With a line of students pouring down the PMAC ramp, pom-poms on seats and replicas of the stadium, everyone knew No. 1 was in town.
The Tiger Bowl was taken to court on Wednesday. The LSU Tigers hosted Auburn, where they hoped to pull off the upset.
LSU came with energy from the start. The Tigers got out to a 6-0 lead, and with some stifling defensive possession, people already knew this would be a dogfight.
Auburn quickly showed why they deserved its No. 1 ranking after they took the lead at the 9:28 mark in the first half and never looked back.
A team filled with six double-digit scorers on the season came together to put LSU in a deficit at the half, with their largest lead being 13. Seven Auburn players scored in the first half, including six of them scoring four points or more, compared to LSU’s, which only had three players who scored four points or more.
LSU has sadly adopted the identity of a team that turns the ball over too often. In the first half alone, the Tigers gave the ball away 15 times and 20 times for the game.
“The story is easy to write when you look at the first-half turnovers,” head coach Matt McMahon said.
A team that averages roughly 14 turnovers per game and a defense that plays aggressively and fast was a disaster made to happen. As a result, the Tigers trailed 41-29, but there was still hope.
Slowly but surely, LSU managed to get back to single digits. Jordan Sears hit some big shots that got the crowd back into the game, including a four-point play. LSU was only a few stops away from tying it up.
Cam Carter did everything he could, scoring 24 points and adding six rebounds. Carter played extremely well, shooting consistently, only missing two shots from the field. He also constantly got to the rim to earn trips to the free-throw line.
However, Auburn kept LSU at arm’s length for most of the game. If there was one main reason, it was the size. LSU couldn’t clean the glass well enough to affect the game.
Auburn out-rebounded LSU 47 to 34 and dominated on the offensive glass, beating LSU 25 to 11. Although the second chance points didn’t turn out to be a problem, those possessions could’ve been LSU’s.
When the game became tight, Auburn turned to its best player, Johni Broome. Although LSU did a solid job on Broome, it was an undersized team, but in the end, it just wasn’t enough.
Broome notched 26 points while shooting 10-23 from the field. It was a small victory for LSU on the stat sheet.
Making one of the best players in the country take 23 shots to get 26 points, he had to earn every point against LSU.
However, offensive rebounds were a significant factor.
Out of the 25 offensive rebounds Auburn had, Broome had 11 of them and finished with 16 for the game.
LSU held a team that shot 49% from the field and 37% from three on the season, 40% from the field, and 32% from the three-point line on Wednesday.
While the Tigers could initially smell an upset in the air, Auburn eventually stomped on the hope of LSU, 87-74, but not without praise from Pearl.
“LSU started off with great effort and energy,” Pearl said. “They made some big plays defensively. You could see their athleticism.”
LSU did everything right on paper, but the SEC is cruel and unforgiving. Auburn overcame the obstacles and won despite LSU playing some of its best basketball of the season.
Despite the tough loss, the Tigers still have faith in their ability to get back into the win column when they take Texas on Saturday at the PMAC.
“Keep our faith in God,” Carter said about how to maintain motivation. “He has never failed us ever, no matter who we face. That’s why I look at these as lessons, and we just have to keep our faith in God.”
