Lady Tiger signee shares bond with mother on and off the court

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The following was written by Casey Gisclair of the Twi-ParishTimes.com on Lady Tiger signee Theresa Plaisance.


DoBee Plaisance and her daughter Theresa face a unique balancing act every day.

On one hand, the two share a close, mother-daughter bond that is typical of most parents raising a teenage daughter.

"We're very, very close," said DoBee Plaisance. "We have a very special relationship."

But on the other hand, there is basketball. Mother Plaisance is the head basketball coach at Nicholls State, and Theresa is a standout post player at Vandebilt Catholic High School who is headed to LSU to continue her playing career following high school graduation.

That shared love for the sport sometimes causes the elder Plaisance to play the role she calls "Coach Mom", where she has to balance the loving support of being a mother and the critical eye of being a coach.

"She's always going to be the first one to tell me I did a good job," said Theresa Plaisance. "But she will definitely also be the first one to tell me when I'm doing something wrong and correct me. It's sometimes difficult, but I know she loves me and just wants what's best for me."


Read the entire article at: http://bit.ly/4Cnngh

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Posted by Bill Martin  

LSU one of only two paying its own bills

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BATON ROUGE - In a time when subsidies for college athletics across the country are reaching an all-time high, a report published today by USA Today said that LSU and Nebraska are the only two athletic departments in the nation that receive no subsidies.

USA Today reported that, "taken together, the subsidies for athletics at 99 public schools in the NCAA's 120-member Football Bowl Subdivision grew about 20% in four years, from $685 million in 2005 to $826 million in 2008, after adjusting for inflation. At more than a third of those schools, the percentage of athletic department revenue coming from subsidies grew during the four-year period studied."

Alabama, Auburn, and Tennessee are among the 30 schools that had their subsidies for the athletic department dramatically increase over the past four years.

LSU and Nebraska remain the only two athletic departments from across the nation that reported receiving no subsidies. The LSU athletic department receives no state tax dollars or any revenue from student fees to assist with its 81.5 million dollar budget.


Read entire story at: http://bit.ly/4Gc9mn

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Posted by Bill Martin  

Seimone's number to be retired

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BATON ROUGE -- The jersey of Seimone Augustus, arguably the most decorated female student-athlete in LSU history and a two-time women's basketball National Player of the Year, has been retired, LSU Vice Chancellor and Director of Athletics Joe Alleva announced Saturday.
Augustus becomes the first female student-athlete in school history to have her jersey retired.
Augustus joins an elite group of LSU legends whose jerseys have been retired in the 117-year history of LSU Athletics. Only eight other individuals in LSU history have had their jerseys retired, including Pete Maravich, Bob Pettit, Rudy Macklin and Shaquille O'Neal in men's basketball, Billy Cannon and Tommy Casanova in football and Skip Bertman and Ben McDonald in baseball.

Seimone: "It is a honor to be able to be the first female basketball player to have her jersey retired. It is humbling to know that my jersey will forever hang in the rafter with players like bob pettit, shaq, and pete maravich. It is even more special that I'm a home grown product right from baton rouge. It give my family, friends, and loyal supporters something to be proud of and remember forever. I'm glad to be apart of the lsu history as well be apart of lsu family."

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Posted by Bill Martin  

Lady Tigers overcome poor first half for road victory

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BILL MARTIN: LSU SID (1-7-10):
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. -- After a sluggish first half where both teams combined for 30 turnovers, the 11th-ranked LSU women's basketball team erupted with 15-0 second-half run to pull away from Arkansas and win its fourth straight game, 65-38, on Thursday night at Bud Walton Arena.

The Lady Tigers (13-1, 2-0 SEC) won their seventh consecutive Southeastern Conference game dating back to last season and captured their third straight road game for the first time since 2008.

The Lady Razorbacks fell to 8-7 overall and dropped to 0-2 in league play. Arkansas lost its 15th consecutive game to LSU and its seventh straight to the Lady Tigers on its home floor. The last 12 meetings have now seen LSU win by a double-digit margin. Arkansas' 38 points were also the fewest by the Razorbacks in the series history.

"That was a tale of two halves," LSU head coach Van Chancellor said. "In the first half we uncharacteristically continued to turn the ball over. We tried every option, but we went in halftime and erased everything. We came out in the second half and played as well as we could. Anytime you can win three in a row on the road, you have to feel happy, especially when you are 2-0 in the SEC."

Four Lady Tigers scored in double-digits, including 13 points apiece from senior guard Allison Hightower and sophomore forward LaSondra Barrett. Barrett scored all 13 of her points in the second half and point guard Latear Eason added 11 points.


Read entire article: http://bit.ly/84bT24

Posted by Bill Martin  

Syl feeling good about her future

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The following is an article on Syl from Slam Magazine:


Sylvia Fowles is frequently described as a teddy bear off the court due to her gracious persona, her steadfast faith, and humble personality.

On the court, however, is a different story.

There are few that can defend the paint like her, and even fewer who possess her raw athleticism. With Fowles now fully healthy, she has a legion of Sky fans feeling optimistic about the future.

A motivated and driven Fowles should be a scary thing to opposing offenses. And make no mistake about it, Sylvia Fowles is pumped, and motivated, for a breakout 2010 season.

Though, breakout might be an unfair word; Sylvia did make the 2009 All-Star team as a member of the Chicago Sky and generated a substantial amount of buzz with a late game dunk. Still, playing in just 41 games in her two years in the WNBA, the amount of potential for Fowles is limitless — the key is simply staying healthy.

After struggling with injuries in her first two seasons in the WNBA, Fowles hasn’t lost the competitive fire that was so evident during her time at LSU. Leading the Lady Tigers to the Final Four each of her four years, Fowles gained a tremendous amount of respect for her ability to withstand adversity as well as her incredible basketball prowess. That talent and raw athletic ability led to the Chicago Sky picking Sylvia 2nd overall in the 2008 WNBA Draft (behind Candace Parker) and would fortify the Sky’s frontline for the future.

A staple of consistency for the Sky when healthy, Fowles has averaged 11 points and almost 8 rebounds a game in each of her seasons with the Sky. Fowles rounds out an impressive, young roster of Sky players that are well equipped to make a playoff run in 2010. Players like the incomparable Candice Dupree, Jia Perkins and Kristi Tolliver will certainly make the Sky a legitimate force in the East.

I caught up with Sylvia recently to get an update on her current time with Spartak Moscow, her excitement for the 2010 WNBA season, and what is truly important to her.

To read the rest of the article and a great one-on-one interview with Syl click: http://tiny.cc/pSQ70

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Posted by Bill Martin  

Pack the PMAC 14 this Sunday at LSU entertains Auburn

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BATON ROUGE - LSU women's basketball head coach Van Chancellor, the newest member of the 500-career win club, previewed Pack the PMAC 14 and the Lady Tigers' upcoming Southeastern Conference games against Arkansas and Auburn on Tuesday at a press luncheon at Walk-On's Bistreaux.

LSU (12-1, 1-0 SEC) travels to Fayetteville, Ark., on Wednesday before taking on the Lady Razorbacks at 7 p.m. CST Thursday in Bud Walton Arena. The Lady Tigers return home to host Pack the PMAC 14 against Auburn at 2 p.m. CST Sunday in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center.

Tickets for Pack the PMAC 14 are only $1 for general admission. Admission for LSU students is free. Tickets can be purchased at LSUsports.net as well, by phone, 225-578-2184 or 800-960-TKTS. Fans are strongly encouraged to order and print their tickets online at www.LSUsports.net to avoid long lines on gameday.

The first 5,000 fans in attendance will receive an official entry form for a halftime paper airplane toss that will give fans a chance to win a 2010 Chevy Malibu donated by Super Chevy Dealers. Other prizes include digital cameras, Nike sweatshirts, t-shirts and $50 gift certificates to LSUshop.net.

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Posted by Bill Martin  

Vote for Big Syl for the Euroleague All-Star Game

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Click on the link http://bit.ly/6Ii9XI and vote for Sylvia Fowles for the Euroleague All-Star Game! She's nine down in the "Rest of the World" category. Be sure to send this to all the the Lady Tiger fans so they can all vote for Big Syl!

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Posted by Bill Martin  

Ally earns 2nd SEC Player of the Week honor

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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- LSU senior guard Allison Hightower has earned Southeastern Conference Women’s Basketball Player of the Week honors for the second time this season for her performance in Lady Tiger wins at No. 13 Xavier (Ohio) and South Carolina, the league office announced on Monday.

Hightower, a native of Arlington, Texas, averaged 20.5 points with 10 steals, eight assists and four blocks in the two games. She led LSU to its first win over a ranked opponent on the road since 2008 with a game-high 18 points against the Musketeers on Dec. 30 in Cincinnati. Hightower collected a career-high six steals and added four assists in the Lady Tigers’ 56-47 win.

On Sunday, Hightower scored 23 points to lead LSU to a 70-58 victory in its SEC opener at South Carolina. The 23 points were a career-best in an SEC regular season game for the preseason All-American, and they were also the most by any SEC player in games played on Sunday. She tallied four assists, four blocks and four steals while playing all 40 minutes against the Gamecocks.

Hightower leads LSU and ranks fifth in the SEC in scoring with a 17.1 average. For the season, she has collected 34 steals, 34 assists and nine blocks. In her last three games, Hightower has 15 steals. The 2010 SEC Preseason Player of the Year has reached double-figures in 11 straight games and sits as the 21st-leading all-time scorer in LSU history with 1,150 career points.

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Posted by Bill Martin  

Lady Tigers open SEC slate with road win

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COLUMBIA, S.C. -- Senior preseason All-American guard Allison Hightower scored a game-high 23 points and a 17-0 first-half run proved to the difference as the 11th-ranked LSU women’s basketball team won its Southeastern Conference opener over South Carolina by a score of 70-58 on Sunday evening at Colonial Life Arena.

LSU (12-1, 1-0) won its sixth straight SEC regular season game dating back to the Florida game last season. The Lady Tigers have won 13 of their 15 games and improved to 25-4 in SEC regular season contests under head coach Van Chancellor.

“I feel like a boxed eight rounds today against a heavyweight champion,” Chancellor said. “We played really well today. The first 16 minutes of the game was the best we’ve played all year. I’ve said it all year that South Carolina will be the most improved team in the league. When you open up SEC play on the road with a win, it’s always a great feeling.”

The Gamecocks (7-6, 0-1) dropped their 13th straight game to LSU and lost for the third time in four games. South Carolina still remains winless against the Lady Tigers this decade with its last win coming in the 1999 SEC Tournament.

Hightower reached double-figures for the 11th straight game and added four steals, four assists and four blocks while playing the entire game. Sophomore LaSondra Barrett erupted for 14 points and junior point guard Latear Eason tossed in a season-high 14 points, including a career-best three 3-pointers.

Read the entire article at LSUSports.net: http://bit.ly/4J93ew

Posted by Bill Martin  

Meek named 28th on list of great Tigers the past decade

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From andthevalleyshook.com, Temeka Johnson was named 28th on their list of 30 greatest Tigers of the last decade:


Temeka Johnson is the greatest point guard in LSU's history. She won the Lieberman Award her senior year, 2005, awarded to the nation's top point guard. She guided LSU to the Final Four every year she was a starter, and graduated with just about every record for assists one can imagine. She went on to the WNBA success and won a national title with the Mercury.

So let's look at the great things Temeka did for the program. First and foremost among them, she arrived as a partial qualifier in 2000 and was therefore required to sit out the 2000-2001 season. Instead of compalining, Temeka worked hard in the classroom and graduated in August of 2004, earning an extra year of eligibility.

And what an extra year. Johnson did everything she could to avenge that loss in 2004, and earned the aforementioned Liberman Award and All-American honors en route to setting the SEC record for career assists. Beware arbitrary end points, but LSU's media guide notes she is the only player in LSU history with 1000 points, 500 assists, and 50 rebounds. Which is even more absurd when you think that she was a small 5'3".

On a team dominated by the frontcourt stars, Johnson's guiding hand kept the team on track. She was overshadowed by Augustus and Fowles, but she was every bit as important of a cog in those great teams. No, they never won the national title, but consistent greatness is never truly appreciated. Four straight Final Fours is a tremendous accomplishment, one that was made possible by the greatest point guard we ever had the good fortune to have.

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Posted by Bill Martin