No. 5 LSU women’s basketball was up by just one on No. 11 Kentucky 78-77 as the game neared its final moments.
With 18.5 seconds left in the game, Kentucky Head Coach Kenny Brooks called a timeout and the Tigers crowd was getting louder, hyping up the home defense before Kentucky got the ball for the last play of the game.
The Tigers entered the game undefeated on the season, and the favorite to take the win over the Wildcats by a solid margin.
With the SEC being one of the toughest conferences in women’s basketball, the pre-conference season was one that left much to the imagination on how SEC play would shape up. The Tigers saw victories of huge margins through 2025, including a 115-26 win over Southeastern Louisiana.
Kentucky was no different – it only saw one loss to No. 7 Maryland by an eight-point margin, and was averaging 81.4 PPG.
Kentucky first led LSU with two minutes left in the first quarter by one point, and continued to go back-and-forth with the Tigers for the one-point margin. Ultimately, LSU led 23-22 going into the second.
The largest lead that the Wildcats saw would be a margin of five in the second quarter – the Tigers led the Cats the majority of the game.
With just over four minutes left in the final quarter, the game hit a media timeout. Leaving the break, it seemed the Cats had regrouped to go on a 8-0 scoring run, topping LSU 77-75 with just over a minute left on the court.
The Tigers went on to take a one point lead, and the cheers of the nearly-sold out Pete Maravich Center, donned in a sea of purple, drowned over the Kentucky huddle for a brief timeout.
Kentucky’s Jordan Obi found guard Tonie Morgan to start the clock back. Morgan ran the clock for eight seconds, and with 10 left to play, Brooks gave Morgan the go-ahead.
Morgan drove left, briefly entering the paint before stepping back out beyond the arc.
With just under a second left in the game, Morgan rose for the three, and saw it fall clean through the net.
Ultimately, just 18.5 seconds was enough time to flip the script and upset the undefeated Tigers.
The Kentucky team flooded the court and Morgan as LSU were in disbelief.
That moment not only saw the Wildcats start conference play on a strong note, but it reflected the Wildcats’ chemistry and Brooks’ faith in his squad to execute plays in crucial moments.
Morgan concluded with 24 points and 12 assists, leading the team in both stats. Although all were crucial in the buildup to Kentucky’s victory, her buzzer beater three claimed all the glory in the New Year’s day victory.
