Despite a tough loss to the South Carolina Gamecocks, the LSU Tigers hold strong as a No. 2 seed.
The LSU Tigers' loss to the South Carolina Gamecocks last week certainly stung for the players in the game, but that looks like the worst thing the loss will do, as they did not see any movement in the NCAA tournament projection after that.
ESPN's Charlie Creme provides one of the best overviews of what projections look like for the 2026 tournament with Women's Bracketology. In the update following that big matchup with the Gamecocks, the Tigers remained the No. 2 seed.
The only time that LSU hasn't been there for the entire season was the two weeks following their poor start to the SEC season.
It helped that it was a hard-fought game that the Tigers could have won towards the end. The seven-point differential at the end was even underplaying how close it was.
LSU is now 3-4 against Top 25 teams this season, which doesn't bode well for the tournament. They still have two ranked opponents left this year and then the SEC tourney to prove that they do indeed deserve to be a No. 2 seed.
It would be the first time in the Kim Mulkey era that the Tigers would be anything other than a No. 3 seed.
If things play out the way that Creme has it on paper, LSU would face the High Point Panthers in the first round, then the winner of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and Princeton Tigers in round two (should they advance past the Panthers).
This might not seem like the most dangerous Tigers squad in recent memory, without Angel Reese or Aneesah Morrow, but they've shown that they have the talent to compete and win any game.
If Flau'jae Johnson and Mikaylah Williams can play consistently to their top level, this team can go all the way. They've been a very unselfish squad, which is great, but every team needs its stars.
It showed against South Carolina when the offense fell apart as neither player could find a shot. It'll be interesting see if there is a shift in game plan over the final few weeks of the season.
No matter how it plays out with the seeding, Mulkey will have LSU in their fifth straight NCAA tournament. This will be the longest streak since making it every season between 1999 and 2010.
Circle the games against the Ole Miss Rebels and the Tennessee Volunteers as the most important remaining, but the Tigers must win all four of their games if they hope to actually become a No. 2 seed.