For the second straight game, LSU men’s basketball watched as another team hit a game-winning 3-pointer with four seconds or fewer on the clock.
Dayton’s Nate Santos made the decisive shot from distance with just 3.7 seconds left, and after a timeout, LSU’s 3-point attempt from Carlos Stewart fell short.
LSU led 60-45 with 9:07 remaining, but Dayton closed the gap with aggressive full-court pressure that forced a flurry of turnovers.
The Tigers notably struggled with their ballhandling in that final stretch, once again highlighting the team’s lack of experienced point guards with Jalen Cook currently ineligible.
The Flyers took full advantage of that weakness.
LSU played aggressive defense in the game, but Dayton neutralized it with takeaways that allowed its offense to play almost exclusively in transition. That led to easy points and free throws, letting the Flyers close the gap.
With 3:42 remaining, the Tigers found themselves down by two. Some inspired defense combined with a clutch three by Tyrell Ward and a Derek Fountain layup flipped the game, giving LSU a three-point lead with 1:25 left.
Then Dayton, which lived and died by the 3-pointer all game, hit its final two shots from deep to give it the 70-67 win.
Dayton shot a staggering 34 3-pointers in the game, hitting 11. While the Flyers weren’t efficient overall, the shots started falling when it mattered.
Advantages in the 3-point, turnovers and rebounding columns allowed Dayton to overcome shooting 39.3% from the field, compared to LSU’s 53.1%.
To an extent, LSU forced Dayton to play a perimeter-oriented offense for much of the game. The Tigers committed bodies to the paint in order to deny Dayton’s star center, DaRon Holmes II.
Dayton made efforts to get the ball to Holmes in the post and play through him, but LSU sent an extra man whenever he put the ball on the floor, resulting in several turnovers.
Holmes finished with eight points and four turnovers. LSU defended him with remarkable physicality, something the team’s big men, Will Baker and Jalen Reed, have been missing at times.
Baker individually showed off unexpectedly solid rim protection, coming up with three blocks despite averaging only 0.2 per game in his career.
Baker and Reed were big on the offensive end for LSU as well. Reed led the team with 16 points, attacking the rim with aggression before fouling out late in the game.
Baker struggled in the first half, as Dayton defended him very similarly to how LSU played Holmes, but he sparked a 14-2 run out of halftime to give LSU a 46-32 lead. The Tigers were intentional about giving him space to operate during that run, resulting in a mid-range shot from the post and two 3-pointers in a four-minute span.
Baker finished with 10 points.
After that spurt to begin the second half, though, Dayton began to chip away and close the gap. LSU’s offense showed great flashes of aggression in attacking the rim, but the Flyers’ pressure made it impossible for the Tigers to get comfortable.
Even in the half court, Dayton played tough defensively, almost always denying the initial action and giving up very little separation. LSU was forced to make many tough shots in the paint.
Both defenses battled in the first half, which ended with LSU up 32-30. That was a welcome sight for LSU after a rough defensive outing against Nicholls.
The Tiger defense was incredibly disruptive on Thursday, giving up just 18 points in the paint while forcing 11 turnovers (eight in the first half).
However, LSU’s defensive effort wasn’t enough to get the win. Dayton made the final clutch shots and completely crippled the Tigers’ offense with half-court pressure.
The Tigers will continue play at the Charleston Classic on Friday, facing off with North Texas at 10:30 a.m. North Texas lost its tournament-opening match to St. John’s by a score of 53-52 Thursday afternoon.
