Texas A&M will be without Jordan Jones at 1 p.m. Sunday when it travels to Baton Rouge for a season finale against LSU.
Jones, who reportedly tore her ACL and meniscus in Thursday’s heartbreaker against Missouri, was the Aggies third leading scorer with 9 points per game, while dishing out a team-high assist average of over six per contest.
The Aggies (22-7, 10-5 SEC) lost more than the junior guard Thursday. In that contest, which was senior night for A&M, Missouri’s Maddi Stock hit a game-winning 3-pointer with .1 seconds left, clinching a 70-69 victory for the Tigers. Missouri sat near the bottom of the SEC before the game, and the loss hit A&M hard. Seeding for the NCAA tournament may not be as high for the Aggies anymore, and also, they lost the No. 3 spot in the SEC.
LSU (15-12, 9-6 SEC) is familiar with heartbreak as well. In the Tigers last matchup, they lost a 58-57 thriller to Ole Miss, in which two Rebels free throws with nine seconds left iced the game.
On Jan. 11, the two ball clubs met, and A&M defeated LSU 55-48. Jones led in scoring with 12, and Akilah Bethel clinched double-double status with 13 points and 10 rebounds for the Tigers. The Aggies will look to Courtney Williams and Courtney Walker, their two leading scorers, to push the offensive front without Jones.
If the Aggies are victorious, they will secure the No. 4 spot in the SEC and a double-bye in the SEC tournament. But, if they lose, the Aggies could potentially fall into a three-way tie with Kentucky and LSU.
The SEC tournament begins on March 4 in Little Rock, Arkansas.