Mississippi State stunned LSU on Monday

Reese’s double-double was not enough for LSU on Monday night.X/@LSUwbkb

The LSU Tigers were hoping — if not expecting — to get back on track Monday night following their close defeat to top-ranked South Carolina last Thursday. Instead, Angel Reese and the ninth-ranked Tigers lost again, dropping their second consecutive game to the Mississippi State Bulldogs by a 77-73 score.

Job done ✔️#HailState🐶 pic.twitter.com/4VymifFRZn

— Mississippi State Women's Basketball (@HailStateWBK) January 30, 2024

Reese‘s double-double was not enough to power LSU to victory — and with a tumble out of the top 10 now a given, head coach Kim Mulkey is searching for answers just six weeks before the Tigers figure to re-enter the NCAA Tournament and defend their national championship.

Angel Reese gets surprised by a spicy gift from her boyfriend

Hot shooting dooms the Tigers

LSU rallied from a first-quarter deficit to take a 40-35 lead at halftime in Starkville on Monday, but Mississippi State launched a rally of its own in the second half. The Bulldogs outscored the Tigers 28-17 in the third quarter and won a fourth-quarter battle of attrition to seal the upset victory.

“We can’t seem to defensively get stops with this team when they matter,” Mulkey said postgame.

Kim Mulkey is here for postgame.

"I always think players are going to play all out at home in a sell out."

"We can't seem to defensively get stops with this team when they matter. We saw that in the South Carolina game."#LSU

— Cory Diaz (@ByCoryDiaz) January 30, 2024

Mississippi State shot better than 50 percent (30/57) from the field against Reese and the LSU defense. The Bulldogs shot even better from three-point range, knocking down nine of 17 attempts from behind the arc. By contrast, the Tigers struggled in the vibrant atmosphere at Humphrey Coliseum, shooting 44.6 percent overall and just 21 percent from three-point land.

Reese had a strong game — and did not foul out

While many of her teammates struggled to shoot the ball in Monday’s loss, Reese stood out in a strong bounce-back game after she fouled out of Thursday’s defeat to the #1-ranked Gamecocks in Baton Rouge.

Great quick seal from Angel Reese

One of the best games she's had this season seeking out early contact pic.twitter.com/kB9ua7xqtz

— Mark Schindler (@MG_Schindler) January 26, 2024

Reese scored a team-high 20 points on 7-of-17 shooting, and she hauled in a game-high 18 rebounds — more than half of the Tigers’ total of 35 boards. The power forward recorded her 12th double-double of the 2023/24 season and her third game from the past six with at least 18 rebounds, as well as her 11th 20-plus point game of the year.

LSU as a team has 32 rebounds tonight. Angel Reese has 16 of them.

— Katie Barnes (@katie_barnes3) January 30, 2024