Lady Vols basketball heads to Baton Rouge, Louisiana, for its final road game of the regular season.
Tennessee (16-10, 8-6 SEC) faces No. 6 LSU (24-4, 10-4) at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center on Feb. 26 (6 p.m. ET, ESPN). The Lady Vols have lost four straight games and seven of their past nine. The Tigers have won two straight games since their Feb. 14 loss to South Carolina.
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Here’s what you need to know about the matchup.
LSU has no shortage of talented scorers
The Tigers have scoring threats all over the floor, but their guards are the engine that makes the team run. Flau’jae Johnson and Mikaylah Williams both average just over 13 points in SEC play. MiLaysia Fulwiley averages 12.6 points and Jada Richard averages 10.8 points.
Freshman ZaKiyah Johnson averages 8.9 points and 6.0 rebounds in conference games and has shot 54.7% from the field.
Flau’jae Johnson, Williams, Fulwiley and Richard all shoot over 32% from 3-point range with at least 14 made 3-pointers in SEC play. Williams leads the group, shooting 40.4% on 19 made 3-pointers in conference games.
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Matchup features top two freshman classes
LSU and Tennessee signed the Nos. 1 and 2 recruiting classes in 2025, respectively, and both teams’ freshmen are making impacts already.
The Tigers got three five-star players: Grace Knox was ranked No. 7, ZaKiyah Johnson at No. 10 and Divine Bourrage at No. 24. Four-star guard Bella Hines was ranked No. 32.
Johnson and Knox have played the most for LSU, averaging 21.2 and 16.9 minutes in SEC play, respectively. Knox has averaged 6.8 points and 3.3 rebounds in conference games while shooting 58.3% from the field.
Tennessee also had three five-stars in its freshman class: Mia Pauldo, who was ranked No. 9, Deniya Prawl at No. 17 and Jaida Civil at No. 20. All three have played significant minutes, and Mya Pauldo and Lauren Hurst have started to get more playing time as of late.
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Janiah Barker status unclear for LSU
Janiah Barker did not travel with the team to the Feb. 22 game against Oklahoma because she did not meet program expectations, according to Lady Vols coach Kim Caldwell.
“She didn’t meet team standards, didn’t make the trip,” she said in her postgame news conference. “We’ll fix it when we get back, she’s got a bright future and she’ll be fine.”
The 6-foot-4 forward has averaged 14.4 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.2 assists and 1.2 steals, shooting 46.9% from the field and 36.6% on 3.9 attempts from 3-point range.
If Barker doesn’t play at LSU, Tennessee will miss her production, but also her presence on the boards and defensively against the Tigers’ post players.
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Lady Vols vs LSU prediction
LSU 85, Tennessee 73: Tennessee’s defense is not nearly strong enough to withstand the Tigers’ offense and all of their scoring options. The Lady Vols looked better at Oklahoma, but an upset on the road — especially in Baton Rouge — is still too tall of an order.
Cora Hall is the University of Tennessee women’s athletics reporter for Knox News. Email: cora.hall@knoxnews.com; X: @corahalll; Bluesky: @corahall.bsky.social. Support strong local journalism and unlock premium perks:knoxnews.com/subscribe
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Lady Vols basketball vs LSU prediction. Who will win SEC matchup?
