standings at 7-3, and the winner will take sole possession of the three spot. The loser, meanwhile, will fall into a tie with Arkansas and Kentucky in fourth place. In addition to conference seeding, Thursday night's contest offers Tennessee an opportunity against an LSU squad that ranks No. 24 in the RPI. As of Feb. 10, the Lady Vols occupy the No. 48 spot in the RPI, with games against LSU (No. 24) and Texas A&M (No. 17) this week providing a chance to improve that stock.
THE ROAD LEADING UP TO THIS
- Rennia Davis is averaging 23.3 points per game over her last three, shooting 46.9 percent (23-49) from the field and 95.5 (21-22) at the charity stripe.
- Rae Burrell had a 20-point, 10-rebound double-double vs. Mississippi State and is averaging 12.0 ppg. and 5.7 rebounds over the past three contests.
- Jazmine Massengill is averaging 10.3 ppg. and shooting 52.0 percent over the last three games.
- LSU lost senior leader Ayana Mitchell for the season after she suffered a knee injury vs. Texas A&M on Feb. 2.
- The Tigers, however, managed to overcome that terrible misfortune to beat the Aggies, 59-58, in Baton Rouge on Feb. 2.
- LSU followed that with a 66-58 home triumph over Missouri on Monday night to extend its winning streak to three games.
- The Bayou Bengals are 10-1 at home this season, including 5-0 in SEC games with wins over Alabama, Ole Miss, Kentucky, Texas A&M and Missouri at the PMAC.
- LSU's only home loss came vs. Florida State, which currently ranks No. 14 in both polls.
- The Lady Vols now get to play three of the next four at home, including No. 16/18 Texas A&M on Sunday (3 p.m. ET), Vanderbilt on Feb. 23 (noon) and Ole Miss on Feb. 27 (7 p.m.). The lone road game during that set is at No. 23/RV Arkansas on Feb. 20 (6 p.m. CT/7 ET.
- Sunday's goal for UT is to have #12KinTBA (a season-high 12,000 in attendance) for the Texas A&M game.
- The Vanderbilt game is UT's Live Pink, Bleed Orange (Play4Kay) game, and the Ole Miss date is Senior Night.
- LSU plays its next two on the road, traveling to Auburn on Feb. 16 and to No. 1 South Carolina on Feb. 20.
- The Lady Vols are 17-6 overall, 7-3 in the SEC, tied for third in the SEC standings and ranked No. 25/RV nationally.
- Their only losses are to four top-eight teams (South Carolina, Stanford, UConn, Mississippi State), No. 13/13 Kentucky and Texas.
- Tennessee did not begin the season in either the AP or USA TODAY Coaches polls.
- All 12 (now 11) active players had never played for first-year head coach Kellie Harper before.
- Sophomore Rae Burrell led Tennessee (17-6, 7-3 SEC), scoring 20 points and pulling down 10 boards to record a double-double in her first career start and her third overall. Freshman Jordan Horston and sophomore Jazmine Massengill were also in double digits with 12 and 11, respectively, as the Lady Vols played without leading scorer Rennia Davis (18.1 ppg.), who was recovering from a bout with the flu.
- UT out-rebounded Mississippi State, 40-39, as both teams recorded 16 offensive boards. Tennessee shot at a 36.2 percent clip from the field while holding the Bulldogs to a 40-percent performance that was 7.5 percent below their 47.5 season mark. The Big Orange also held MSU 9.5 points below their typical scoring average of 81.5.
- The Tigers returned nine letterwinners, including four starters, from last season's team that finished 16-13 overall and 7-9 in SEC play (t8th).
- LSU is led by junior guard Khayla Pointer, who averages 15.0 ppg. Faustine Aifuwa adds 10.2 ppg. and 8.3 rpg. The Tigers lost All-SEC candidate Ayana Mitchell (13.7 ppg., 8.9 rpg.) on Feb. 2 due to a knee injury in the Texas A&M game.
- The Tigers are coached by Nikki (Caldwell) Fargas, who played at Tennessee (1991-94) and was a G.A. (1998-99) and assistant (2002-08) at Rocky Top.
- LSU was picked to finish eighth by the media and sixth by the coaches in the SEC preseason polls.
- LSU (17-5, 7-3 SEC) took down Missouri (6-18, 3-8 SEC) in a battle Monday night at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center, 66-58.
- Redshirt junior Faustine Aifuwa tallied a season-high 19 points and tied her career high for rebounds with 16.
- Senior Jaelyn Richard-Harris had a season-high-tying 14 points, junior Khayla Pointer had 12 and junior transfer Awa Trasi, starting in place of the injured Ayana Mitchell, scored 11.
- Richard-Harris was perfect from the free throw line, hitting eight of eight attempts and contributing to a team free throw percentage of 77.8.
VolNation
LSU last 3 game recaps
Aifuwa Leads Tigers in 66-58 Win Over Missouri
BATON ROUGE, La. — The LSU Women's Basketball Team took down Missouri in a battle Monday night at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center, 66-58. LSU moves to 17-5 overall and 7-3 in conference play. Mizzou falls to 6-18 overall and 3-8 in the SEC. Redshirt junior Faustine Aifuwa excelled for the Tigers with a season-high 19 points and tied her career-high for rebounds with 16 for the second game in a row. She was accompanied in double digit scoring by three of her teammates. Senior Jaelyn Richard-Harris had a season-high tying 14 points, junior Khayla Pointer had 12 and junior transfer Awa Trasi, starting in place of the injured Ayana Mitchell scored 11. Richard-Harris was perfect from the free throw line, shooting 8-8 and contributing to a team free throw percentage of 77.8.
Aifuwa Posts Career Game in Victory over No. 15 Texas A&M
BATON ROUGE, La. —The LSU Women's Basketball team beat No. 15 Texas A&M in a 59-58 nail biter on Sunday afternoon in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center. It is the first time that LSU has swept its permanent partner, Texas A&M, in the regular season. The Tigers and Aggies have battled twice a season since the 2012-13 season when A&M joined the SEC. The victory improves LSU's record to 16-5 overall and 6-3 in conference play. Texas A&M drops to 18-4 overall and 6-3 in the SEC. Redshirt junior Faustine Aifuwa collected the seventh double-double of her career and third of the season with 18 points and 16 rebounds. Her 16 rebounds was a single-game career best, while her 18 points tied her season-best. Junior Khayla Pointer hit the 800-career points milestone in the fourth quarter and ended up with a total of 18 points (808 for career). Junior Jailin Cherry was the third player in today's game to hit double-digit scoring with 10 points and three rebounds. Senior guard Jaelyn Richard-Harris was key on defense with five rebounds and a steal while dishing out four assists.
Pointer Scores 24 In Win at Florida
GAINESVILLE, Fla. — The LSU Women's Basketball team took down Florida on Thursday night in a 77-68 win. With the win, the Tigers are now 15-5 overall, 5-3 in the SEC. The Gators will fall to 11-10 and 2-6 in conference play. Junior Khayla Pointer showed out for the Tigers as she had 24 points, five rebounds and four assists. She was helped by senior Jaelyn Richard-Harris, who had 14 points, three rebounds and two steals. LSU was 8-10 from behind the arc, with Richard-Harris hitting 4-4. Juniors Awa Trasi and Jailin Cherry also hit double-digits in points with 10 each. Redshirt junior Faustine Aifuwa made a stand against the boards, with 11 rebounds while the team won the battle of the boards, 35-28.
LSU comes in riding a 3 game winning streak
UT comes having lost 2 games in a row for the 1st time this year
Time to stop both streaks
Coach Jumpers prediction: UT 64 LSU 58
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