LSU Tigers women's basketball

The LSU Tigers women's basketball team represents Louisiana State University in NCAA Division I women's college basketball. The team’s head coach is Kim Mulkey, the former head coach at Baylor University, who was hired on April 25, 2021 to replace Nikki Fargas, who had been head coach since the 2011-2012 season. The team plays its home games in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center located on the LSU campus in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

LSU Tigers women's basketball
2023–24 LSU Tigers women's basketball team
UniversityLouisiana State University
Founded1975 (48 years ago)
Athletic directorScott Woodward
Head coachKim Mulkey (3rd season)
ConferenceSEC
LocationBaton Rouge, Louisiana
ArenaPete Maravich Assembly Center
(Capacity: 13,472)
NicknameLady Tigers
ColorsPurple and gold[1]
   
Uniforms
Home jersey
Team colours
Home
Away jersey
Team colours
Away
Alternate jersey
Team colours
Alternate
NCAA tournament champions
2023
NCAA tournament Final Four
2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2023
NCAA tournament Elite Eight
1986, 2000, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2023
NCAA tournament Sweet Sixteen
1984, 1986, 1989, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2013, 2014, 2023
NCAA tournament appearances
1984, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2022, 2023
AIAW tournament runner-up
1977
AIAW tournament Final Four
1977
AIAW tournament appearances
1977
Conference tournament champions
1991, 2003
Conference regular season champions
2005, 2006, 2008

LSU is the 2023 NCAA national champion, having defeated Iowa 102–85 in the national championship game.

History

Through the 2018–2019 season, LSU has made 27 AIAW/NCAA tournament appearances including 14 Sweet Sixteens, eight Elite Eights, and six Final Fours. The Lady Tigers have won the SEC regular season championship three times and the SEC Tournament championship twice.

Coleman-Swanner era

The LSU women's basketball team started play in 1975 as the "Ben-Gals," with coach Jinks Coleman. In just their second season of play, the team made it to the AIAW national championship game before losing to top-ranked Delta State, 68–55. Coleman stepped down in the middle of the 1978–1979 season and was replaced by Barbara Swanner, who in turn led the team for three and a half seasons. The 1981-1982 season saw the NCAA become the governing body of collegiate women's basketball. LSU did not play in the first NCAA tournament.

Sue Gunter era

Future Hall of Fame coach Sue Gunter was hired to replace Swanner. Gunter would lead the Lady Tigers for the next 22 seasons. Gunter led the Lady Tigers to 14 NCAA tournament appearances. Although she only won three regular season titles, for most of her tenure the SEC was dominated by national powers Tennessee, Auburn and Ole Miss. Gunter took a medical leave of absence in the middle of the 2003–04 season. Her top assistant, Pokey Chatman, who had played for Gunter in the late 1980s and early 1990s and served as an assistant coach since the end of her playing days, took over as interim coach and led the Tigers to their first Final Four. However, Gunter was still officially head coach, and LSU credits the entire season to her. Gunter retired after the season, and Chatman was named her permanent successor.

Pokey Chatman era

Pokey Chatman led the team to two more consecutive Final Four appearances and was highly regarded as coach. However, during the 2006–2007 season, just prior to the NCAA Tournament, Chatman resigned after allegations of improper conduct with a former player surfaced. She was replaced on an interim basis by longtime assistant Bob Starkey, who coached the team during the 2007 NCAA tournament, leading them to a fourth consecutive Final Four.

Van Chancellor era (2006-2011)

Van Chancellor, the former head coach for Ole Miss and the Houston Comets, was hired at the end of the 2006–2007 season as a permanent replacement. In his first year as coach, Chancellor led the Lady Tigers to the SEC regular season championship. The Lady Tigers were runner-up in the 2008 SEC women's basketball tournament and made the NCAA Final Four for a fifth consecutive year. LSU joined UConn as the only two schools ever to reach five consecutive Final Fours.

Nikki Fargas era (2011-2021)

On April 2, 2011, LSU hired Nikki Caldwell, later Nikki Fargas, to replace Chancellor as head coach of the Lady Tigers. Fargas played as Nikki Caldwell at the University of Tennessee under Hall of Fame coach Pat Summitt. During her tenure as head coach at LSU, Fargas led the Lady Tigers to six NCAA Division I women's basketball tournament appearances in 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2017, and 2018.

Fargas resigned as head coach on April 24, 2021, to become president of the WNBA's Las Vegas Aces.

Kim Mulkey era (2021-present)

On April 25, 2021, LSU announced the signing of Kim Mulkey to replace Fargas as head coach. Mulkey played at Louisiana Tech, where she also went on to be an assistant and associate head coach for 15 years. Prior to accepting the offer to coach LSU, she was the head coach for Baylor University, where she won three national championships in 21 seasons.[2]

On December 2, 2021, Mulkey led the team to their first win versus a ranked team by defeating #14 Iowa State 69-60 in the Maravich Center giving the team a 7-1 record for the year.

On April 2, 2023, LSU would defeat the Iowa Hawkeyes, by the score of 102-85, to win their first ever national championship; the game also marked the highest scoring championship game in women's NCAA history.[3]

Championships

Final Fours

LSU has played in six Final Fours in the NCAA Women's Division I Basketball Championship tournament.

Year Coach Record
2003–04Sue Gunter27–7
2004–05Pokey Chatman33–3
2005–06Pokey Chatman31–4
2006–07Pokey Chatman30–8
2007–08Van Chancellor31–6
2022–23Kim Mulkey32–2
Total Final Fours: 6

Conference championships

LSU has won three regular-season conference championships and two conference tournament championships in the Southeastern Conference (SEC).

Year Conference Coach Overall Record Conference Record
1990–91SEC tournamentSue Gunter24–75–4
2002–03SEC tournamentSue Gunter30–411–3
2004–05SECPokey Chatman33–314–0
2005–06SECPokey Chatman31–413–1
2007–08SECVan Chancellor31–614–0
Total conference championships: 5

Year by year results

Season Team Overall Conference Standing Postseason Coaches' poll AP poll
Jinks Coleman (Independent) (1975–1979)
1975–76 Jinks Coleman 17–14AIAW Regional
1976–77 Jinks Coleman 29–8AIAW Second Place11
1977–78 Jinks Coleman 37–3AIAW Regional10
1978–79 Jinks Coleman 8–7
Jinks Coleman: 91–32
Barbara Swanner (Independent, SEC) (1979–1983)
1979 Barbara Swanner 5–5AIAW Regional
1979–80 Barbara Swanner 17–17AIAW Regional
1980–81 Barbara Swanner 17–15AIAW Regional
1981–82 Barbara Swanner 18–13
Barbara Swanner: 57–50
Sue Gunter (SEC) (1982–2004)
1982–83 Sue Gunter 20–76–2T-1st (SEC West)20
1983–84 Sue Gunter 23–75–3T-2nd (SEC West)NCAA Sweet Sixteen8
1984–85 Sue Gunter 20–94–43rd (SEC West)NWIT Champions
1985–86 Sue Gunter 27–66–3T-2ndNCAA Elite Eight89
1986–87 Sue Gunter 20–86–3T-4thNCAA Second Round (Bye)1914
1987–88 Sue Gunter 18–116–33rdNCAA First Round
1988–89 Sue Gunter 19–115–4T-4thNCAA Sweet Sixteen14
1989–90 Sue Gunter 21–94–5T-6thNCAA First Round23
1990–91 Sue Gunter 24–75–44th#NCAA Second Round (Bye)188
1991–92 Sue Gunter 16–134–7T-7th
1992–93 Sue Gunter 9–180–1112th
1993–94 Sue Gunter 11–162–9T-10th
1994–95 Sue Gunter 7–201–10T-10th
1995–96 Sue Gunter 21–114–7T-8thNWIT Third Place
1996–97 Sue Gunter 25–59–3T-3rdNCAA Sweet Sixteen129
1997–98 Sue Gunter 19–137–7T-6thWNIT Semifinals
1998–99 Sue Gunter 22–810–42ndNCAA Sweet Sixteen2121
1999–2000 Sue Gunter 25–711–33rdNCAA Elite Eight815
2000–01 Sue Gunter 20–118–6T-4thNCAA Second Round2018
2001–02 Sue Gunter 18–128–6T-4thNCAA Second Round2222
2002–03 Sue Gunter 30–411–32nd#NCAA Elite Eight53
2003–04 Sue Gunter 27–710–42ndNCAA Final Four319
Sue Gunter: 442–220132–111
Pokey Chatman (SEC) (2004–2007)
2004–05 Pokey Chatman 33–314–01stNCAA Final Four32
2005–06 Pokey Chatman 31–413–11stNCAA Final Four45
2006–07 Pokey Chatman 30–810–4T-3rdNCAA Final Four412
Pokey Chatman: 94–1537–5
Van Chancellor (SEC) (2008–2012)
2007–08 Van Chancellor 31–614–01stNCAA Final Four46
2008–09 Van Chancellor 19–1110–4T-2ndNCAA Second Round
2009–10 Van Chancellor 21–109–7T-3rdNCAA Second Round2521
2010–11 Van Chancellor 19–138–8T-5th
Van Chancellor: 90–4041–19
Nikki Fargas (SEC) (2011–2021)
2011–12 Nikki Caldwell 23–1110–6T-4thNCAA Second Round
2012–13 Nikki Caldwell 22–1210–66thNCAA Sweet Sixteen
2013–14 Nikki Fargas 21–137–9T-6thNCAA Sweet Sixteen
2014–15 Nikki Fargas 17–1410–6T-4thNCAA First Round
2015–16 Nikki Fargas 10–213–1313th
2016–17 Nikki Fargas 20–128–87thNCAA First Round
2017–18 Nikki Fargas 18–710–43rdNCAA First Round2430
2018–19 Nikki Fargas 16–137–96thTurned down NIT Bid
2019–20 Nikki Fargas 20–109-77thTournament Cancelled Due to Covid-19
2020–21 Nikki Fargas 9–136–88th
Nikki Fargas: 176–12680–76
Kim Mulkey (SEC) (2021–present)
2021–22 Kim Mulkey 26–613–32ndNCAA Second Round
2022–23 Kim Mulkey 34–215–12ndNCAA National Champions91
Kim Mulkey: 60–827–4
Total:1,008–491

      National champion         Postseason invitational champion  
      Conference regular season champion         Conference regular season and conference tournament champion
      Division regular season champion       Division regular season and conference tournament champion
      Conference tournament champion

Conference tournament winners noted with #
Source: [4]

Postseason

NCAA Tournament history & seeds

Years '84 '86 '87 '88 '89 '90 '91 '97 '99 '00 '01 '02 '03 '04 '05 '06 '07 '08 '09 '10 '12 '13 '14 '15 '17 '18 '22 '23
Seeds 52494924436614113267567118633

NCAA Division I

Year Seed Round Opponent Result
1984 #5First Round
Sweet Sixteen
#4 Missouri
#1 Louisiana Tech
W 92-82
L 67-92
1986 #2Second Round
Sweet Sixteen
Elite Eight
#10 Middle Tenn
#3 Ohio State
#4 Tennessee
W 78-65
W 81-80
L 65-67
1987 #4Second Round#5 Southern IllinoisL 56-70
1988 #9First Round#8 Stephen F. AustinL 62-84
1989 #4Second Round
Sweet Sixteen
#5 Purdue
#1 Louisiana Tech
W 54-53
L 68-85
1990 #9First Round#8 Southern MissL 65-75
1991 #2First Round#10 LamarL 73-93
1997 #4First Round
Second Round
Sweet Sixteen
#13 Maine
#12 Marquette
#1 Old Dominion
W 88-79
W 71-58
L 49-62
1999 #4First Round
Second Round
Sweet Sixteen
#13 Evansville
#5 Notre Dame
#1 Louisiana Tech
W 78-69
W 74-64
L 52-73
2000 #3First Round
Second Round
Sweet Sixteen
Elite Eight
#14 Liberty
#11 Stephen F. Austin
#2 Duke
#1 UConn
W 77-54
W 57-45
W 79-66
L 71-86
2001 #6First Round
Second Round
#11 Arizona State
#3 Purdue
W 83-66
L 70-73
2002 #6First Round
Second Round
#11 Santa Clara
#3 Colorado
W 84-78
L 58-69
2003 #1First Round
Second Round
Sweet Sixteen
Elite Eight
#16 Texas State
#8 Green Bay
#5 Louisiana Tech
#2 Texas
W 86-50
W 80-69
W 69-63
L 60-78
2004 #4First Round
Second Round
Sweet Sixteen
Elite Eight
Final Four
#13 Austin Peay
#12 Maryland
#1 Texas
#3 Georgia
#1 Tennessee
W 83-66
W 76-61
W 71-55
W 62-60
L 50-52
2005 #1First Round
Second Round
Sweet Sixteen
Elite Eight
Final Four
#16 Stetson
#9 Arizona
#13 Liberty
#2 Duke
#2 Baylor
W 70-36
W 76-43
W 90-48
W 59-49
L 57-68
2006 #1First Round
Second Round
Sweet Sixteen
Elite Eight
Final Four
#16 Florida Atlantic
#9 Washington
#4 DePaul
#3 Stanford
#1 Duke
W 72-48
W 72-49
W 66-56
W 62-59
L 45-64
2007 #3First Round
Second Round
Sweet Sixteen
Elite Eight
Final Four
#14 UNC Asheville
#11 West Virginia
#10 Florida State
#1 Connecticut
#4 Rutgers
W 77-39
W 49-43
W 55-43
W 73-50
L 35-59
2008 #2First Round
Second Round
Sweet Sixteen
Elite Eight
Final Four
#15 Jackson State
#7 Marist
#3 Oklahoma State
#1 North Carolina
#1 Tennessee
W 66-32
W 68-49
W 67-52
W 56-50
L 46-47
2009 #6First Round
Second Round
#11 Green Bay
#3 Louisville
W 69-59
L 52-62
2010 #7First Round
Second Round
#10 Hartford
#2 Duke
W 60-39
L 52-60
2012 #5First Round
Second Round
#12 San Diego State
#4 Penn State
W 64-56
L 80-90
2013 #6First Round
Second Round
Sweet Sixteen
#11 Green Bay
#3 Penn State
#2 California
W 75-71
W 71-66
L 63-73
2014 #7First Round
Second Round
Sweet Sixteen
#10 Georgia Tech
#2 West Virginia
#3 Louisville
W 98-78
W 76-67
L 47-73
2015 #11First Round#6 South FloridaL 64-73
2017 #8First Round#9 CaliforniaL 52-55
2018 #6First Round#11 Central MichiganL 69-78
2022 #3First Round
Second Round
#14 Jackson State
#6 Ohio State
W 83–77
L 64–79
2023 #3First Round
Second Round
Sweet Sixteen
Elite Eight
Final Four
National Championship
#14 Hawai'i
#6 Michigan
#2 Utah
#9 Miami (FL)
#1 Virginia Tech
#2 Iowa
W 73–50
W 66–42
W 66–63
W 54–42
W 79–72
W 102–85

AIAW Division I

The Lady Tigers made one appearance in the AIAW National Division I basketball tournament, with a combined record of 3–1.

Year Round Opponent Result
1977 First Round
Quarterfinals
Semifinals
National Championship
Western Washington
Baylor
Immaculata
Delta State
W, 91–53
W, 71–64
W, 74–68
L, 55–68

Player awards

National awards

SEC Awards

Seimone Augustus - 2005, 2006
Sylvia Fowles - 2008

Prominent players

Retired numbers

No. Member Position Career Year No. Retired
33Seimone AugustusSG2002–20062010
34Sylvia FowlesC2004–20082017

LSU All-Americans

Player Position Year(s)
Seimone Augustus G 2004, 2005 (National Player of the Year), 2006 (National Player of the Year)
Pokey Chatman G 1991
Marie Ferdinand G 2001
Sylvia Fowles C 2007, 2008
Julie Gross F 1978
Joyce Walker G 1983, 1984

Arena

Pete Maravich Assembly Center

The Pete Maravich Assembly Center is a 13,215-seat multi-purpose arena in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The arena opened in 1972 and is home of the LSU Lady Tigers basketball team. It was originally known as the LSU Assembly Center, but was renamed in honor of Pete Maravich, a Tiger basketball legend, shortly after his death in 1988. The Maravich Center is known to locals as "The PMAC" or "The Palace that Pete Built," or by its more nationally known nickname, "The Deaf Dome," coined by Dick Vitale.[5]

The slightly oval building is located directly to the north of Tiger Stadium, and its bright-white roof can be seen in many telecasts of that stadium. The arena concourse is divided into four quadrants: Pete Maravich Pass, The Walk of Champions, Heroes Hall and Midway of Memories. The quadrants highlight former LSU Tiger athletes, individual and team awards and memorabilia pertaining to the history of LSU Lady Tigers and LSU Tigers basketball teams.[6]

Practice and Training facilities

LSU Basketball Practice Facility

The LSU Basketball Practice Facility is the practice facility for the LSU Lady Tigers basketball and LSU Tigers basketball teams. The facility is connected to the Pete Maravich Assembly Center through the Northwest portal. The facility features separate, full-size duplicate gymnasiums for the women's and men's basketball teams. They include a regulation NCAA court in length with two regulation high school courts in the opposition direction. The courts are exact replicas of the Maravich Center game court and have two portable goals and four retractable goals. The gymnasiums are equipped with a scoreboard, video filming balcony and scorer's table with video and data connection. The facility also houses team locker rooms, a team lounge, training rooms, a coach's locker room and coach's offices.[7]

The building also includes a two-story lobby and staircase that ascends to the second level where a club room is used for pre-game and post-game events and is connected to the Pete Maravich Assembly Center concourse. The lobby includes team displays and graphics, trophy cases and memorabilia of LSU basketball. A 900-pound bronze statue of LSU legend Shaquille O'Neal is located in front of the facility.[7]

LSU Strength and Conditioning facility

The LSU Tigers basketball strength training and conditioning facility is located in the LSU Strength and Conditioning facility. Built in 1997, it is located adjacent to Tiger Stadium.[8] Measuring 10,000-square feet with a flat surface, it has 28 multi-purpose power stations, 36 assorted sectorized machines and 10 dumbbell stations along with a plyometric specific area, medicine balls, hurdles, plyometric boxes and assorted speed and agility equipment.[9] It also features 2 treadmills, 4 stationary bikes, 2 elliptical cross trainers, a stepper and step mill.[10]

Head coaches

Name Years Record Pct.
Jinks Coleman 1975–1979 91–32 (.740)
Barbara Swanner 1979–1982 57–50 (.533)
Sue Gunter 1982–2004 442–221 (.667)
Pokey Chatman 2004–2007 90–14 (.865)
Bob Starkey (interim) 2007 4–1 (.800)
Van Chancellor 2007–2011 90–40 (.692)
Nikki Fargas 2011–2021 148–106 (.583)
Kim Mulkey 2021–present 60-8 (.882)

References

  1. "Brand Guidelines: Colors". LSUAthletics.LingoApp.com. Retrieved March 14, 2022.
  2. "Hall of Fame coach Mulkey leaves Baylor for LSU". ESPN.com. 2021-04-25. Archived from the original on 2021-04-27. Retrieved 2021-04-28.
  3. Buercklin, Kacey (2023-04-02). "LSU Tigers win 1st national championship in women's basketball". WDSU. Archived from the original on 2023-04-02. Retrieved 2023-04-02.
  4. "Media Guide". LSU. Archived from the original on 13 August 2013. Retrieved 11 Aug 2013.
  5. "Pete Maravich Assembly Center, Baton Rouge". www.tvtrip.com. Retrieved 11 April 2018.
  6. "LSU Men's Basketball Facilities". lsusports.net. Archived from the original on 26 September 2018. Retrieved 11 April 2018.
  7. "LSU Basketball Practice Facility". lsusports.net. Archived from the original on 10 February 2016. Retrieved 11 April 2018.
  8. "LSU Strength and Conditioning". lsusports.net. September 29, 2009. Archived from the original on 2013-09-03. Retrieved 2013-08-28.
  9. "A Strength Training Legacy" (PDF). biggerfasterstronger.com. Archived (PDF) from the original on 2015-10-28. Retrieved 2016-01-26.
  10. "LSU Tigers' Weight Room". ESPN The Magazine. November 14, 2012. Archived from the original on October 23, 2013. Retrieved 2014-02-11.
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