Picture LSU’s 2011-12 basketball year, and it probably looks something like a roller coaster.
Modest expectations greeted former coach Trent Johnson and the Tigers at the beginning of the school year.
A slow start to the season gave way to an NCAA Tournament push that fizzled out, sending LSU to the National Invitational Tournament, where it lost to Oregon, 96-76, in the opening round.
The ride was just beginning. Johnson bolted for TCU last month, and LSU welcomed back one of its own, hiring former Tiger player and assistant Johnny Jones, who spent the past 11 seasons as the North Texas head coach.
Jones has already brought in two quality recruits in Shane Hammink and Shavon Coleman while compiling a staff with an extensive regional recruiting background.
Jones, a DeRidder native, is taking the reigns of his beloved alma mater, but it’s a program struggling with attendance and consistency issues. LSU has finished better than .500 in the Southeastern Conference only four times since 1995.
“I want to put my own stamp on the basketball program here,” Jones said. “I cherish the traditions of this place. You need a strong presence to win in this game.”
Despite junior center and leading scorer Justin Hamilton’s premature departure for the NBA, promising pieces are in place for the Jones era following an 18-15 season.
Freshman guard Anthony Hickey earned All-SEC Freshman honors, averaging nine points and four assists per game while showing a natural flair at the point.
Hickey was also LSU’s most clutch player, hitting late shots to clinch wins against Alabama, Mississippi State and Arkansas.
Touted freshman forward Johnny O’Bryant III overcame a month-long hand injury to average 8.4 points and seven rebounds.
“One of the biggest things Johnny needs to do is learn to take care of the ball, and he will,” Johnson said immediately following the season. “He’s an 18-year-old with a man’s body. Everybody goes through those struggles, so he’ll figure it out.”
O’Bryant especially struggled early, when the Tigers were only 3-3 by Thanksgiving.
But LSU earned seven straight wins, highlighted by a home upset of No. 10 Marquette in December.
The momentum didn’t last. January’s slate included five ranked teams - four on the road - and the Tigers went 2-6 in the month.
However, five wins in the next six games put LSU on the NCAA bubble entering its final three games.
The Tigers dropped all three in ugly fashion before beating Arkansas and playing even with eventual national champion Kentucky into the final minutes in the SEC Tournament.
LSU finished 7-9 in the SEC regular season.
Three seniors – forwards Storm Warren and Malcolm White and guard Chris Bass – will graduate this month, the final vestige of LSU’s last SEC Championship team from 2009, Johnson’s first season.
Warren finished his career among LSU’s top 25 in rebounds, shooting percentage and steals.
Johnson compiled a 67-64 record in four seasons in Baton Rouge.
But Johnson and his gruff demeanor didn’t help basketball blossom in the PMAC again.
Paid attendance averaged 8,661 fans for home games, but actual attendance was usually about half that.
Jones said reviving the PMAC’s glory days from the 1980s and early ’90s is his top priority for the future.
“I want my players to have the same experience running out of that tunnel that I had when I played,” Jones said. “It was a wild ride to get back here. This is my dream job.”
 
____ Contact Chris Abshire at [email protected]