GLENN GUILBEAU, Tiger Rag Editor
At some point this season, the LSU basketball team is going to starting winning some games, if it plays like it did Saturday night at No. 4 Alabama.
The Tigers outplayed the best scoring and rebounding team in the nation in every category except a very important one – making shots.
LSU missed 20 of 23 shots from 3-point range for a putrid 13 percent and hit only 28 of 71 from the field overall for 39.4 percent and lost 80-73 in front of 15,316 at Coleman Coliseum.
The Tigers (12-7, 1-5 Southeastern Conference) outrebounded Alabama, 43-41, and took more shots by 71-61 than the nation’s leading possession team. But LSU made only one more shot as Alabama hit 27 of 61 for 44.3 percent and 7 of 23 from 3-point range for 30.4 percent.
STATE OF ALABAMA IS KNOWN FOR BASKETBALL NOW
The Crimson Tide (17-3, 6-1 SEC) could not stop LSU redshirt freshman forward Corey Chest, who grabbed a game-high and career-high 18 rebounds and scored 12 points for his first double-double in SEC play. He had 15 rebounds and 10 points in a 40-40 first half and finished with three blocked shots and two steals.
LSU took a 48-47 lead with 16:22 left on a layup by guard Cam Carter, who scored 17 points with five rebounds, but missed 6 of 7 from 3-point range. The Tigers took their last lead at 50-49 with 15:23 remaining on a dunk by forward Daimion Collins, who finished with 11 and five rebounds.
The Tigers stayed within striking distance for most of the second half until Alabama took a 77-64 lead with 2:09 to go. But LSU made a spirited, late run and got to within 77-71 and 79-73 in the final minute.
“I’m unhappy with the result, but I definitely think we got better as a team,” LSU coach Matt McMahon said. “We came here to get into the fight, and we did that.”
LSU did that in particular on defense as Alabama came in after 103-87 and 102-97 wins over Vanderbilt and Kentucky in its last two games. Alabama senior guard Mark Sears entered leading the team in scoring with 19 points a game, but was held to zero in the first half on 0-for-5 shooting and sat out the second half without an injury.
“That was as good a rebounding as I’ve ever seen in a half of basketball,” McMahon said of Chest’s 15 boards in the first half.
LSU grabbed 17 offensive rebounds on the night and scored 17 points off 14 Alabama turnovers.
“We were able to hang around and make it a two-possession game,” McMahon said.
Point guard Jordan Sears led LSU with 21 points off the bench as he continually drove through Alabama defenders for layups. But he missed 5 of 6 shots from 3-point range.
“We were never able to hit that big three,” McMahon said.
LSU led by 7-2 early in a first half that saw nine lead changes and seven ties .
Mouhamed Dioubate led Alabama with 14 points and grabbed six rebounds. Chris Youngblood added 13 points, Grant Nelson scored 12, and Labaron Philon put up 11.
It will not get any easier for LSU, which next plays Wednesday at home against No. 1 Auburn (18-1, 6-0 SEC), which beat Tennessee, 53-51, on Saturday.
Be the first to comment