For a large stretch of the LSU men’s basketball team’s showdown with No. 1 Kentucky, the PMAC rivaled the ferocity of Tiger Stadium on a Saturday night in the fall.
But by the end of the contest, groans of frustration permeated throughout the record, purple-and-gold clad crowd of 13,111.
Despite its frantic comeback through much of the second half, LSU couldn’t seize a late opportunity to slam the door on Kentucky, falling to the Wildcats, 71-69.
LSU (17-7, 6-5 Southeastern Conference) coach Johnny Jones, who didn’t see Tuesday night’s defeat as a moral victory, still found positives in an another grueling defeat.
“We’ve battled through some tough games this year and put ourselves in a position to have a shot to win it late,” Jones said. “If you play that way throughout, then some good things can happen for you. We’re constantly growing, and I feel like we took positive steps tonight.”
Kentucky (24-0, 11-0 SEC) coach John Calipari’s platoon system was balanced offensively with nine of its 10 players tallying a bucket. Even with the added stress on a shallow LSU rotation, the Tigers found themselves holding on to a one-point lead with less than two minutes to go.
“That is what makes this loss so much more disappointing,” said LSU junior guard Keith Hornsby. “We had a lead too, and they made some good plays when it counted. We didn’t seize the moment.”
A key series of plays ultimately resulted in the Tigers’ demise.
Kentucky freshman forward Karl-Anthony Towns knocked down a hook shot in the post to put the Wildcats up one with 1:30 left in the game. After Jones called a timeout, LSU junior guard Josh Gray couldn’t find anyone open on his drive to the basket with five seconds to go on the shot clock, resulting in a crucial turnover.
“I felt like if I would have went up with it, it would have been kind of selfish of me trying to score over two defenders,” Gray said. “So, I was trying to make the extra pass.”

Then, Kentucky freshman guard Devin Booker hit 1-of-2 free throws with 15 seconds left. Hornsby’s contested 3-point attempt was off the mark as time expired on the last LSU possession, sealing the victory for the Wildcats.
“It was tough,” said LSU sophomore forward Jarell Martin. “They came out playing real aggressive. They were super physical. It was a hard fought battle out there tonight.”
Kentucky stepped on the accelerator early in the second half, surging to a 14-5 run after LSU cut the Wildcats’ lead to four with 16:53 left in the second half. The run was highlighted by a pair posterizing dunks from junior forward Willie Cauley-Stein over LSU sophomore forward Jordan Mickey.
Just when it seemed like Kentucky could hammer the nail in LSU’s coffin, the Tigers rose up.
Aggressive play on defense and the glass propelled a struggling LSU offense to a 16-0 run in less than four minutes of action. Towns was called for a technical foul for hanging on the rim, breathing life into the Tigers’ run. Hornsby made the Wildcats’ miscue count, hitting 1-of-2 free throws and nailing a trey on the ensuing possession to bring LSU within four points.
The Tigers finally regained the lead on a drive to the basket by Gray, who recently had been supplanted in the starting lineup, with less than nine minutes remaining. Gray played seven more minutes in the second half in place of starting freshman guard Jalyn Patterson.
LSU led by as many as six with 7:29 left in contest, but went cold again, going only 1-for-6 after eclipsing 66 points. The Tigers didn’t score in the final 3:52 of the game.
The Tigers’ NCAA Tournament aspiration are still alive, and Jones must try to refocus his team for the final seven remaining SEC games.
“All of [the remaining games] are really important,” Jones said. “Each of them has their own merit of importance, and our next one against Tennessee is a huge one for us…So, for us to get to where we’re try to go, we need to make sure that we win our share of those games.”