LSU Men’s Basketball’s lack of ability to execute well rounded basketball in the first half sabotaged their chances of winning on Saturday against Vanderbilt. While Vanderbilt did not have their best performance they outplayed LSU. LSU struggled to find a groove against Vanderbilt’s solid defense.
“Clearly their pressure really bothered us,” Coach Matt McMahon said.
The tigers shot 16 less shots than the commodores. They also turned the ball over 15 times and Vanderbilt capitalized off of this and scored 18 points from turnovers. The lack of shots taken by LSU is partially because of Vanderbilts ability to lock down the paint.
“We can learn from it, of course; us just being stronger with the ball, starting with me,” Jordan Sears said.
Vanderbilt guard AJ Hoggard was the star player of the night, especially in the second half. Hoggard transferred from Michigan State and has been a dynamic player for Vanderbilt during his time there. Against LSU he was the leading scorer for Vanderbilt with 17 points.
“I thought we did a better job keeping him out of the paint in the second half, but credit to him he stepped up and hit some huge shots,” McMahon said.
This was not the start to SEC play that LSU hoped for, but it is important for them to learn from this game and prepare for the next.