Flau'jae Johnson claims she "felt good" about her LSU team after Aneesah Morrow's injury and loss vs Texas: "Proud of my team"

Flau'jae Johnson tapped into her coaching skills when discussing LSU's tough matchup against Texas in the SEC Tournament semifinal last Saturday. Despite the team’s loss, Johnson was proud of her Tigers teammates, especially considering they were without both her and Aneesah Morrow.

LSU fell to Texas 56-49 in that matchup, ending their run in the tournament while Morrow suffered an injury in the third quarter.

Flau'jae Johnson, Kim Mulkey and LSU staffs gather around injured Aneesah Morrow - Source: Getty

On Thursday's episode of her "Best of Both Worlds" podcast, Johnson detailed her perspective on the Longhorns' loss saying that she learned a lot about the team dynamics and who needs to get playing time.

"I was excited — I was proud of my team playing Texas because I'm like, bro, y'all held them," Johnson said (at 27:14). "No Aneesah, had a freshman on the floor cooking, so I felt really good about that.

"You didn't have me. You didn't have Aneesah, which is a lot of scoring. Mikaylah was in foul trouble ... so I was really happy that the bench players stepped up. You can't win a championship without bench play, and so I hope they understand how important they are to us and what all we do."

Flau'jae Johnson also pointed out that LSU's national championship-winning team in 2023 had key contributions from their bench, leading to a victory over Iowa. They had 30 points off the bench in the final.

Flau'jae Johnson and LSU Tigers' chance of winning the NCAA Tournament

Since the 2021 arrival of Kim Mulkey in Baton Rouge, the Tigers have emerged as a serious contender for the NCAA championship. LSU has back-to-back Elite Eight appearances in the last two seasons, including a title run. This proves that they have all the tools already to compete at the highest level.

However, this season has presented some challenges—they finished third in the SEC standings with an overall record of 27-4 and a conference record of 12-4. They have lost five games against Quad 1 opponents, a concerning statistic for the Tigers and their tournament seeding.

That said, LSU still has two of the most dominant players in the country in Flau'jae Johnson and Aneesah Morrow. While both are out injured, they are expected to return in time for the NCAA Tournament.

Johnson has emerged as a primary scoring option, averaging 18.9 points, 5.8 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game. Morrow, a senior guard, has also been sensational, putting up 18.5 points, 13.6 rebounds and 2.6 steals per game.

LSU has 40-1 odds to win the national championship, as per ESPN.