Just when it seemed like the LSU men’s basketball team was going to blow a 15-point second half lead and a shot at upsetting top-ranked Arizona Saturday night, the Tigers caught a break.
Arizona had a chance to win with 13 seconds left and down one, but All-American guard Jason Gardener lost control of the ball as he drove to the hoop, sending it out of bounds with 0.5 seconds to go. LSU’s Torris Bright tipped the ensuing inbounds pass as time expired to give the Tigers a 66-65 win.
LSU (7-1) led 66-61 with 56 seconds to go, but LSU forward Ronald Dupree called timeout when the team had none, to save a possession. This caused the team to receive a technical foul. After two free throws, the Wildcats got a bucket from Andre Igudodala to cut the deficit to one.
“We just seemed stagnant,” Dupree said of the last few minutes of the game. “I’ve been in situations like that before in close games where if you become tentative, teams come back and win the game every time.”
LSU head coach John Brady, who celebrated with fans on the court after the upset, said his team played an excellent game despite not having any timeouts during the last eight minutes of the game. He told his team Arizona would make a run at them in the end.
“We won this game by rebounding and guarding,” Brady said. “This team showed some real grit and toughness.”
The win marked only the second time in its history LSU was able to beat a No. 1 team. The last time was LSU’s 95-94 defeat of Kentucky in Baton Rouge in February 1978.
Guard Antonio Hudson and forward Jaime Lloreda led the Tigers in scoring. Hudson had 20 points and Lloreda chipped in 19 points and 13 rebounds.
“It helps our confidence,” Lloreda said of the win. “We beat [the] No. 1 [team] so we can beat anybody.”
The game was close in the first half, until LSU’s defense took over and started a 10-0 run to make the score 29-22 with 1:23 left, bringing the crowd alive. LSU led 34-26 at intermission.
Arizona head coach Lute Olson said his team did not play with the intensity it should have until the game was almost out of reach. The team shot only 33 percent from the field.
“Their defense made us very impatient,” Olson said. “I don’t know how you can play 34 minutes without a sense of urgency and then six minutes with one.”
The Wildcats made their charge in the second half, largely because of 22 offensive rebounds and eight LSU turnovers.
“I really didn’t think they were going to be that physical,” LSU guard Collis Temple III said. “But you just have to step up to the challenge when that’s the case and we did that.”
Gardner led Arizona (5-1) in scoring with 16 points, but Bright held him to 5 of 14 shooting. He rated his defensive performance against Gardner a seven on a scale of 10.