LSU Women's Basketball: How the transfers look heading into season opener
Fresh off of their National Title run, LSU head coach Kim Mulkey and the LSU Tigers were not content with just celebrating their run in 2022-2023. Mulkey and the Tigers immediately turned their focus to the 2023-2024 season in the offseason and completed quite the haul in the transfer portal giving the Tigers arguably the most talented women's basketball team in the country on paper.
After a pair of exhibition games, the Lady Tigers are looking like they're a force to be reckoned with in the upcoming season.
The Transfers
Hailey Van Lith
Transferring from Louisville, Van Lith was instrumental in the Cardinals success during her time at Louisville. In her three seasons at Louisville, she helped the Cardinals reach the NCAA tournament all three seasons averaging 15.4 points per game, 4.4 rebounds per game and 2.5 assists per game. Van Lith was also an instrumental piece in Louisville's final four run in 2022 and was named as the most outstanding player for the Wichita regional. As a junior she was one of only two players to average 19 points per game, four rebounds per game and two assists per game. The only other player to reach that feat was All-American Caitlin Clark.
She's an excellent shooter and comes to LSU with 1,553 career points. At 5-foot-7, She gives the Tigers toughness at the point guard position as she's not afraid to drive it down the lane and is more than willing to take contact. Look for her to play a key part in leading this LSU team this season and distributing the ball from the point guard position.
Aneesah Morrow
Junior guard Aneesah Morrow transferred in from DePaul where she was one of the top players in the country. She averaged 25.7 points per game and 12.2 rebounds per game as a sophomore and she joins Angel Reese as the only other player in the country that ranked inside the top 10 in both scoring and rebounding.
She's not just a guard that can score, she's one of the best rebounders in the country and with Morrow on the court the Tigers will have arguably the top two rebounders in the nation on the floor at the same time.
An All-American in both of the previous two seasons, Morrow was arguably the top target in the transfer portal. She should join Van Lith in LSU's starting lineup.
How were their first two games in Tiger uniforms?
| Opponent | Minutes | Points | Rebounds | Assists |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
East Texas Baptist |
17 |
9 |
2 |
1 |
|
Loyola (New Orleans) |
17 |
13 |
2 |
5 |
| Opponent | Minutes | Points | Rebounds | Assists |
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
East Texas Baptist |
18 |
10 |
9 |
2 |
|
Loyola (New Orleans) |
16 |
11 |
15 |
0 |
The two LSU transfers performed exceptionally well in the two exhibition openers. Likely not going to be the typical workload in minutes that we'll probably see as the season unfolds, but both players made the most of their minutes in the two exhibition games.
Both players are expected to be a part of the starting lineup for the Tigers in 2023-2024 and will look to build upon their momentum from the two exhibition games.
LSU opens the 2023-2024 season on Monday night in Las Vegas, Nevada with the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Series at T-Mobile Arena against No.20 Colorado. Tipoff is set for 6:30 PM CT.