By ELIZABETH A. DAVIS
AP Sports Writer

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (AP) _ LSU's zone defense fooled No. 2 Tennessee but only for one half.

Kara Lawson scored 15 of her 17 points in the second half and Michelle Snow added 10 of her 14 after halftime Sunday, helping the Lady Vols (14-1, 3-0 Southeastern Conference) hold off LSU 79-67.

The Lady Tigers (8-6, 1-2) got Tennessee out of rhythm in the first half with the zone and tied it at 33 at halftime.

They outrebounded Tennessee in the first half and hung close most of the game.

``We allowed them to play a half-court game. They played the style they wanted to. I thought in the second half we played our type of game,'' Lawson said.

LSU trailed 70-67 with 3:43 remaining.

Then the Lady Vols took over and held LSU without a basket, scoring the last nine points of the game.

Down the stretch, Snow had a jumper in the lane, then Lawson had a steal and a basket. Lawson got another steal and was fouled by Temeka Johnson, who committed her fifth foul on the break.

Lawson made the pair of free throws to put Tennessee up by nine with 2:32 left. LSU last led, 63-62, after Aiysha Smith's basket with 7:54 left.

The Lady Tigers were 13-of-13 from the foul line and were shooting 50 percent for most of the game until the end.

Tennessee had trouble rebounding early, and when it did grab a missed shot, the Lady Vols missed again.

While LSU's two-three matchup zone kept Tennessee's transition game to a minimum in the first half, the Lady Tigers were shooting well.

``I thought we were in control of the game at that particular point. The shot selection was good and we were doing what we wanted to,'' Gunter said.

LSU had missed just three shots by midway through the second half, but turnovers and Tennessee's defense became a problem.

The Lady Vols didn't allow LSU any offensive rebounds in the second half.

``You look to Tennessee to make adjustments. You know (Tennessee coach) Pat (Summitt) is going to. But I felt like the kids hung tight,'' LSU coach Sue Gunter said. ``I'm not ashamed at all at the effort. It wasn't good enough because we came here to win. I thought we almost gave ourselves an opportunity to win.''

Ashley Robinson and Shyra Ely each had 10 points for the Lady Vols. Roneeka Hodges scored 20 points to lead LSU, while Smith added 17, Johnson had 12 and Ke-Ke Tardy finished with 10.

LSU used just seven players, none a senior. The Lady Tigers have three players out with injuries.

The Lady Vols have won 35 straight SEC games at home. LSU has never won in Knoxville and has lost five straight to the Lady Vols, including last year's last-second loss in Baton Rouge.

No. 8 Vanderbilt 62, Mississippi 42

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) _ Chantelle Anderson scored 16 points to lead No. 8 Vanderbilt over Mississippi 62-42 on Sunday.

The Commodores, trailing by five points seven minutes into the game, outscored Mississippi 20-2 the rest of the half to take a 30-17 halftime lead.

After missing all six of its first-half 3-point attempts, Vanderbilt (16-3, 2-1 SEC) hit two in the first 10 minutes of the second half. The second, by Ashley McElhiney with 10:56 left, put Vanderbilt ahead 44-24.

Mississippi (9-7, 1-2) cut the deficit to 10 points behind freshmen Amber Watts and Carletta Brown, with Watts scoring on a putback with 6:36 left to make it 48-38.

Zuzi Klimesova scored on Vanderbilt's next two possessions to push the lead to 54-40, and Abi Ramsey followed with back-to-back 3-pointers to restore the 20-point margin with 2:29 left.

In addition to Anderson, who also grabbed 11 rebounds, Klimesova finished with 14 points. Ashley Earley added 14 and Ramsey 11. Watts scored 10 to lead the Lady Rebels.

Mississippi St. 84, No. 15 Georgia 82

STARKVILLE, Miss. (AP) _ LaToya Thomas scored 43 points to lead Mississippi State past No. 15 Georgia 84-82 Sunday.

Thomas, who also had seven rebounds, was 14-for-20 from the field and 14-for-15 from the line for Mississippi State (12-5, 3-1 Southeastern Conference).

Christi Thomas led Georgia (12-3, 1-2) with 25 points. Ebony Felder added 16.

Mississippi State was 28-of-35 from on free throws. Georgia's 28 personal fouls were twice as many as Mississippi State's.

Georgia, averaging 20 turnovers a game, had 22 Sunday. The loss is the second in a row for Georgia, which lost to No. 9 South Carolina on Thursday.

No. 18 Florida 83, Alabama 77

GAINESVILLE, Fla. (AP) _ Brandi McCain had 21 points and 10 assists and went 5-for-6 on free throws down the stretch to lead No. 18 Florida over Alabama 83-77 Sunday.

Alabama's LaNisha Cartwell led all scorers with 23 points, while Katie Sipe added 16, and Shun Hunter 15.

All five starters for Florida (12-5, 2-2 Southeastern) finished in double figures. Monique Cardena led the way with 21 points, Courtney Cooper had 11 points and 11 rebounds, Vanessa Hayden scored 14 before fouling out with 2:17 to play, and Tara Taylor scored 10.

The Tide (11-5, 1-2) led 35-34 at halftime, but Florida opened the second half on a 14-3 run to take command.

The Gators ended up with almost as many free throws made _ 24 _ as field goals _ 27 _ as the teams combined for 38 fouls. Alabama's Beth Vice, Shondra Johnson and Monique Bivins fouled out.

No. 9 South Carolina 91, Arkansas 66

By PETE IACOBELLI
AP Sports Writer

COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) _ No. 9 South Carolina looked tired and out of synch early on against Arkansas. Then came halftime.

Arkansas coach Gary Blair said South Carolina probably knew it could regroup because of what the Lady Gamecocks had done earlier this season _ victories over Duke, North Carolina, Vanderbilt and Georgia.

South Carolina coach Susan Walvius said she made no rousing speeches in the locker room. But there sure were plenty of results.

Jocelyn Penn tied her career high with 32 points, including 14 during a 28-3 run in the second half that lifted the Lady Gamecocks (16-1, 4-0 Southeastern Conference) to their 12th straight victory, 91-66, over Arkansas on Sunday.

Arkansas (9-6, 0-3) had battled the Lady Gamecocks throughout the opening period and then took a 37-36 lead on India Lewis's 3-pointer to start the second half. That's when Penn got going.

She started South Carolina's run with a three-point play and two baskets. Penn had three more inside jumpers during the run. By the time Tatyana Troina and Shaunzinski Gortman hit consecutive 3-pointers, South Carolina led 64-40 and put the game out of reach.

The Lady Razorbacks were 1-of-15 from the field during the run.

``This is best team we have played in a long time, including last year,'' said Blair, who has won 20 or more games three of the past four seasons.

Penn, a junior, closed with two foul shots to tie the career high she set Dec. 8 in a win over Wofford and became the 24th player in South Carolina history with 1,000 or more points.

``I was just working hard and wanting the ball,'' said Penn, 13-of-18 from the field with seven rebounds and four assists.

The Lady Gamecocks' run to the top of the Southeastern Conference gets put to the test Thursday night when No. 2 Tennessee comes to the Carolina Coliseum.

Shameka Christon, Arkansas' leading scorer, had 10 points on 4-of-16 shooting. Starter Kiesha Beard missed her nine attempts from the field. Reserve Dana Cherry led Arkansas with 19 points.

The 12 straight wins is one shy of the school mark, set during the 1985-86 season. If the Lady Gamecocks want to tie that, they'll have to do it against the Lady Vols, who moved to 14-1 after a 79-67 victory over LSU on Sunday.

The Columbia campus is already buzzing about the matchup, and the school has priced tickets at $1 trying to break the women's attendance mark of 6,219 at the UCLA-South Carolina game on Jan. 15, 1981.

``If we stay focused on the process, we've got a chance to be successful,'' Walvius said. ``I think this is a group of bright, motivated women and I think we'll win some more before it's over.''

Shaunzinski Gortman added 17 points and seven assists for the Lady Gamecocks.

South Carolina looked ready to break open a back-and-forth game with a 10-0 run, keyed by two Kelly Morrone 3-pointers, late in the first half to lead 34-26. But Cherry had two baskets as Arkansas responded with the next eight points.

Tatyana Troina's short jumper put the Lady Gamecocks ahead 36-34, the closest any opponent has been to South Carolina at the half since Temple led 28-22 nine games ago.

No. 19 Auburn 70, Kentucky 66

LEXINGTON, Ky. (AP) _ Carol Smith scored 16 points and Natasha Brackett had 15 Sunday, helping No. 19 Auburn hold off Kentucky 70-66 for its first Southeastern Conference victory.

Lakeisha Johnson added 14 points and Le'Coe Willingham and Brandi Hillman combined for 15 rebounds for the Tigers (13-3, 1-2). Auburn's leading scorer, Tia Miller, missed the game with a knee injury.

SeSe Helm scored 18 points and Rita Adams added 17 points, a career-high nine rebounds and eight assists for Kentucky (8-8, 1-3), which lost for the third time in four games.

Adams made 5-of-8 shots, including 4-of-6 from 3-point range, for the Wildcats, who hit 47 percent from behind the 3-point line.

A 7-0 run put Kentucky up 34-33 with 13:29 to play. Auburn then outscored the Wildcats 19-3 over the next six minutes to take a 52-37 lead.

The Tigers led 58-47 at the four-minute mark but Adams and Sara Potts hit consecutive 3-pointers to key an 8-2 run that pulled the Wildcats within 60-55 with 2:12 remaining.

Back-to-back baskets by Helm cut the margin to 62-59 with 1:23 to play. But Auburn hit six straight free throws in the final minute to preserve the victory.

Kentucky shot 50 percent to Auburn's 44 percent but was outrebounded 32-27, including a 13-7 margin at the offensive end. The Wildcats also committed 19 turnovers, leading to 22 Auburn points.