Football
Associated Press 16y

Fowles scores 18 to lead No. 11 LSU over No. 20 Arkansas

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. -- Sylvia Fowles scored 18 points to lead
No. 11 LSU to a 76-54 win Thursday night over No. 20 Arkansas in
the Southeastern Conference opener for both teams.

LSU (12-3, 1-0 SEC) jumped to a big lead early and never let
Arkansas get into the game, ending a season-opening 15-game winning
streak. The Lady Tigers had a double-digit lead less than five
minutes in, at 12-2, and Arkansas never got closer the rest of the
way.

"LSU's always played great defense," said LSU coach Van
Chancellor, who coached at Ole Miss for 10 years and won four WNBA
titles as the coach of the Houston Comets. "Our first half was as
good a defensive performance as I've seen in this league in giving
up 17 points."

LSU led 39-17 at halftime.

"I think we're frustrated with our performance," Arkansas
coach Tom Collen said. "I don't think we've seen a defense like
LSU all year long and we may never see it again until we get to
play Tennessee or go down to LSU" to play on the Lady Tigers' home
court.

LSU is "probably the best defensive team in the country,"
Collen said.

Fowles, who missed two games after the holiday break with an
injury, dominated both ends of the floor for the Lady Tigers,
finishing with 10 rebounds. She also added three blocked shots and
two steals.

"She looked like her old self tonight," Chancellor said.
"She's close to 100 percent."

Quianna Chaney and Allison Hightower each scored 15 for LSU.
Erica White had 12 assists for LSU, matching Arkansas' team total.

Arkansas' Lauren Ervin suffered a knee injury on a driving layup
late in the game, and is scheduled to undergo an MRI on Friday
after leading the Lady Razorbacks (15-1, 0-1) with 13 points.

Arkansas never made a serious run in the second half, but did
hold its own over the final 20 minutes by matching the Lady Tigers
with 37 points. LSU, however, hit 18-of-29 from the floor (62
percent) in the second half and squelched every Arkansas attempt at
a late run.

"It seemed like every time we made a shot, they had an
answer," Arkansas point guard Brittney Vaughn said. "This was an
eye-opener."

Arkansas got 12 points from Vaughn and 10 from Ayana Brereton.

LSU hosts Vanderbilt on Sunday, while Arkansas travels to Ole
Miss.

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