LSU completes exhibition play with a 117-37 win over LSUA – LSU

BATON ROUGE – No. 7 LSU completed Wednesday night's exhibition game with a win over LSU-Alexandria, 117-37.

“We have a team that has speed, quickness and depth when they are all healthy,” coach Kim Mulkey said. “We will push it forward. I think you can throw it on the ground. We will run. I think we are athletic and can do it. I think we have contributions that can do that.”

The Tigers were led by Flau'jae Johnson, who finished the game with 29 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists. Aneesah Morrow finished the night with another double-double with 15 points, 12 rebounds and 5 assists.

Kailyn Gilbert filled the stat sheet as she scored 26 points on 8-11 shooting, 7 rebounds and 5 assists. LSU was relentless defensively, recording 12 steals as a team and forcing 25 turnovers. The Tigers were also efficient shooting the ball, shooting 68 percent from the field and 56 percent from three-point range.

LSU held all LSUA players under 10 points as the Tigers limited the Generals' offensive output.

The Tigers begin their season on Monday when they host Eastern Kentucky in the PMAC at 7 p.m.

Sa'Myah Smith got the Tigers' night going by hitting shots on consecutive possessions to give the Tigers a quick 4-0 lead in the first. After a stop on defense, Gilbert found Johnson on the wing for a three-point shot that gave LSU an 11-5 lead with seven minutes left in the first period. Gilbert then responded with a three-pointer of his own and a layup in the paint to force an LSUA timeout. After the break, Smith found a groove in the paint and made two layups in quick succession to give the Tigers a 25-5 lead. Johnson kept the momentum going with a fastbreak and a layup in the paint.

The Tigers quickly got going in the second quarter when Johnson hit a 1-0 shot at midfield. After a block from Aalyah Del Rosario, Johnson found Amani Bartlett in the air, leading to an easy two points for LSU. Bartlett found her second layup of the contest after a great shot from forward Aneesah Morrow. Jada Richard was successful in the midfield throughout the quarter and scored two baskets in a short period of time. Morrow then hit a three-pointer, extending LSU's lead to 41 with three minutes left. Morrow continued to play in the second period, recording consecutive steals that led to a layup and an assist for the Tigers. At halftime, the Tigers led LSUA 67-18 and excelled in all aspects of the game.

LSU kept up the defensive energy in the second half, with Johnson securing a chase down block and stealing the ball for a layup on the next possession. Johnson then hit a pull-up three-pointer to break the 20-point mark in the contest. With the ball in Johnson's hands, the Tigers continued to have success, with the standout defender reaching the basket and making an and-1 basket shot to keep their winning streak alive. LSU stayed on the pedal throughout the quarter, pushing the pace on offense and pressuring the Generals on defense. Johnson maintained her impressive pace throughout, leading the Tigers with 12 points on 5-6 shooting in the period.

Morrow scored her 10th point of the night and recorded her second straight double-double of the season early in the fourth quarter. Morrow kept the pressure on, dropping a layup to make it 1-0 to continue her strong fourth quarter. Smith got in on the action, diving for a putback layup to secure her 12th point of the night. Gilbert also made her presence felt in the fourth period when she made a nice jumper to help the Tigers surpass the 100-point mark in the game.