Ole Miss guard Marshall Henderson led all scorers with 22 points and LSU had no answer for forward Murphy Holloway on the inside as the Rebels (23-8, 12-6 Southeastern Conference) cruised to an 81-67 victory against the Tigers (18-11, 9-9 SEC) on senior day in the PMAC.
Junior guard Andre Stringer paced the inconsistent Tiger offense with 18 points while sophomore forward Johnny O’Bryant III added 17 points and grabbed 12 rebounds, but was hampered after missing both practices leading up to the contest.
“Holloway was very good in the first half and Marshall Henderson made some big plays there in the second half to really keep us at bay,” said LSU coach Johnny Jones. “So, it was just a tough day for us.”
After Stringer buried a 3-pointer to open the game, momentum shifted as senior guard Charles Carmouche was crushed on his way to the basket by Holloway, leaving the New Orleans native on the ground writhing in pain.
Without its unquestioned defensive leader, the Tigers saw an early seven point lead dwindle amongst a myriad of turnovers and missed shots, compounded by Holloway and Rebel forward Reginald Buckner owning the offensive glass.
“It was very difficult because of the magnitude of [Carmouche],” Stringer said. “He’s a great player. He brings another guard that can penetrate, shoot the ball, and do a number of things offensively and defensively.”
Carmouche would return to the game periodically in the first half, but played most of the second half in his final regular season game in the PMAC, chipping in four assists and four steals.
Clinging to a one-point lead with just under nine minutes to play in the first half, the Tigers couldn’t contain the Rebel big men as Ole Miss spouted off a 23-9 run to close the half, with Holloway leading all scorers at the break with 14 and his team up 43-30.
“Being the type of team that they are and capable of being, [Ole Miss] did an excellent job before the half of making a run,” Jones said. “They played extremely tough for about the last three or four minutes offensively.”
The Rebel lead stretched to as many as 19 in the second half before the Tigers ripped off a 9-2 run to decrease the deficit to a manageable twelve points.
After two free throws from O’Bryant cut the Rebel lead to ten with just over six minutes to go, Stringer lost Henderson on the ensuing possession, and the Rebel junior buried an open 3-pointer to seal the Tigers’ fate.
“He finished with 22 points, so I’m not happy with my effort defensively,” Stringer said. “I just tried to get after him as much as I could, but obviously he’s a great player and he’s going to make shots.”
After a lackluster first half defensively, the Tigers clamped down on Holloway in the second half, limiting him to only two points as the 6-foot-7 senior finished with 16 points and 8 rebounds.
The loss cemented the Tigers as the No. 9 seed in next week’s SEC Tournament, where they will face Georgia on Thursday at 12:00 in a second round game.
With five days for his team to bounce back and get healthy, Jones and his players were optimistic for the postseason, where surprises are almost always abound.
“Every team is 0-0 now,” O’Bryant said. “When you go into the conference tournament, anything can happen.”
