No. 8 LSU 63, Miami 52

12/19/2007 5:11 PM

CANCUN, Mexico (AP) -LSU's first trip south of the border was perfect for senior center Sylvia Fowles.

Quianna Chaney scored 16 points, and Fowles had 13 points and 12 rebounds to help No. 8 LSU beat Miami 63-52 on Wednesday in the Caribbean Classic.

Fowles tied Julie Gross's (1977-80) school record with her 68th career double-double as the Lady Tigers (8-2) won their fourth straight and second game in Mexico, and also extended their winning streak in December to 33 games. The Lady Tigers have not lost in the month since Dec. 29, 2001.

``The trip was good, we enjoyed our selves, we wish we could do this every year, I even told my mom that we should come back, the atmosphere and the people kind of remind me of my home at Miami,'' Fowles added.

Albrey Grimsley led Miami (5-7) with 16 points.

Erica White scored eight straight points as LSU closed the first half on an 11-2 run to take a 31-23 lead after 20 minutes.

The Hurricanes cut it to four on Charmaine Clark's basket with 4:20 to play.

Fowles made a basket, and Chaney had a 3-pointer to make it 59-46 for the Lady Tigers, the first LSU team in any sport to play in Mexico.

``We won but we played sloppy, we find a way to win so we're satisfied,'', Fowles said. ``It was harder than we anticipated, now we have to look at the things we did not do that we normally do and correct them.''