In the game of college basketball in 2003, one would be hard-pressed to find a major college basketball game that includes two teams with a total of six senior starters.
With early entries into the NBA draft and defections due to a lack of available playing time, it is sometimes very hard to find a roster that has more than one senior starter.
But in tonight’s nationally-televised matchup on ESPN between LSU (12-5, 1-4 Southeastern Conference) and No. 5 Florida (16-2, 5-0 SEC) at 8 p.m. in the PMAC, both rosters contain three senior starters who not only play but contribute a large percentage of their team’s offense.
“When I came to LSU, both programs were just pretty much starting out and starting to rebuild and get recognition,” said LSU senior forward Ronald Dupree. “We are just two programs that are starting to excel, and I think a foundation has definitely been made from three years ago.”
The Tigers senior starters include Dupree and guards Collis Temple III and Torris Bright. Brad Bridgewater and Thomas Davis round out the rest of the 2003 senior class, who contribute just above 50 percent of the LSU offense.
All of the above, except for Davis, are four-year players, and Bridgewater and Temple are fifth-year seniors, who have already earned their undergraduate degrees. Temple also recently earned his master’s in sports administration.
Florida’s three senior starters include guards Justin Hamilton and Brett Nelson and forward Matt Bonner. All three are four-year members under head coach Billy Donovan’s.
“Both programs are excellent right now,” Dupree said. “I think right now Florida is a little ahead, but LSU is going to be right there. But the way freshman are playing around the country these days, it really does not matter who is out there. I think it all comes down to the chemistry and getting along with players.”
In tonight’s matchup, LSU also will have to deal with the amazing freshman that Dupree spoke of.
Two of the Gators top three scorers are freshman, with first-year guards Matt Walsh and Anthony Roberson averaging 14.8 and 14.3 points per game, respectively. They are right on the heels of Bonner, who averages 14.9 points per game, for the team scoring lead. Sophomore high-flyer David Lee rounds out the offense, averaging 11.1 points per game in a balanced attack that averages 78.4 points per game.
LSU head coach John Brady said it will be a challenge to slow the Gators down.
“They are a tough team to guard,” Brady said. “We have a couple of plans about how to guard their ball screens. One of the keys is how you defend their ball screens, and we have a couple of different ways we are going to do that. We’ll see. If they are making threes and scoring off the post, it is going to be difficult to stop them at all. But they have been giving up some points.”
During the Gators undefeated conference start, they have allowed teams to score 68.6 points per contest.
“If we can score what they have been giving up and find a way to stop them a little bit, who knows, we might have a chance,” Brady said. “They would love the game being 90-80. It seems to me that is what they would prefer. They don’t mind if you score or not. They just come right back at you.”coring is something the Tigers struggled with in their current three-game conference losing streak.
LSU averaged just 62 points in those three contests, while giving up 69 points per game.
But Brady thinks his team is ready.
“I think Florida is playing as well as anybody in the league, particularly from an offensive standpoint,” Brady said. “We need a good plan defensively to slow down Florida. It is a big challenge for us. We are excited about the game. We’ve got ESPN at our place, and we are ready for it.”