No. 1 LSU tops Auburn

AUBURN, Ala. - Caught in a rare close game, No. 1 LSU turned to Seimone Augustus, Sylvia Fowles and one of the nation's stingiest defenses.

Augustus made two free throws with 6 seconds left and finished with 22 points, helping No. 1 LSU hold off Auburn 62-57 Sunday despite making just one basket in the final 7 minutes.

Fowles added 19 points and 13 rebounds for LSU (25-1, 12-0 Southeastern Conference), which had hardly been challenged in conference play this season.

Auburn (14-11, 5-7) is the only SEC team to come within 10 points of LSU, also losing 57-52 in Baton Rouge. LSU coach Pokey Chatman, for one, wasn't surprised by the close calls.

"I think what you saw were two of the top defensive teams in the conference going at it," said Chatman, whose team set a school record for league wins with two games still to play. "I don't think it was a fluke in Baton Rouge, I don't think it was a fluke tonight."

LSU threatened to walk away with another easy win but had its 14-point lead cut to 54-53 on Louise Emeagi's 3-pointer from the left corner and Taneshia Thompson's free throw with 5:12 to play. Emeagi hit two 3s from the same spot during Auburn's comeback, but LSU never lost the lead.

Then, Fowles and Augustus took over. Fowles put back an LSU miss and Augustus blocked a shot and hit two free throws for a 60-55 lead with 1:41 left.

Thompson hit two from the line 18 seconds later. Auburn then forced a shot-clock violation but Natasha Brackett missed a 3-point try that would have tied the game.

Then, Fowles missed a shot inside with 25 seconds left, giving Auburn one more chance. Brackett missed again on an off-balance shot guarded by Florence Williams, and Augustus clinched it with two more free throws.

"I thought our defense was great," Auburn coach Nell Fortner said. "We made huge stops at the end of that game. Our struggle for most of the year has been finding the points.

"You've got to play great defense to stop that team. They have the potential to run you right out of your own gym."

Augustus shot just 6-of-19 but made all nine free throws and had seven rebounds and five assists.

Temeka Johnson had five points, six rebounds, eight assists and three steals. She limped through the final few minutes after taking a knee to her left leg.

Brackett led Auburn with 18 points, including 14 in the second half, while Thompson added 13 and Nicole Louden had 12 points and six assists.

"When you're playing No. 1 you always try to rise to the occasion," Brackett said. "We really had our heart set on this one to make it to the (NCAA) tournament. We needed three wins. We'll just have to get the next two."

LSU trailed by as many as four points midway through the first half and shot just 4-for-19 at the outset. But the nation's No. 2 scoring defense mostly kept Auburn from getting decent shots, and the visiting Tigers pulled away with a 20-4 run, sparked by eight points from Augustus.

Auburn missed eight shots in a row and had two turnovers in a string of 10 possessions and went scoreless for more than 7 minutes.

"That was good momentum going into the half," Fowles said. "That showed us what we're capable of."