Destini leading Lady Tigers with her defense

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The following our excerpts from an article by The Advocate's Scott Hotard. Read the entire article at: http://bit.ly/dxDPgB

Combining athletic bloodlines, the wisdom of a coach’s daughter and classroom smarts, Destini Hughes has all the earmarks of a defensive stopper.

Little wonder the Texas-bred point guard chose to attend LSU, the women’s basketball equivalent of Nebraska’s black shirts.

“Every time I watched them on TV, they were stressing defense,” Hughes said of the Lady Tigers.

LSU has led the Southeastern Conference in scoring defense the last six seasons. Back at it again, the Lady Tigers enter this week’s SEC tournament surrendering only 51.8 points per game.

Players like Hughes set the tone. Players who love to play defense.

Since her emergence last month as a full-time starter, Hughes has helped LSU win five of six games.

“She has given us somebody who can stop the ball,” LSU coach Van Chancellor said of Hughes.

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Lady Tigers model of consistency in SEC

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BILL MARTIN (SID):
Several streaks have continued for the LSU women’s basketball program following its strong finish to a 9-7 SEC record:

70 - number of SEC wins since 2005, which is the second most of any team in the sec.


9 - straight years of earning a bye in the SEC Tournament, the longest current streak in the SEC.

6 - out of last eight seasons LSU has finished with at least a share of second place in the SEC … Three of those finishes were as SEC champions.

6 - consecutive years LSU has led the SEC in scoring defense, which held true again this season after allowing 51.8 ppg .

7 - straight years of producing an All-SEC First Team selection after Allison Hightower was a unanimous choice for the second straight year.

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Allison & Boogie selected All-SEC

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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- LSU senior guard Allison Hightower was a unanimous choice on the 2010 Coaches All-Southeastern Conference first team, while also earning a spot on the All-Defensive Team as the league office announced its postseason women's basketball awards on Tuesday.

Sophomore forward LaSondra Barrett was voted onto the All-SEC Second Team. Hightower was one of three unanimous choices on the first team, joining Kentucky's Victoria Dunlap and Tennessee's Angie Bjorklund.

"It's just an honor to be named to the team that has so many great players," Hightower said. "It's an honor to be up there with the best. It shows if you keep working hard day after day, great things happen. That's the mindset I take to practice."

Hightower has been the Lady Tigers most valuable player the past two seasons. She leads the team in points (18.3), 3-point field goal percentage (41.0), steals (2.1) and minutes played (32.0). The Arlington, Texas, native ranks second in the SEC in overall scoring and second in conference only scoring (19.6).

Hightower is the only player in the SEC to rank in the top six in scoring (second), 3-point field goal percentage (third) and steals (sixth). She owns 10 20-plus point games this season and has been LSU's leading scorer in 11 of its 16 conference games. Hightower is the 14th all-time leading scorer in LSU history with 1,455 points heading into the 2010 SEC Tournament.

Barrett has averaged 12.7 points and a team-high 6.8 rebounds per game. She ranks eighth in the conference in league only games (15.1) and seventh in rebounding (7.5). Barrett, the 2009 SEC Co-Freshman of the Year, owns a team-best five double-doubles on the year.

LSU, the No. 4 seed, will play the winner of No. 12 seed Arkansas and No. 5 seed Vanderbilt at 5:30 p.m. CST Friday in the quarterfinals of the SEC Tournament in Duluth, Ga.

Read the entire release at: http://bit.ly/c8WbqS

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Meek a guest blogger at Slam Magazine

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BEN YORK AT SLAM MAGAZINE:
I sincerely feel that Temeka Johnson is one of the kindest human beings you'll ever meet, and I don't think you’ll hear an argument from anyone on that assessment. In addition to being a leader on the court, she is equally as dedicated to giving back to the community. In fact, I was fortunate enough to be invited to her “Night of HOPE” event this past August where her dedication truly shined through. Being new to Phoenix, this was an opportunity for Meek to receive guidance and recommendations on how to best help the Phoenix community. There aren’t many athletes who would hold such an event, and her passion for improving the lives of others was unmistakable. In her first guest post, Meek talks about her whirlwind 2009, her offseason in France, and her thoughts on the future.

Read Meek's first blog entry at: http://bit.ly/c92fWS

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Posted by Bill Martin  

Big Syl EuroLeague Player of the Week

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Sylvia Fowles of Spartak Moscow has been named the EuroLeague Women Player of the Week after leading her team to the Final Four in a two game sweep of Quarter-Final Round opponent Fenerbahce.

Fowles came away from the two games with an efficiency rating of 44, a full eight points better than her closest competitor Janell Burse of Wisla Can-Pack Krakow.

The 6-6 center was dominant in game two in Istanbul where she hit 12 of her 15 shots on the way to 26 points and an amazing 19 rebounds. In game one earlier in the week she scored 18 points and grabbed 12 boards.
Candace Parker of UMMC Ekaterinburg finished third with an efficiency rating of 34 while Candice Dupree of Good Angels Kosice finished fourth.

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Allison takes the PMAC floor one final time

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From an article written by Scott Hotard at The Advocate:


When he stands at midcourt before today’s game against Mississippi State, LSU women’s basketball coach Van Chancellor will celebrate the career of only one senior.

So happens, the one senior is the heart and soul that drives his team.

The one senior is LSU’s leading scorer, best defender and hardest worker.

The one senior is Allison Hightower, LSU’s stabilizing force during an era of transition.

For all those reasons, Senior Day finds Chancellor torn.


On one hand, Chancellor looks forward to the opportunity of honoring Hightower’s legacy. On the other, he dreads the reminder of life at LSU without her.

She is getting more help than last season, when she ranked first on the team in six categories. But while continuing to anchor the SEC’s best defense, she has lifted her scoring average from 14.9 points as a junior.

“I’m not sure this is the proper wording,” said Bob Starkey, a longtime LSU assistant, “but in a way, she saved our program. She was the constant during a difficult time. She is, in my mind, one of the five most influential people to ever play here.”

Through the coaching change and — one season later — the birth of the program’s most significant rebuilding effort in years, Hightower continued her business as LSU’s brightest rising star.

“It’s been everything I wanted in a school,” Hightower said. “The fan base and all of the support is great. I believe in the coaches. A lot of people go to school as a great player, but they never improve. I can honestly say I’ve improved in my time here.”

Read the entire article by Scott Hotard of The Advocate at: http://bit.ly/cHh0ue

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HALL OF FAME THOUGHTS: DESTINI HUGHES

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DESTINI HUGHES:

The Hall of Fame was an exciting experience. My favorite part was the video on the history of women's basketball, because it educated me on how females started playing the game and gave information that I never knew about before. My other favorite part was the behind the back skill challenge! I probably could have stayed at that station for hours, it was pretty fun. I really like that kind of stuff so I had a blast. Everything else was pretty cool to see and view all that women have accomplished so far in the game of basketball. It was also funny to see a picture of Coach Chancellor in his younger days...he was actually a nice looking young man believe it or not. But all in all, I had fun and am very thankful that I got the opportunity to see it!
NOTE: During our recent trip to Knoxville to play the University of Tennessee, we took our team to the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame. From time to time over the next few weeks, we will have our players blog their thoughts on this special experience.

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Allison to play her final game in the PMAC

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BATON ROUGE -- She's been a part of two NCAA Final Fours, one Southeastern Conference Championship and 99 victories during her LSU career. On Sunday, she will go for win No. 100 in her final home game as Allison Hightower and the 20th-ranked LSU women's basketball team seeks to improve its SEC Tournament seeding in the regular season finale against Mississippi State on Senior Day at 2 p.m. CST in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center.

Live streaming audio and video of the game will be available in the Geaux Zone on LSUsports.net. There is no television broadcast. The game will also be carried on the LSU Sports Radio Network on 107.3 FM in Baton Rouge.

Hightower will be recognized on the floor in a special pregame ceremony in her final game at the Maravich Center. LSU Senior Associate Athletic Director Judy Southard will also be recognized. Southard is retiring this June after eight years of service at LSU and two academic years as chair of the NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Committee.

Tickets cost $10 for lower and prime middle seating, $8 for middle seating, $6 for upper seating and $3 for youth tickets. The "Friends & Family Four Pack" allows families four tickets, four hot dogs and four fountain drinks starting at $30. Group tickets start at $2. LSU student admission is free with a valid LSU ID.

"Allison has done some unbelievable things here at LSU," LSU head coach Van Chancellor said. "She's meant so much to LSU women's basketball. When I first got here I thought 'wow, here is a great, young player.' She's been everything I thought she would be. She can do it all - score, play defense and pass. She's been the hardest worker. People will remember her for her play on the court but what she has done in the community has been unbelievable."

Read more at: http://bit.ly/cdgzlL

Posted by Bill Martin  

JASMINE NELSON: HALL OF FAME THOUGHTS

JASMINE NELSON:
I loved the Womens Basketball Hall of Fame..Its was my first time being there and it was outstanding to see the care for women and the sport of basketball. It was sooo cool. I really enjoyed the video at the beginning of the tour...it really made it interesting wanting to know more as we went along. It has such a great blend of history and entertainment. I learned so much about our game that I hadn't realized. It was definitely a special trip.

 

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HALL OF FAME THOUGHTS: THE ALL-AMERICAN RED HEADS

One of the more enjoyabe moments at the Hall of Fame was watching our team try to re-create the famous weave of the All-American Red Heads. We started our tour with a video that had footage of the Red Heads playing. We then saw their touring station wagon. It was a great history lesson. Learn more about the All-American Red Heads at: http://www.allamericanredheads.com/

 

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