Revenge seems to be a powerful motivator for the LSU men’s basketball team this season.
The Tigers captured two home wins during the last 10 days against Arkansas and Alabama, each of which beat LSU this season the first time around.
Another revenge opportunity awaits LSU (14-10, 4-6 Southeastern Conference) tonight when No. 23 Mississippi State marches into the PMAC.
The Bulldogs (19-6, 6-4 SEC) held off a furious LSU late-game rally to escape with a 76-71 triumph three weeks ago in Starkville, Miss.
“I liked the way we competed in that game,” said LSU coach Trent Johnson. “Our guys didn’t give up, but that game was ultimately lost on the glass.”
Johnson said the last meeting’s 46-26 rebounding deficit has been his primary focus in preparing for tonight’s rematch.
That likely begins with stopping Bulldog junior forward Arnett Moultrie, who terrorized LSU to the tune of 28 points and 12 rebounds on Jan. 25. Freshman forward Rodney Hood also added 13 points and 16 rebounds for the Bulldogs down low.
“I fully expect them to put an emphasis on pounding the ball inside,” Johnson said. “No one player can neutralize a guy like Moultrie, and they’re far from a one-man team anyway. It requires trust in a sound team defense.”
That team defense will also need to reach the perimeter, as MSU senior point guard Dee Bost is one of the league’s most dynamic distributors.
Bost had nine points, 10 assists, seven rebounds and three steals in the first meeting.
“They have a bunch of guys that can go off at any moment, but he’s their leader,” said LSU senior guard Chris Bass. “He’s a natural passer out there.”
The Bulldogs had won five of the last six conference games before suffering a brutal overtime home loss to Georgia last Saturday.
Bass said he expects the best shot from a notoriously erratic State squad.
“They’re gonna come in with a lot of energy and probably play pretty mad after a tough loss,” Bass said.
For LSU, home has been its safe haven in SEC play.
The Tigers are 0-5 in SEC road games but hold a tidy 4-1 league record within the PMAC’s confines after a 67-58 victory against Alabama last Saturday.
Freshman forward Johnny O’Bryant III scored six points against MSU last month, but he was playing his first game back from a hand fracture that caused him to miss five games.
O’Bryant’s steady play since culminated with a 17-point, nine-rebound, zero-turnover night against the Crimson Tide on Saturday, a performance the Tigers may need the athletic forward to repeat.
“I’m definitely starting to catch the flow of the SEC a little bit and finding my legs,” O’Bryant said. “It’s going to be a challenge against their bigs, but I’m ready to prove my game against a good frontline.”
LSU hung around in the teams’ first meeting thanks to a torrid 11-of-21 3-point shooting performance.
The Tigers’ long-range shooting has been anything but scorching lately, as they are firing at a 14 percent rate beyond the arc in the four games since playing State.
Accurate perimeter shooting may be necessary to hang with an MSU squad that averages nearly 80 points per game and features a deadly 3-point shooter in sophomore guard Jalen Steele, who burned LSU for 15 points last month.
“They’ve got eight quality guys, and a guy like Steele is part of what makes them so dangerous,” Johnson said. “There’s never a player you can slack on, or they’ll make you pay.”
 
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Contact Chris Abshire at [email protected]