NEW ORLEANS — Oklahoma State's speedy recovery from 0-16 to the Sweet 16 came on the strength of many major strides. Yet for all the hurdles the Cowgirls have cleared the past 16 months, from the modest task of just winning a conference game to beating Oklahoma to the substantial leap of landing here, none has loomed so high as this:
Beating LSU, in New Orleans.
That's OSU's task today in a matchup with the No. 6-ranked Lady Tigers. Game time is 1:30 p.m. at New Orleans Arena.
"We know we're playing a great team,” said OSU coach Kurt Budke. "We know LSU is one of the teams that has a legitimate chance to win the whole thing.”
Oh, the Lady Tigers are legit.
Consider their credentials:
Unbeaten Southeastern Conference regular-season champions, ahead of Tennessee.
Center Sylvia Fowles, a major matchup concern for the Cowgirls, was voted SEC Player of the Year by the league's coaches, ahead of Tennessee's Candace Parker (a reigning National Player of the Year).
LSU ranks No. 1 nationally in scoring defense, led by shutdown point guard Erica White, who takes on OSU pacesetter Andrea Riley this afternoon.
The roster features eight seniors, many of whom have played a key role in LSU's run to four straight Final Fours and yearn to win one.
Recent LSU bids for a national title were derailed by more than Xs and Os, with off-the-court issues taking a toll, too.
Current coach Van Chancellor, a Hall of Famer, is the Lady Tigers' fourth coach in five years. The late Sue Gunter had to step down mid-season in 2004 due to a battle with emphysema. Her successor, Pokey Chatman, resigned just ahead of last year's NCAA Tournament when allegations rose of an inappropriate relationship with a former player.
Bob Starkey, the associate head coach, stepped in for the postseason, before stepping back into an assistant's role when Chancellor came out of retirement to take control of the powerful, yet problematic program.
Two years ago, the LSU campus was a headquarters for Hurricane Katrina relief efforts.
With no such tumult getting in the way this season, the Lady Tigers feel their time is now.
"I can say this probably is one of the best teams in LSU history,” said Fowles. "In past years, we probably had one good player on the team and other people were just somewhat of a role player.
"This year, we have two, three, four people who can step up to the plate when needed.”
They're confident, too.
Fowles had a quite sudden and straightforward answer Friday to the kind of question that takes most players aback.
Is she the best player in women's college basketball?
"Yes,” she said, breaking into a wide smile. "I mean, I work so hard and I consider myself as being dominant on both ends of the floor.”
Fowles, fast and graceful at 6-foot-6 inside, averaged 16.8 points and 9.7 rebounds this season. She's the SEC's all-time leading rebounder and No. 5 scorer, with a realistic shot at rising as high as No. 2. Her 83 career double-doubles are also an SEC record.
"I think there's not many people that are like her, especially right now,” Budke said. "She is an unbelievable talent.
"And she's worth the price of admission by herself.”
The Lady Tigers act like they have someplace to go — back to another Final Four, where a fifth straight trip would join them with Connecticut as the only program's to accomplish such a feat.
"We've been here before,” Fowles said. "We know what it takes.”
The Cowgirls are impressed, to a point.
"Players watch college basketball, the Final Four,” said OSU junior Shaunte Smith. "We're familiar. We know what they can do. We're just going to go out and play our game.
"It's going to be awesome. We can't go in scared. We know we have all the ability to come out with a win.”
The Cowgirls have come a long way, too, to get this far.
This might be their highest hurdle yet.
Still, they're readying for takeoff.
"Coming to play LSU is going to be a battle,” Riley said. "It's going to be a big challenge, but it's very motivating to know that we are the underdogs.
"All we have to do is just play. Impossible is not in our category.”
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