Riding the coat tails of a four-game Southeastern Conference win streak, the LSU basketball team (18-9, 7-8 SEC) will attempt to finish conference play with a .500 mark and place itself in better position to receive an NCAA Tournament bid when it faces Alabama on Saturday at 1 p.m. in the PMAC.
Senior night festivities will transpire before the game as six Tigers’ seniors — Ronald Dupree, Collis Temple III, Torris Bright, Brad Bridgewater, Thomas Davis and Brian Green– will be honored for their playing days at LSU.
The Crimson Tide (17-9, 7-8 SEC) also will be trying to finish conference play with an 8-8 record and for a NCAA Tournament bid after being the No.1 team in the nation earlier this season.
In their last three games, all blowout victories, the Tigers have been torching from behind the 3-point line, shooting 39-for-65 for a 60-percent shooting clip.
In the process LSU also broke the single-game 3-point mark in consecutive games, nailing a school record 16 in a 94-63 win over Auburn at home, before traveling to Knoxville and hitting 17 in an 88-67 trashing of Tennessee on the road.
The Tigers also stepped up their defensive efforts in the process, forcing their opponents to shoot 40.8 percent from the field and forcing 14.75 turnovers per game during the four-game winning streak.
Feb. 1, LSU traveled to Tuscaloosa, Ala., and fell to an inspired Alabama team, 75-66. The Tigers were mired in a five-game losing streak, and the Crimson Tide, in their own three-game losing streak, desperately needed a win,
‘Bama point guard Maurice Williams went off, scoring a season-high 27 points on 8-of-23 shooting from the field and 9-for-9 from the free throw line. Tigers head coach John Brady expressed concern over the defense of LSU guards against other guards in the SEC, but he feels a great amount of improvement has been made in that department since the teams first matchup.
“We are guarding dribble penetration much better, we are helping and recovering much better, and we are a better defensive team now than we were then,” Brady said. “Plus we will have the advantage of playing with Jaime in the game, which we did not have over there. That is a lot of positive things.”
Lloreda, who averages 12 points and 8.4 rebounds per game, did not play in the first game due to a suspension by the SEC for elbowing Florida guard Brett Nelson in the previous game.
Brady is also pleased with LSU’s improvement on fast break defense. The Crimson Tide scored 17 points off 10 LSU turnovers in the first matchup.
“We are better in defensive transition,” Brady said. “We gave them some easy baskets over there by not getting back defensively as we should, and we have corrected a lot of that, and we are much better at that now.”
The presence of Lloreda will play a large part in this game, according to Bridgewater. ‘Bama inside players Kenny Walker and Erwin Dudley combined for 30 points in the first matchup.
“I don’t want to say [Jaime’s absence] was the difference because we could have won that game,” Bridgewater said. “But with Jaime coming in and playing some good minutes, scoring the ball, we will have more of an inside presence. And with more of an inside threat, I think it will help us out a lot in this game.”
Bridgewater also said this game is being played under a different set of circumstances with the Tigers confidence sky high and a possible NCAA Tournament birth on the line.
“I wouldn’t say it is a must win, but it would be good to win,” Bridgewater said. “It’s Senior Night, and emotions are going to be kind of flying, so it should be a much more intense game than it was the first time. Confidence makes a big difference. It is all about being relaxed. If you are relaxed, than the game just kind of flows better. You let the game come to you.”
Bright said the pressure is high for this game, especially with many college basketball Web sites, including ESPN.com, stating that the winner will earn the edge for a NCAA Tournament at-large bid.
“Alabama got the best of us, and it was at Alabama,” Bright said. “They really just knocked us on our butts. That is in the past, and we have to look forward, and we really need this game. We have a lot of confidence and a lot of pressure is being put on this game, but I think we can handle it.”