Michigan women’s basketball faces LSU in the 2nd round of the 2023 NCAA tournament at 7:30 p.m. Sunday, March 19, 2023, on ESPN. Here’s who to watch.
Matchup: No. 6 Michigan (23-9, 11-7 Big Ten) vs. No. 3 LSU (29-2, 15-1 SEC), NCAA tournament Greenville 2 region second round.
Tipoff: 7:30 p.m. Sunday; Pete Maravich Assembly Center, Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
TV: ESPN.
At stake: Winner faces either 3-seed Utah or 10-seed Princeton on Friday in Greenville, South Carolina, for spot in Elite Eight.
• Box score
The Wolverines’ victory improved them to 11-10 all time in 11 tournaments, with five straight second-round appearances under head coach Kim Barnes Arico. (Though they made it all the way to the Elite Eight last season.) LSU appears to be achieving the desired results in its second season under longtime Baylor coach Kim Mulkey, starting with a 23-point win over 14-seed Hawaii in the first round on Friday. After losing in the second round last season, the Tigers are 45-27 all-time in the tournament over 28 seasons, with five trips to the Final Four (albeit with no title game appearances). All five Final Four appearances came during a five-season run from 2003-08; the Tigers have made the Sweet 16 just twice (2013-14) since then.
FRIDAY’S FIRST ROUND:Michigan women roll over Rebels, 71-59, to advance to NCAA tournament 2nd round
TROPHY CASE:Michigan women’s basketball has 3 players selected to Big Ten all-conference teams
It’s a simple formula for Mulkey’s Tigers: Shoot often inside the arc (LSU’s 50.2 2-pointers per game ranks sixth in the nation), do it well (50.6% on 2-pointers, good for 34th nationally), and if you miss, rebound the ball (47.2 boards per game, third nationally, and 17.2 per game on offense, good for fourth) and start all over again. What about 3-pointers? We’re not saying LSU can’t hit them — their 35.9% success rage ranked 26th in the nation — but they don’t really try a whole lot, either: Their 15 3s per game ranks just 307th out of 350 teams.
The Wolverines’ plan isn’t so different, especially as executed on Friday afternoon against UNLV: U-M attempted just 15 3s, hit six of them (and four of those, on six tries, came from senior guard Maddie Nolan) and shot 45.
