The Tigers faced off Wednesday night against Texas A&M, a team that had recently given No. 12 Kentucky and Arkansas runs for their money. A&M started SEC play 4-0 and was not a team to mess with, even with LSU being 10.5-point favorites.
The Aggies are a tough task on their own, but on top of that, starters Xavier Pinson and Darius Days were unable to dress out due to injuries. Tari Eason, Justice Williams and Alex Fudge each started for the first time, with Brandon Murray also sitting at the start to avoid getting into foul trouble early.
Those switches resulted in a slow start as the squad did not have much chemistry, but after going on a small run, the team seemed to find its footing.
The themes of the game were made pretty clear early on. This was an aggressive, back-and-forth battle, and for LSU, multiple players stepped up to put the team on their back.
Brandon Murray, Eric Gaines and Tari Eason combined for 51 of the team’s 70 points in the game, with Murray and Gaines making key plays down the stretch that allowed them to obtain victory. It is likely Eason would have continued making an impact as well if he had not had problems with cramping throughout the second half, further depleting LSU’s roster and putting them in a pickle down the stretch.
“We did have three starters down, but it’s next man up,” Gaines said regarding their struggles. “You’ve got to fight through adversity and if Coach says, ’next man up,’ it’s next man up.”
The Tigers went down by five multiple times at the tail end of the second half and it seemed like every time they grasped some momentum, a mistake or two would give it right back to the Aggies. But just when it seemed like LSU was going to lose their fourth straight game, a switch was flipped.
The Tigers stopped allowing easy baskets on one end and could not miss from the free throw line on the other, a huge surprise considering they were shooting 56% from the line at the start of the stretch. The result was a 13-2 run that carried into the end of the game.
Gaines and Murray accounted for 10 of those points and also grabbed multiple huge defensive rebounds throughout the run. One play in particular encompassed their impact on the game.
With 30 seconds left in the game, A&M’s Marcus Williams drove to the basket for what appeared to be a wide-open dunk. However, Eric Gaines met him at the rim, blocking what would have been a game-tying dunk.
“He played the last six minutes with four fouls,” Coach Wade mentioned. “For him to not foul in those six remaining minutes was huge because we were just down so many bodies.”
After an offensive rebound and another Aggie miss, Brandon Murray grabbed the board and got fouled, making both free throws on the other end and putting the team ahead by two scores.
It was pretty much over from that point on. Coach Wade was proud of those guys for stepping up when the team needed them.
“Those guys stepped up, made plays and made things happen,” Wade said. “We still have a lot of growth to go, but I’m very proud of those guys.”
Next on the list is a break from SEC action, as the Tigers will travel to Fort Worth to face off against TCU for The SEC/Big 12 Challenge.
