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Written by Ben Love, Editor Tiger Rag
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Tuesday, 14 February 2012 11:09 |
This is where things start to get interesting for the LSU basketball team.
A program that put up only two conference wins two years ago and just three SEC victories last season currently stands at 4-6 in league play with six contests to go and the tougher part of its conference slate in the rearview.
LSU, at 14-10 overall, has clearly leaped over the low bar set in recent seasons. Now, with a more favorable portion of the SEC schedule on the horizon — the Tigers face the league’s bottom three teams during the upcoming six-game stretch — Trent Johnson’s club has to prove it belongs among the conference’s upper half.
Tonight’s matchup inside the PMAC vs. No. 23 Mississippi St. (19-6, 6-4) will go a long way in deciding the Tigers’ fate, especially after a Saturday night win versus an unexpectedly depleted Alabama team put 8-8 squarely in play for LSU.
Tonight will also be a serious test of LSU’s mental and physical toughness.
Rick Stansbury’s Bulldogs are as savvy as they come, bringing to town two seniors and two juniors in the starting rotation, a first five that includes double-double machine Arnett Moultrie (16.8 ppg, 10.8 rpg) and the vastly underrated Dee Bost (16.0 ppg, 5.0 apg) at point guard.
Mississippi St., third in the SEC, is fresh off a stunning 70-68 overtime loss at home to Georgia. Moultrie, who lit LSU up to the tune of 28 points and 12 rebounds when the two teams first played on Jan. 25, took just six shots in the battle of the Bulldogs this past Saturday, scoring just 12 points and grabbing only six rebounds.
He and the Cowbell Crew will no doubt be playing for an awful lot, with a first-round bye in the SEC Tournament still very much a possibility.
As for LSU, it’s all about getting to that next level and playing with more consistency.
The Tigers have rattled off two wins in their last three games, knocking off Arkansas and Alabama at home after each of those teams bested the Bayou Bengals in games in Fayetteville and Tuscaloosa, respectively.
LSU will have the chance to make it three-for-three in home payback games against the Bulldogs.
Last Time They Played
The Tigers traveled to No. 16 Mississippi State on Jan. 25 and played the Bulldogs to a near draw in the first half, with MSU taking a 32-31 lead into the break.
Stansbury’s squad gradually pulled away in the second half, stretching its lead to 12 at one point, before a furious last-minute comeback, spearheaded by a trio of threes from point guard Anthony Hickey (16 points, six assists), saw LSU come screaming back.
Ultimately, the run went for naught as Johnson was hit with a technical and MSU continued to sink free throws to squash any late reversal of fortunes. The home-standing Bulldogs won 76-71.
This game marked freshman forward Johnny O’Bryant’s first game back from his left hand injury. He came off the bench, playing 20 minutes and putting up six points and four rebounds.
Storm Warren started at power forward in his place.
Eddie Ludwig also got the start at the three for LSU, taking Andre Stringer’s place in the starting five and giving the Tigers a bigger body for defensive purposes. Stringer ended up coming off the bench and scoring a team-high 17 points, including two-of-five makes from distance.
Center Justin Hamilton scored 11 points and grabbed five boards, but the story of his night was the struggle of dealing with Moultrie.
Moultrie, who shot 10-of-18 from the floor and pulled down six offensive boards, scored 19 second-half points en route to his 28-point, 12-rebound effort. Neither Hamilton nor any LSU post player who rotated onto Moultrie knew what to do with him.
The Bulldogs as a team shot 31 free throws, making 23, while the visiting Tigers shot just 13, making eight.
Bost finished with nine points, seven rebounds and 10 assists while freshman Rodney Hood and key reserve Jalen Steele combined for 28 points.
Tonight’s Projected Starters
LSU (14-10, 4-6)
PG - Anthony Hickey (Fr., 5-11)
SG - Ralston Turner (So., 6-6)
SF - Eddie Ludwig (Jr., 6-9)
PF - Johnny O’Bryant (Fr., 6-9)
C - Justin Hamilton (Jr., 7-0)
* The Tigers could also go with a smaller starting lineup and insert Andre Stringer for Eddie Ludwig.
Mississippi State (19-6, 6-4)
G - Dee Bost (Sr., 6-2)
G - Brian Bryant (Sr., 6-3)
G - Rodney Hood (Fr., 6-8)
F - Arnett Moultrie (Jr., 6-11)
F - Renardo Sidney (Jr., 6-10)
Trent Johnson Quotes Previewing Game
Opening Statement …
“Mississippi State, it’s hard to say if they’re a lot better than they were the last time we played them, because I thought they were pretty impressive. They’re very balanced, very athletic and very skilled. When you start talking about basketball and you start talking about athletic, that’s one thing. But when you’re athletic and you’re skilled, that’s tough to deal with. Again [Arnett] Moultrie, make no mistake about it, he is special. He really is. I was sort of shocked that he took six shots versus Georgia so I fully expect them to have an emphasis on pounding the ball inside. They absolutely destroyed us on the glass, 46 to 26. In watching that game, it felt a lot worse from where I was sitting. We have a challenge in front of us, and we need to play well. We had our opportunity in the first half and in the second half, we were never out of the game [last time at Mississippi State]. They were in control with about three minutes to go and then we fought back. Anthony [Hickey] made some deep three’s but for the most part that thing was decided on the glass.”
On whether the Alabama game was Johnny O’Bryant III’s best overall game …
“From a standpoint of taking care of the ball, having more assist than turnovers, rebounding the ball, some of the shots he made at crucial times as opposed to shooting fade away jump shots, taking the ball to the rim and trying to get to the free throw line, I have to say yes.”
On Anthony Hickey’s development …
“Again, as we all know, a good point guard play is measured off of wins. I don’t talk to him about shots; I talk to him about his decisions. I talk to him about keeping everybody involved. Probably the first and foremost thing I talk to him about is defensively. That is where he has had some break downs in terms of hurting him and us at crucial times. Not keeping the ball low and in front of him, not getting back in transition. Going back to Vanderbilt, he took 16 [shots]. There were probably 12 [shots] that were good … But for him to be in any game and not have assists, that’s not what we need. He is fully aware of that. There is a fine line with a guy like him who has a lot of courage and is not afraid to take big shots or make big plays. For me, I just have to always talk about the decision and what do we need to win right now. What do we need to win this possession. What do we need to do whether its offense or defense. Then, go from there.”
On decision of how to play against Mississippi State …
“It’s a matter of us trying to play within what we do. Again, that’s real obvious where we’ve had our success. If we are shooting the ball well, we can beat people if it’s up around mid 70s. The bottom line is we need to be efficient on offense, take time, run when we have the opportunity, set good screens, move the ball and sprint back on defense. Since we are talking about Mississippi State, I don’t care who they have played in the past. In our game [at Starkville], we took quick shots. We took quick shots in a couple of crucial situations, and they ran out on us. It was like a dunk fest for them … we had some guys who didn’t get back [on defense] … To start the game and midway through the second half when they got a lead, when we ran our stuff, executed, set good screens, played within ourselves and played with each other, then we had some success. It is about us sustaining that and being consistent in that approach as opposed to getting caught in the moment and thinking that we can go off and do something on our own. Or that we can go off and break down defensively. Those are the things that are going to help us be successful.”
On John Isaac …
“He’s got some things cleared up off the floor in terms of his academics. I thought he played well versus Alabama. This is a game [against Mississippi State] where we need him to help us defensively because we are going to have to guard them with nine or 10 guys. This is not a game where a guy like Ralston [Turner], a guy like Eddie Ludwig] or any of our post guys can be out here for long extended periods of time.”
On the potential of the chemistry between the post players growing …
“When you talk about potential, in a way, it’s unlimited. When I say trust, this whole group just has sense of trust amongst each other. I don’t particularly single out Johnny (O’Bryant III) and Justin (Hamilton) as opposed to it’s a four-headed monster with Storm (Warren), Malcolm (White), Justin and Johnny. Those four guys have always been in tune with each other and in tune with what we want to accomplish. Eddie (Ludwig), obviously, is a journeyman in the sense that when we play against undersized four men we can play him … Johnny and Justin played well last time. Previously, it was probably Justin and Storm in the second half versus Vanderbilt. It’s nice to see because Johnny played well [against Alabama]. Again hopefully, he’ll build off that and play well tomorrow. When I say well, I’m not always talking about scoring. I’m talking about rebounding and making solid plays defensively. Those things are important as opposed to looking at how many points you have or that kind of thing. He made a nice high-low pass to Justin, and Justin did a really good job of sealing. Again, we work on it a lot. Storm has made plays, Malcolm made those same plays and Eddie has made those same plays.”
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