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SPOKANE, Wash. — That Aneesah Morrow grabbed her 19th and final rebound of the game as time nearly expired Friday evening was fitting. The ball clearly belonged in the hands of the player who had thrown this team on her back time and again this season.Late in the game, as NC State had jockeyed for positioning trying to close out the game, things looked perilous for LSU. Outside of Morrow, none of the Tigers had been thoroughly consistent through four quarters. Flau’Jae Johnson, LSU’s leading scorer, had been held scoreless until the third quarter, and a fourth-quarter collision would sideline her for the rest of the game. Mikaylah Williams, the third member of LSU’s big three with Morrow and Johnson, had started the game cold, going 4 of 14 from the floor for just 9 points through the first three quarters.
Meanwhile, NC State had a carousel of players stepping up and shouldering the load, never allowing LSU’s brief leads to balloon too much, mounting its own late comeback to lead for most of the fourth quarter.
In a late timeout, Morrow looked at her teammates and implored them:
It seemed that if Morrow could’ve physically taken some of the chip that sits on her shoulders perpetually, she would’ve.
Because for Morrow, that’s the game: It’s completely personal. Every bucket scored on her, every rebound she doesn’t get, every time her opponents finish with more blocks, more steals, more points, more anything, that means she didn’t do her job for her team. That means she wasn’t good enough. It’s that mindset that helped LSU to an 80-73 victory over No. 2 seed NC State in the Sweet 16 to earn a trip to its third consecutive Elite Eight.
“It’s about dominating your opponent and your matchup,” Morrow said. “Nobody wants to leave the game like, ‘Oh, she cooked me, and we lost.’ … You can’t sleep at night after those games where you know that you should have won, and you can pay attention to details while you have the game in your hands.”
At 6 foot 1 (generously measured), every move Morrow makes on the floor shouts this mentality. Her activity around the basket and relentless rebounding energy allow her — even when she gives up 4 or 5 inches to opponents — to win most battles. On Friday night, in a game in which LSU desperately needed someone to carry the load, Morrow raised her hand. She finished with 30 points, 19 rebounds, two blocks and three steals. Her nine offensive rebounds were just one shy of the NC State team total.
When Morrow transferred to LSU from DePaul before last season, the Tigers coaching staff loved Morrow’s mentality and the chip on her shoulders, which now occupy a part of their locker room. They saw it on film, in her visit, in her first practices. Even going up against Angel Reese, an All-American coming off a national title, Morrow didn’t want to lose an inch, let alone a possession.
“It’s a mentality she has through life,” assistant coach Gary Redus said. “She wasn’t ranked in high school, she felt slighted. She went to DePaul and was an All-American, but she felt slighted, like not enough people were talking about her. So she transferred and came here, and last year, she felt like she had an All-American season and no one was talking about it.
“She takes everything personal.”
Redus would know. He’s usually the one tasked with going up against Morrow in practices. Even at 6-6, when he gets a rebound over her or denies her positioning, he knows she’s coming back harder on the next possession. It’s why he gets so much joy watching her from the bench, because he sees when she gets to her spots on the floor or once she activates her quickness to navigate around a player, she’s going to have the upper hand.
For LSU this season, Morrow’s motor has been crucial to its success. She has averaged 18 points and 14 rebounds per game and been a consistent bedrock of production for the Tigers as they searched for depth in their supporting cast in the wake of Reese’s departure to the WNBA. Even without as much cohesion or support around the big three, LSU’s resilience has shown through. The Tigers have lost only five games this season, and only one by double digits (10 points to South Carolina). In games decided by 9 or fewer points, LSU is 7-4 (and it was without Morrow, Johnson or both in two of those losses).
LSU coach Kim Mulkey points to three aspects that help teams win those close games: seniors, leaders and competitors.
In Morrow, she has all three.
“She just works,” Mulkey said. “She’s an undersized post player in there battling bigger girls, demanding the ball, guarding on the perimeter. … She’s just one you want on your team.”
As LSU moves on to the Elite Eight, matching up with either UCLA’s 6-7 Lauren Betts or Ole Miss’ 6-3 Christeen Iwuala, Morrow understands she might not be favored. That’s just fine. She welcomes that extra level of doubt. At this point, defying expectations is almost her comfort zone. Her game plan for either will be the same, and exactly what it has been all season and during her entire career: take it so personally that she has no option but to win.
“I never want to come out of a game and feel like I was dominated. My goal is to dominate my opponent or just dominate the post in general,” she said. “I might be undersized, but I’m making history as an undersized big. I’ve been doing this since I was in high school. I’m not going to get away from my strengths for anybody else.”
This article originally appeared in The Athletic.
LSU Lady Tigers, Women's College Basketball, Women's NCAA Tournament
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