The trials and tribulations of the LSU football team were well-chronicled throughout the fall, but for another of LSU’s prominent sports teams, adversity has come without suspensions, arrests or rumors of internal conflict.
 
With a 12-6 record so far, the Tigers’ basketball squad has topped its win total from each of the past two seasons, but the road to improvement hasn’t been a smooth one.
 
Injuries are the most common wrench in a team’s progression, and LSU has had to deal with several.
 
Freshman forward Johnny O’Bryant III is in the midst of an expected monthlong absence because of a fractured left hand.
 
“As teammates, everyone had to let Johnny know that, ‘Hey, it’s not the end of the world,’ and we need him to keep working hard,” said senior forward Storm Warren. “He needs to be at full strength when he gets back.”
 
O’Bryant was averaging eight points and 6.2 rebounds per game before missing the last four games.
 
Sophomore guard Andre Stringer led the team in scoring through the first month before missing five games during December because of fainting spells. LSU won all five games.
 
“Usually when guys are missing like that, we’re aware they’re gone, but you can’t think about that between the lines,” said sophomore guard Ralston Turner. “We’ve done a good job of being ready with whoever is healthy.”
 
Junior center Justin Hamilton has dealt with an ankle injury for nearly a month, yet he still compiled the best two-week stretch of his career to open January. Reserve freshman guard John Isaac has spent most of the season handling an Achilles tendon injury and other nagging leg issues.
 
Senior forward Malcolm White missed the Ole Miss game two weeks ago following the death of his grandmother. Warren said the team’s response to White’s tough time was typical for the tight locker room.
 
“When obstacles or burdens like that are placed on a teammate — when it’s personal — you turn to each other like a family,” Warren said. “We let Malcolm know we’re his support system and here if he needed a shoulder to lean on. It’s 12 brothers on this team.”
 
LSU blasted Ole Miss, 81-55, in White’s absence.
 
Turner, coming off an All-SEC Freshman campaign, has gone through the most prolonged shooting struggles of his basketball career during the last month, and is averaging just nine points a game for the season.
 
“I’ve never really been through anything like this with missing my open looks,” Turner said. “There’s been some down moments, but my teammates have only encouraged me to keep shooting. I haven’t lost my confidence.”
 
While the Tigers’ non-conference schedule wasn’t littered with elite opponents, LSU has still faced 13 foes who hold a winning record and played half of its 18 games away from the PMAC.
 
“This has been the toughest non-conference schedule that we’ve played in my four years,” said LSU coach Trent Johnson. “There’s not a guy on our roster who was an All-SEC candidate coming into the season or will score 20 [points] for you every night. We were breaking in three freshman. I think that speaks volumes about how well this group has competed.”
 
That demanding schedule won’t get any easier for the Tigers, as road trips to No. 14 Florida and No. 15 Mississippi State await them during the next week before second-ranked Kentucky comes to the PMAC on Jan. 28.
 
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Contact Chris Abshire at [email protected]