On Sunday, the Pete Maravich Assembly Center hosted LSU’s men’s and women’s basketball teams.
In front of their home fans, the No. 6 Lady Tigers rallied from behind to dethrone the Great Danes 83-61. While they may not have been expected to struggle as much as they did, LSU women’s basketball was expected to do one thing: win, and that they did.
It’s one thing to expect the No. 6 team in the nation to take care of business on their home floor, but what about a young startup squad seeking its own identity?
That’s what LSU men’s basketball looked to do once it was their turn to defend home court against visiting Mississippi Valley State on Sunday night. Even without a rank, the spotlight, or all the glitz and glam that comes with the spectacle of Kim Mulkey and the Lady Tigers, the expectation is to take care of business and get the victory.
Tigers head coach Matt McMahon has led this team to a 10-2 record throughout the first two months of the season. With SEC play right around the corner, the purple and gold need to establish a standard of winning like their female counterparts and finish non-conference play with a win.
Once the first half tipped off, it was all Cam Carter. The 6’3 senior answered the call and immediately went to work on offense. Throughout the period, Carter remained aggressive and confident, unfazed to let it fly from almost anywhere. He shot 6-10 (60%), including 4-7 (57.1%) from three to finish the first half with 16. His running mate, fellow senior guard Jordan Sears, had a double-digit first half of his own (10), shooting 4-8 (50%) and 2-6 (33.3%) from downtown.
The Bayou Bengals continuously drove to the basket and kicked the ball out to open shooters. The extra passes were working: LSU shot 23-38 (60.5%) from the field and 7-19 (36.8%) from behind the arc in the first half, while the Delta Devils’ could only muster a miserable six makes from 24 shots (25%) from the field and one three-pointer out of five attempts (20%).
The Tigers went into halftime with a 55-13 lead. As McMahon began going through the rotation, Vyctorius Miller again became the centerpiece of LSU’s offense in the second half. Not only did Miller score, but he was efficient doing it. Miller shot 9-13 (69.2%) from the field and 2-5 (40%) behind the three-point line to score 20 points for the first time in his young collegiate career.
“It feels good,” Miller said. “You know how I be getting the 18, 19, 17, so to be able to finally get over that little hump feels good.”
Speaking of milestones, Carter capped his 23-point night with seven assists while shooting 9-13 from the field, 5-9 from three, to eclipse 1,000 points in his collegiate career, leading his Tigers past Mississippi Valley State, 110-55. It’s the fifth-largest margin of victory in program history (65).
“I got to thank God, because it was all apart of his plan,” Carter said. “When he coming home, and being able to do this infant of my family, and after I’m going to be able to celebrate with him too.”
Miller, Sears, and Carter sat down with the media following the game. Miller and Carter wore fresh-new chain necklaces with “VJ” and “5” necklaces.
“You got VJ and Cam both wearing chains,” a reporter said. “Where did those come from? Is there a story behind those?”
“Nah, we just poppin’,” Carter said. “Diamonds are our thing.”
Maybe this team has the glitz and glam after all.
Through 13 games last season, LSU found themselves at 8-5 after a disappointing start to the season. Through 13 games this year, the Tigers are 11-2 and come into conference play while riding a three-game winning streak, and are only a handful of good minutes of basketball away from being undefeated.
Great teams have a standard of winning built into their culture through hours of coaching and consistent results. The Lady Tigers are one of the best teams in the nation, and for good reason. Head coach Kim Mulkey has established a culture of excellence over the past four years that’s top.
But for the first time in two years, it feels like LSU men’s basketball has an expectation to win, and that means everything. Teams can only reach their true potential once expectations are high.
That’s when the national media starts paying attention to you. That’s what happens to teams that are expected to win. That’s what happens to teams that are ready for “The Big Time.”
“They pretty much put us last [in the SEC,] Carter said. They look over us, so we’re ready to turn the SEC up.”
It’s officially time for the Tigers to turn up and take the next step.
LSU will look to take that next step to start the new calendar year. They will play in their first SEC game of the season when they host Vanderbilt on Saturday.
“It’s a historic year at this point for the league, which means every game is going to be an incredible challenge, but the opportunity of playing all these Quad 1 games is just that: it presents an opportunity to build a resume.”
