Flau’jae Johnson of LSU supports Hailey Van Lith amid Caitlin Clark’s criticism
Hailey Van Lith can rely on Flau’jae Johnson, a standout player for LSU women’s basketball.
In a recent interview on the podcast “The Baller Alert Show,” Johnson, 20, stood up for her former teammate Van Lith when she was questioned about her choice to move to TCU after just one season with the Lady Tigers.
The hosts, Byron Turner and Sean Ferrari Simmons complimented the point guard for her performance in LSU’s defeat to Caitlin Clark and the Iowa Hawkeyes in the Elite Eight of the 2024 NCAA Women’s Tournament earlier this month. Johnson cut them off with, “No, no, we can’t do that.”
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“You could not guard that girl for 40 minutes. But she stepped up for the challenge at the end of the day. I had to follow the scouting report.”
Johnson joked, “Interview over! I’m out of here!” in response to Turner’s question, “What was the scouting report?”
The “Big 4” rapper continued by saying that she was in favor of Van Lith, who guarded Clark throughout most of LSU’s defeat against Iowa, 94-87.
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“Listen, I had to follow the counting report,” stated Johnson, who had a final line of 23 points, 6 rebounds, and 2 assists.“I talked to my coach after, after we went over it — because we go over the scouting report the night before. For me, it was just like being a supportive teammate … I thought about it, and I was like, I just gotta trust the game plan.”
Van Lith finished with nine points, one rebound, and one assist in her first game back at LSU.
With four rebounds, two assists, and 41 points in 40 minutes, Clark was difficult for her to stop.
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Many were perplexed as to why LSU head coach Kim Mulkey chose to play Van Lith on Clark for the majority of the contest without making any changes.
Turner and Simmons clarified that Clark, the NCAA’s all-time leading scorer for both men and women, was too much for Van Lith to handle in the March Madness game.
“She transferred out [of LSU] because she got them buckets put on her,” Turner said.
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“Boy, she needed some braces on her feet,” Simmons continued.
On Saturday, 22-year-old Van Lith made her pledge to TCU public on social media.
She added, referencing TCU’s mascot, “The pen has officially hit the paper,” and included an emoji of a frog.
From 2020 to 2023, Van Lith attracted notice as one of Louisville’s best scorers.
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Before using the transfer portal, the Adidas player averaged 19.7 points, 4.5 rebounds, and 3.2 assists in her junior year.
After the Lady Tigers defeated Clark and the Hawkeyes in the 2023 title game to capture their first national championship in program history, Van Lith transferred to LSU.
As a member of the TCU Horned Frogs in her final year of eligibility, she will now compete in the Big 12 Conference.
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In the 2024 WNBA Draft, Clark was selected by the Fever as the first overall pick.
The entire interview with Johnson will be on Baller Alert on Tuesday at 5:00 p.m. ET.
