BATON ROUGE — With four seconds remaining in the third quarter, Florida State guard O'Mariah Gordon raced down the floor, hoping to get a bucket before the buzzer. The problem was Sa'Myah Smith was there.
Smith stuffed the layup attempt and the crowd inside the Pete Maravich Assembly Center was launched into a frenzy.
The block capped a masterclass of a third for LSU women's basketball, which outscored the Seminoles 31 to 6. Coach Kim Mulkey and the Tigers were not to be denied their third straight trip to the Sweet 16, taking down FSU 101-71 on Monday night.
LSU (30-5) advances to the Spokane 1 Region where it'll meet North Carolina State in the Sweet 16 next weekend.
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The Tigers navigated most of the first half with star Flau'jae Johnson on the bench in foul trouble. After the past couple of weeks and the experience that some of LSU's reserves have gotten in big games, that apparently was no problem.
Players like Smith and freshman point guard Jada Richard stepped their games up. Smith put up 10 points in the first half, matching her total for the full game of the NCAA Tournament opener against San Diego State. Smith finished with her best game of the year at 20 points and 12 rebounds.
Richard scored six first-half points, shooting 3 of 4.
It was certainly an auspicious start for LSU's defensive game plan against Latson.
The senior guard scored FSU's first 12 points of the game, launching her team to an early advantage. Early on, the Tigers has no answer for Latson, who got into the lane at will.
After the first seven minutes, LSU was able to contain Latson for the rest of the game, which sounds strange considering she put up 23 first-half points.
Latson managed just two points in the third quarter and finished the game with 30 points.
When LSU gets the level of performances from its Big 3 that it got against the Noles, it's going to be a tough out in the NCAA Tournament.
Johnson, Aneesah Morrow and Mikaylah Williams each filled the stat sheet, combining for 67 points, 16 rebounds and 12 assists.
Morrow had a season-high seven assists to go with her 26 points and 11 rebounds.
Williams scored a team-high 28 points while Johnson scored 13 points with four assists of her own.
LSU outscored Florida State, 31 to 6 in the third quarter. Defense was masterful for the Tigers.
LSU has almost turned this game onto its head.
Florida State hasn't scored in more than two minutes. LSU has ratcheted up the intensity on defense and the Seminoles is frazzled.
LSU already with three players in double figures. Sa'Myah Smith has a double-double, 12 points, 10 rebounds.
Tigers have come out of the locker room on fire. They've outscored FSU 8-2. Defense continues to lead the way as LSU has scored a couple of buckets off Seminole turnovers.
Flau'jae Johnson just finished through a hard foul and will have an and-1 attempt out of the timeout. LSU leads 58-51.
Ta'Niya Latson leads all scorers with 23 points. Aneesah Morrow for LSU has 14 points with with five boards.
Tigers and Seminoles are trading blows. LSU was up 10 then Florida State stormed back to take the lead.
Sa'Myah Smith is having a big game for LSU with 10 and six rebounds so far. She's complementing Morrow really well, forcing Florida State to make some tough choices on the defensive end.
Mikaylah Williams leads the way for the Tigers early with 12 first-quarter points. Aneesah Morrow has 10 points.
Ta'Niya Latson has been unstoppable for the Noles, she's got 16 points.
LSU on an 11-0 run. Mikaylah Williams and Aneesah Morrow have hit some momentum-building shots for the Tigers. Flau'jae Johnson checked out of the game a little bit ago and immediately got some attention from trainers behind LSU's bench. Will be something to watch for.
Start time:5 p.m. CT
TV info:ESPN2
Location:Pete Maravich Assembly Center in Baton Rouge, Louisiana
No. 3 LSU Tigers:Kim Mulkey and LSU welcomed back its top scorer in Flau'jae Johnson, who missed the last three games for the Tigers (29-5) prior to their March Madness opener, and she posted 22 points in her return against the Aztecs. Fellow LSU star Aneesah Morrow also made her return to the lineup from injury, a foot sprain she re-aggravated during the SEC Tournament, and she recorded her 28th double double on the season with 12 points and 12 rebounds.
No. 6 Florida State Seminoles :Ta'Niya Latson is the straw that stirs the Seminoles (24-8) drink as she leads women's college basketball in scoring at 24.9 points per game. She dropped 28 points in the opening round victory while both Makayla Timpson and O'Mariah Gordon each posted 18 points apiece.
Odds courtesy of BetMGM as of Monday morning
Spread:LSU -11.5
Over/under: 168.5
Moneyline:LSU -600 | Florida State +425
LSU 94, Florida State 89: High octane matchup between two prolific offenses in LSU and FSU. Latson will get her points but the Tigers will do enough of slowing down her teammates that the Seminoles can't quite catch up. LSU moves on to the Sweet 16.
FLAU'JAE JOHNSON CELEBRATION Why LSU star Flau'jae Johnson blows kisses as a celebration
WHO GUARDS TA'NIYA LATSON FOR LSU? Who guards Ta'Niya Latson for LSU in March Madness matchup? Kim Mulkey has options
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Cory Diaz covers the LSU Tigers for The Daily Advertiser as part of the USA TODAY Network. Follow his Tigers coverage on Twitter: @ByCoryDiaz. Got questions regarding LSU athletics? Send them to Cory Diaz at bdiaz@gannett.com .
This article originally appeared on Lafayette Daily Advertiser: LSU trounces Florida State in March Madness, advances to Sweet 16
