Lady Tigers To Face Michigan In NCAA Tournament Second Round

BATON ROUGE – LSU (29-2) will be in the PMAC for the final time this season on Sunday at 6:30 p.m. CT on ESPN when the Tigers take on Michigan (23-9) with a spot in the Sweet Sixteen on the line.

LSU will look to advance to the Sweet Sixteen in Greenville, South Carolina for the first time since 2014. Tickets for Sunday’s game are still available.

The game will air in primetime on ESPN with Kevin Fitzgerald and Andrea Lloyd. Patrick Wright and Shaeeta Williams will call the game on the LSU Sports Radio Network, 100.7 FM in Baton Rouge.

Coach Mulkey, who will coach her 800th career game as a head coach on Sunday, is looking to bring LSU to the Sweet Sixteen for the first time since her arrival in Baton Rouge. LSU reached the second-round in the NCAA Tournament last year, but the Tigers were eliminated from championship contention in a loss against Ohio State.

“We're heading in the right direction,” Coach Mulkey said. “This would just be another stepping stone that we've stepped on.”

LSU took Hawaii down in the first-round on Friday, 73-50. Angel Reese had her 29th double-double of the season with 34 points, 15 rebounds, 3 steals, 3 blocks and 2 assists. She became the first player from the SEC this century with at least 30 points and 15 rebounds in an NCAA Tournament game. Her 34 points tied Marie Ferdinand’s LSU record for points in a NCAA Tournament game.

Reese moved into third place on LSU’s single-season rebounding list on Friday and currently has 479 boards on the year, trailing only Maree Jackson who had 539 during the 1977-78 season and 493 during the 1976-77 season. The first-team All-American sits in fifth place for the most rebounds in a season by a player in the SEC.

Coach Mulkey is familiar playing against Michigan in the postseason. While at Baylor, she defeated Michigan in the second-round of the 2018 tournament and in the Sweet Sixteen in 2021.

Michigan defeated UNLV on Friday in the PMAC, 71-59, to advance to Sunday’s second-round matchup. The Wolverines had three players score in double-figures during the victory.

“It's just going to be a very, very good matchup,” Coach Mulkey said. “The difference is we have maybe a little bit more speed, they have more height. What is it going to take? It's going to take just grinding.”

The Wolverine’s roster features consistent size across all positions with just two players under 5-11 and topping out at 6-4. It also features a senior-heavy group that has good experience and chemistry playing with each other.

“They have been together a while, and they play like it,” Coach Mulkey said. “They know every move each of them makes, and you can just tell as a coach they just run a little bit more smooth.”

Michigan is the only team in the nation with three player scoring over 16 a game with Leigha Brown (18.0 ppg), Laila Phelia (16.5 ppg) and Emily Kiser (16.3 ppg). Michigan is trying to reach its third straight Sweet Sixteen.

(Release via LSU Athletics)