LSU will host an in-conference game in December for the first time since 1988.
In Tuesday’s Southeastern Conference schedule release, LSU is slated to host Vanderbilt at 8 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 29 — LSU’s first opening SEC game in December in 28 years — at the PMAC to kick off SEC play.
Like last season, LSU will face every SEC team in 2016-17 at least once, the news release said.
LSU will host nine SEC games at the PMAC during the in-conference season — one on a Tuesday, three on Wednesdays, one on a Thursday and four on Saturdays during the season.
“We are excited about another tough schedule, and we embrace the challenges that it presents for us,” LSU coach Johnny Jones said in LSU’s news release.
Including Wofford, LSU added seven home games in November and December as the Tigers’ non-conference schedule was released Aug. 23.
LSU will compete in three home games against Wofford, as well as play Southern Miss Nov. 15 and North Florida three days later. The squad then departs for the Bahamas’ “Battle 4 Atlantis” tournament, which lasts Nov. 23-25 and begins with a Nov. 23 meeting against Wichita State at 11 a.m. in Imperial Arena.
The Tigers will finish November against Houston as the back-end of the home-and-home series. Houston defeated LSU in the Tigers’ second overtime game last season, 105-98. Like Houston, Wake Forest also beat LSU in a non-conference bout, 71-77, last December, and the College of Charleston, 58-70, on Nov. 30, 2015.
“With our non-conference schedule that was announced last month, we certainly feel that it will prepare us for the grueling SEC schedule ahead,” Jones said.
In the middle of conference play is LSU’s only remaining non-conference game, which is against Texas Tech at 1 p.m. on Jan. 28 as part of the SEC/Big 12 challenge.
Full schedule:
Story: #LSU‘s SEC sked released: https://t.co/uYsuHHzw4P
Johnny Jones: “We’re excited about another tough schedule” pic.twitter.com/Q8vP3TSG8S
— Christian Boutwell (@CBoutwell_) September 6, 2016
You can reach Christian Boutwell on Twitter, @CBoutwell_
