The lack of a pure point guard has been a common gripe around the LSU men’s basketball program dating back to the late 1990s.
This year’s Tiger squad has two.
The combination of freshman Anthony Hickey’s breakout season and senior Chris Bass’ emergence as a viable bench threat has helped LSU to 12 wins so far this season —  more than the past two years.
Hickey, a former Kentucky Mr. Basketball, has adjusted swiftly to the college game, earning Charleston Classic All-Tournament honors in November and leading the Southeastern Conference in steals, with 44.
Bass has ascended to his supporting role through a far slower climb.
The Baton Rouge native arrived on campus in 2008 squarely in the shadows of his older brother, former LSU forward and 2005 SEC Player of the Year Brandon Bass. The younger Bass’ putrid shooting and erratic ball-handling often made him a punch line for Tiger fans’ jokes during his first three seasons.
“I never looked at my career like that,” the 6-foot-1 Bass said of following his older brother’s decorated career. “I asked [former LSU guard] Garrett Temple when I first got here about playing with family expectations, and he said you just have to be yourself, because you are a unique person apart from your