Welcome everyone to another edition of #3OT!
1st OT: The Airing of Grievances
Festivus may have been on December 23rd, but Johnny Jones decided to get everyone together to air their grievances this past Wednesday. According to what was said on the broadcast was that Johnny Jones got all the players and the coaches together to get everything off their chest so they could move on with the season ahead of conference play. Whatever was said to the team must have worked. This did not look like a team that lost to College of Charleston not too long ago.
2nd OT: Ben Simmons Takes Charge
The freshman phenom has been called soft and too selfless by the media. Going back to the team meeting, Jones must have told Simmons what needed to be said. Simmons is the star of this team. Start taking more shots and play like you’re the star of this team. And he did just that. He went 10-15 for the night and put the team on his back for possibly the first time this season. The fire may have been lit in Ben Simmons and it could be hard to extinguish.
3rd OT: The Big Game
In a few short days, the college basketball world will descend upon the PMAC to see Ben Simmons and the Tigers take on Coach Cal and the Wildcats. This matchup could shape how the remainder of the season could go for LSU. If they lose in a bad way, the team morale could go down immensely and another one of these “meetings” would be necessary. The Tigers don’t have any “moral victories” anymore. One loss could mean the difference between making into the NCAA Tournament or the NIT. Not making it into the NCAA Tournament is not only bad for LSU, not just bad for Ben Simmons, but for the entire world of college basketball.
-Clint Domingue