The LSU basketball team begins its season tonight at 7 in an exhibition against Global Sports in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center.
The Tigers open this season under high expectations. They were picked by a vote of the media to finish first in the Western division of the Southeastern Conference. This is due to an impressive recruiting class combined with a valuable group of returning players.
Coach John Brady said he had not decided on the starting lineup, but senior forward Jaime Lloreda will not be playing due to disciplinary action, giving freshmen an opportunity to play.
“What that does mean in a positive way is that we are going to have to play a lot of freshmen,” Brady said. “It’s going to give them more experiences that they’ve never had. The more I can expose them early on to what they need to be exposed to the better off they will be later on. Hopefully it will pay off down the road.”
Brady said he expects to see inconsistent play from the inexperienced players.
“These freshmen will make spectacular plays and also make some that probably aren’t real positive either,” Brady said. “I envision that we will be all over the board with good play, bad play.”
Global Sports is a team composed of former college players, including former Ole Miss Rebel David Sanders. Global has given LSU problems in the past. The Tigers lost to Global Sports last year and when Stromile Swift graced the PMAC hard court in the 1999-2000 season.
Brady said the challenge will help the team mature and make a big difference down the road.
“If the game is close, maybe even put them in a situation where we can even lose the game,” Brady said. “That will let them learn and grow. It’s going to be interesting to see how we respond particularly without Jaime playing. We are going to be really young and thin on the front line.”