After advancing to the second round of the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2007, Middle Tennessee State women’s basketball will get the host and defending national champion next, as the Lady Raiders face LSU Sunday in the Albany Regional in Baton Rouge.
No. 11 seed MTSU (30-4) is coming off a 71-69 win over Louisville, a game in which the Lady Raiders came from 18 down in the first half, completing one of the biggest comebacks in tournament history.
No. 3 seed LSU (29-5) held off a late Rice comeback in a 70-60 win Friday.
Here is a scouting report for the round of 32 contest, including a score prediction:
LSU has high-powered offense led by Angel Reese
LSU’s only loss since late January came in the SEC Tournament championship game 79-72 to unbeaten and No. 1-ranked South Carolina.
The Lady Tigers are hitting their postseason stride, similar to last year when they rolled through the NCAA Tournament to win the championship.
A high-powered offense has been the key for coach Kim Mulkey’s squad. LSU has scored at least 70 points in all but one game this season. The Lady Tigers have topped 100 points eight times, going over 120 points in two of those games with a season high of 133 in an 89-point December win over McNeese State.
For the season LSU is averaging 86.2 points and allowing just 62.5.
All five starters average in double figures, led by All-America forward Angel Reese (18.7 points, 13.3 rebounds), guard Aneesha Morrow (16.4 points, 9.9 rebounds), guard Mikaylah Williams (14.4 points), guard Flau’jae Johnson (14.2 points) and guard Hailey Van Lith (12.1 points, 3.3 assists).
Reese had 10 points and 19 rebounds in the win over Rice. Morrow had 15 points and seven rebounds.
LSU size could give MTSU women’s basketball trouble
LSU will be the biggest team across the board that MTSU has faced this season. Reese stands at 6-foot-3, Morrow 6-1, Williams 6-0 and Johnson 5-10.
The Lady Tigers’ top bench player, 5-10 guard Last-Tear Poa averages 5.1 points and is second on the team with 100 assists.
MTSU will counter with 6-6 center Anastasiia Boldyreva, who had 11 points and 12 rebounds in the win over Louisville. The Lady Raiders also have size in top reserve Iullia Grabovskaia, a 6-5 center, but the backcourt size difference is where LSU will try to take advantage.
LSU coach Kim Mulkey famous for more than attire
LSU coach Kim Mulkey has made a name for herself with the unusual fashion she has displayed during games.
She has also earned a reputation for her intense and often controversial personality.
Mulkey was recently “ejected” from a Savannah Bananas baseball game in Baton Rouge after throwing out the first pitch, an orchestrated gag which was a hit with the crowd.
MORE: Everything Kim Mulkey said about ‘ugly’ LSU-South Carolina fight: ‘No one wants to see that’
Mulkey, the nation’s highest-paid women’s coach, is one of the best in NCAA history, having won three national championships with Baylor before coming to LSU in 2021 and leading the Lady Tigers to the 2023 title. The former Louisiana Tech All-America point guard has 721 career coaching victories.
MTSU prediction vs LSU: March Madness second round
LSU 80, MTSU 64: Coming off the first-round high, MTSU has a chance to stay in this game with a hot start, but LSU isn’t one of the top-ranked teams in the nation for nothing. Playing at home will give the Lady Tigers an added edge. If MTSU starts slow like it did against Louisville, it will be a very long day.
This article originally appeared on Murfreesboro Daily News Journal: MTSU women vs LSU prediction, pick for March Madness second round
