On Saturday, the LSU men’s basketball team will take the court ready to get its 2014-15 season underway.
After a big second half against Morehouse College on Nov. 7, the Tigers are set to tip off against Big South Conference opponent Gardner-Webb at noon Saturday in the PMAC.
“We look forward to the start of the season this Saturday,” said LSU coach Johnny Jones. “We’ve done a great job of getting better, attention to detail and making some strides. We’re excited to get this season started. We understand these games count and we know our guys are itching for their opportunity.”
The Tigers showcased their new squad for the first time against Morehouse College, showing glimmers of hope with sophomore Jarell Martin scoring 22 points and seven rebounds en route to a 71-47 victory.
LSU held its exhibition game opponent to 22.9 percent shooting, and Morehouse College made just 19 of 83 shots.
While the Tigers took care of Morehouse College in rather easy fashion, they struggled on the boards. The Tigers were outrebounded 66-46, giving the team a cause for concern heading into Saturday.
The Tigers’ coaching staff emphasized that during practice to make sure the Tigers are better adjusted and ready to rebound when the lights get brighter Saturday.
“We didn’t do a great job of rebounding the basketball, which is something we had to address since then,” Jones said. “I’m glad that we were able to do that. It was just a matter of attention to detail with that.”
Last season, the Tigers outrebounded their opponents by a total of 1334-1240, an average of 39.2-36.5. The loss of Johnny O’Bryant III to the NBA proved to be an issue for the Tigers because of his contribution on the boards.
O’Bryant averaged 7.7 rebounds per game, which was second on the team during the 2013-14 season. While the 6-foot-9-inch forward is now utilizing his talents at the professional level, sophomore forward Jordan Mickey said there’s no excuse to be outrebounded with the current team’s size.
Mickey said the biggest reason for the Tigers’ struggles on the boards was their lack of focus against Morehouse College, and he said it’ll be fixed come Saturday.
“[Rebounding] has been a point of emphasis this week,” Mickey said. “It’s definitely just an effort thing. We thought we could just outjump everyone and that wasn’t the case, so we’re just going to have to box people out.”
The Tigers come into Saturday with new faces in the backcourt in junior guards Keith Hornsby and Josh Gray. Both Gray and Hornsby are transfers who got their first live action on the court together against Morehouse College.
Gray said while they had practiced together for a while, it was a different thing to go out under the bright lights and play side by side.
“It was kind of unexpected going into that game,” Gray said. “It was kind of new for us, and we needed that so it could prepare us so when we come out on Saturday we kind of have a feeling where the guys like the ball, how to pass it to them and things like that. We needed that exhibition game to prepare us for Saturday’s game.”
Hornsby said after the Morehouse College game, he came out overly excited to play in front of the Tiger fans for the first time. Both Gray and Hornsby said the exhibition helped them prepare for the atmosphere they’ll experience Saturday.
The biggest concern for the duo heading into Saturday will be its ability to play under control and getting its taste of regular season action together for the first time. But Gray said he believes it won’t be an issue going forward.
“We’re all disciplined, so it’s not like we’re going out there and playing all out of control and playing wild,” Gray said. “We’re all disciplined, we all have one goal and that kind of disciplines us to be in order and be in place.”
The Tigers begin their road to the NCAA Tournament on Saturday, and while many questions remain as the season gets under way, one thing is for certain.
“These guys are eager and excited about getting out there,” Jones said. “They have an edge.”
You can reach Jack Chascin on Twitter @Chascin_TDR.