The LSU Tigers men’s basketball team looked to get back in the win column on Saturday night after falling 94-83 to Arkansas earlier in the week. Matt McMahon’s team welcomed in Missouri for Senior Night. LSU didn’t end the first half on a high note but took care of business in the second to win 84-80 and end the regular season with a 17-14 record and 9-9 in conference play as the Tigers get ready for the SEC Tournament.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
Jordan Wright scored in the first 10 seconds for LSU but Missouri quickly put up five points with a three pointer by Nick Honor and a tough, off balance shot by Tamar Bates after Sean East II blocked Wright’s layup attempt.
LSU then put up nine straight as Hunter Dean got into the paint a couple of times and Tyrell Ward hit a wing three off the pass by Dean. Hanniball also made a layup early to give the Bayou Bengals the 11-5 lead with 14:32 left in the first half.
Following that shot by Hannibal, Missouri went on a run of their own. East II got it started by knocking down a mid-range jumper then asisted on Trent Pierce’s layup and had an and-one layupto give his team the one-point lead with just under 12 minutes to go.
It was back-and-forth for a couple of as Dean and Will Baker continued to get into the paint Honor made another shot from deep. LSU drew fouls but struggled to grab defensive rebounds at times as Missouri were able to put up a couple of second chance baskets.
East II was able to putback his miss and assisted on a three by Noah Carter while also getting also getting the steal off Derek Fountain and hitting another shot right before intermission. Mwani Wilkerson and Ward ended LSU’s made basket drought with a three and tough shot over a defender. Ward made a layup at the 47 second mark and Mike Williams III knocked down a couple of free throws but LSU went into the half down 35-29.
Ward got the block on the opening possession of the second half and that led to a layup by Wright. East II converted on another and-one layup but Hannibal cut to the basket and was able to score on a few layup attempts to make a one-point game less than three minutes in.
After a couple of free throws by East II, LSU went on a 14-0 run. It began with a three-pointer by Dean and an and-one layup by Williams III. Hannibal’s transition layup off the block by Dean gave LSU their first lead since the early part of the first half. Then, Williams back right back with a steal and corner three and Dean converted on an and-one layup of his own to put the Bayou Bengals up 52-45 with 12:38 to go in the second half.
East II ended the drought but then LSU went on another run, this time it was 14-4 to extend their lead. Williams made a layup while Ward knocked down his second and third shot from downtown and found Hannibal in transition for the dunk to force a timeout by Missouri. The Matt McMahon’s squad was up by 15 to this point.
After another basket by East II, the Tigers went on had another 10-2 run over the next three minutes. LSU attacked the paint with Jalen Reed, Hannibal, Baker all scoring in the paint with the latter adding a couple of free throws after their shots as the Bayou Bengals were up 74-55 with 3:54 remaining.
Mizzou went on a 9-0 run late in the ball game and made a three in the closing minute to go along with a couple of shot in the paint. Carter even hit a deep three with less than 10 seconds to play but it was’t enough as LSU wins their regular season finale 84-80 with improve to 17-14 and 9-9 in SEC play.
BIG NUMBER: 37
Missouri gave LSU all the practice they need from the charity stripe as the Bayou Bengals made 26 out of 37 free throw attempts. Mizzou knocked down 13 out of 16 of their attempts in the loss.
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Trey Hannibal
Hannibal was relentless on Saturday night as he finished the game with 24 points on 7-10 shooting, five rebounds, five assists, and a steal as LSU ended the regular season with a 84-80 win over Mizzou.
UP NEXT: The LSU Tigers men’s basketball team will play Mississippi State in the first round of the tournament on Thursday.