LSU women's basketball secures best start in program history at 16-0, beats Kentucky

More than any team LSU women's basketball has faced to this point, Kentucky had a legitimate shot as making Kim Mulkey and her team sweat.

Thanks to its problematic zone defense, the Wildcats' defense kept the Tigers squirmy for much of the first half, leading to a nearly quarter-long stretch without a field goal.

But while Kentucky kept the offense off balance, No. 7 LSU's defense was more stingy which gave time for the offense to come back to life en route to a 67-48 victory at Rupp Arena Sunday afternoon.

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The Tigers exacted revenge from their quarterfinal upset loss to the Wildcats in the SEC Tournament last season in Nashville.

Kim Mulkey guides LSU women's basketball to best start in program history

LSU has been to five Final Fours in its history, but in none of those seasons did it win its first 16 games.

But Kim Mulkey has coached this season's squad to that mark, 16-0, something the Tigers have never done before. And she's done so welcoming in nine new players after losing 80% of the team's offensive production from last season's team.

"I didn't know, it just feels good to win," Mulkey said when asked about the historic start to this season. "I need to share that with my team. I don't know if they know that."

LSU Tigers lean on rebounding when offense stalled

After a nice start where they scored 13 points in the first 3:53, the Tigers lost a bit of what they had hung their hats on this season. Kentucky led the Tigers in offensive rebounding for much of the first period, and the lack of second chances, and overall rebounding led to some sloppy play.

"We didn't discuss our offense. We discussed how (Kentucky) didn't score in five minutes," Mulkey said. "There were periods of time where Kentucky didn't score the ball. I was encouraging us with what we were doing defensively. I don't really ever talk about what we're not doing offensively because that gets in their head and maybe they'll turn down the next shot.

"Missing shots, having bad offensive games: that's part of basketball. You don't know when you're going to shoot 60% or 30%. But what you do is you sell them on defense."

LSU came into the second quarter on a mission to clean up the glass and as it outrebounded the Wildcats by 12. The Tigers regained their offensive footing and opened the game up.

Mulkey's team nearly doubled up the Wildcats, finishing up 22 in the rebound margin at 45 to 23.

LSU star freshman Flau'jae Johnson making case for nation's top freshman

She's had three double-doubles so far this season and had scored in double figures 13 times out of 16 games.

Mulkey said following LSU's win against Texas A&M on Thursday that Johnson was the "best freshman in the country."

The Savannah, Georgia, native continues to make her case as she was the Tigers' best player against Kentucky, dropping 26 points with eight rebounds. Johnson provided the spark as LSU meandered through much of the first half.

Bench offense in SEC play a concern?

Since the start of SEC play, LSU has been solely relying on its starting five in scoring. But is it too much?

The Tigers bench has recorded more than 11 points in an SEC game once out of four, including against Kentucky with 10 points. As LSU goes deeper in league play, improvement in offensive production will need to be a key for Mulkey's bunch.

Despite the lack of points from the bench, Mulkey said she's more focused on other elements the reserves are bringing to the table.

"You can build off what our bench did today," Mulkey said. "What (freshman Sa'Myah Smith), what Kateri (Poole) did, what (Last-Tear) Poa did. I thought it was big; they played like experienced players."

Angel Reese secures 16th straight double-double

For the second time this season, it took the sophomore forward deep into the third quarter, but Reese posted her 16th consecutive double-double to open her LSU career.

It was a frustrating afternoon offensively for Reese, going just 5-of-14 from the field. She finished with 26 points and 13 rebounds at UK.

Cory Diaz covers the LSU Tigers and Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns for The Daily Advertiser as part of the USA TODAY Network. Follow his Tigers and Cajuns coverage on Twitter: @ByCoryDiaz. Got questions regarding LSU/UL athletics? Send them to Cory Diaz at bdiaz@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Lafayette Daily Advertiser: LSU women's basketball beats Kentucky for program-best start at 16-0