LSU vs. UNC Preview: Which Streak Will End Tonight?
March 31st 2008
by LeAnne Harrington, SECWB.com
You can add North Carolina coach Sylvia Hatchell’s name to the growing list of coaches who are displeased with this year’s NCAA Tournament seedings. UNC, the #1 seed in the New Orleans regional, will face the #2 seed LSU Lady Tigers in New Orleans tonight, with the winner advancing to the Final Four in Tampa next weekend. UNC (33-2, #2 AP, #2 Coaches/USA Today) will be vying for their third straight trip to the Final Four, while LSU (30-5, #6 AP, #5 Coaches/USA Today) is going for their fifth straight Final Four appearance. Hatchell, one of the winningest active coaches in the women’s game, said, “It’s a shame we have to play to go to the Final Four …I definitely feel like LSU should be a No. 1 seed. This game could easily be the caliber of game you’d see for a national championship. In fact, it could actually be better.” Hatchell won’t get any disagreement from her counterpart on the LSU bench, Hall of Famer and reigning SEC Coach of the Year Van Chancellor. In his usual plain-spoken down-home manner, Chancellor said he’d feel like “someone (on the selection committee) didn’t like me” if the roles were reversed and his team had a #1 seed but had to play the Tar Heels in North Carolina to make it through to the Final Four. Seems like there are more than a few grumblings around the country with the way this year’s pairings were seeded. Are you listening, C. Viv?
Tonight’s game will also most likely see one of these two teams tumble from the top of the NCAA heap in one of the statistical categories each team leads. UNC leads the nation in points scored per game, averaging 87.9, whereas LSU is #1 in scoring defense, allowing just 50.6 points per game. Additionally, LSU is tops in the nation in assist-to-turnover ratio, at +1.4, and North Carolina leads the nation in blocked shots per game, averaging 7.1 per contest as a team.
LSU is led by SEC Player of the Year (both media and coaches’ poll) Sylvia Fowles, who was also named SEC Defensive Player of the Year. Big Syl is one of the most fluid big players to ever play the game. At 6-6, she moves extremely well with or without the ball, and gets it done at both ends of the court, averaging 17.2 points per game and 9.9 rebounds per game. In addition to connecting on 59.9% of her shots from the field (which is good enough for 6th in the nation), Fowles alters untold number of shots inside. In fact, more than one opposing coach has said their entire game plan had to be altered to counter Big Syl’s presence in the paint. Lest anyone think LSU is a one-woman show, one need look no further than Saturday’s Sweet Sixteen matchup with Oklahoma State. With Fowles triple- and quadruple-teamed at times, scoring only 11 points, three other Tigers stepped up and scored in double figures, with point guard Erica White leading the way and putting the final nails in the Cowgirls’ coffin. LSU has won 20 of their last 22 games. There is no denying the team chemistry on this Lady Tiger squad, with eight seniors making their final Final Four push.
The UNC Tarheels are no slouch when it comes to a balanced attack, with five players averaging in double figures in scoring. Coach Sylvia Hatchell says, “The best thing about us is our balance.“ UNC is riding an impressive win streak of their own, having won 24 of their past 25 games. Additionally, UNC went 14-0 in the ACC, the first time they have gone undefeated in conference play. The Tarheels are 3-2 all-time in regional final games. Oddly enough, this will only be the second time these teams have ever met, with the last matchup won by LSU back in 1986, in Hatchell’s second-ever game at UNC.
Probable starters for LSU:
G Erica White, 5-3 SR: 7.7 ppg, 2.9 rpg, 4.4 apg
G RaShonta LeBlanc, 5-7 SR: 6.4 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 3.5 apg
G Quianna Chaney, 5-11 SR: 14.6 ppg, 2.6 rpg, 3.2 apg
F Ashley Thomas, 6-0 SR: 5.4 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 1.5 spg
C Sylvia Fowles, 6-6 SR: 17.1 ppg, 10 rpg, 59.9% FG
Probable starters for UNC:
G Cetera DeGraffenreid, 5-6 FR: 11.8 ppg, 3.3 apg, 2.34 spg
G Heather Claytor, 5-8 JR: 5.0 ppg, 2.1 rpg, 1.17 spg
F Rashanda McCants, 6-1 JR: 15.8 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 2.17 spg
F Erlana Larkins, 6-1 SR: 13.8 ppg, 9.2 rpg, 3.1 apg
C LaToya Pringle, 6-3 SR: 14.4 ppg, 7.0 rpg, 2.69 bpg
My prediction is this one is too close to call. This may truly be the best matchup of the 2008 NCAA Tournament. Too bad this isn’t a Final Four championship game. The deciding factors may come down to intangibles: eight seniors wanting to keep their streak of five alive, and how much a factor the purple-and-gold-clad crowd will play. But sadly, the officials may play a large part in the outcome of this one. Will they allow Larkins to body-bang on Big Syl in the paint the way they have allowed her to play all season, or will it be a game of ticky-tack fouls? All I ask for - nay, BEG for - is some consistency from the zebras on both ends of the court.