If you’ve watched LSU play this season, you know you can never look away from a game.
On Saturday against No. 17 Kentucky, you couldn’t look away when LSU faced a deficit of 15, and you certainly couldn’t look away after the game was tied 69-69 in the final two minutes.
The match still wasn’t over when Kentucky’s Rob Dillingham made a difficult mid-range jump shot to put the Wildcats up 74-73 with 12 seconds left. Jordan Wright swiftly drove to the other rim, and his missed shot was miraculously tapped in by Tyrell Ward at the buzzer.
When all was said and done, LSU had a 75-74 victory over Kentucky, its second straight ranked victory. This win came in front of a raucous Pete Maravich Assembly Center crowd that stormed the court after the game-winning bucket.
“I blacked out when the shot went in, I can’t lie to you,” said Ward, who was immediately engulfed by his teammates, the fans and LSU women’s basketball star Angel Reese, who was attending the game in the student section.
“We’ve been here two years, and we’ve got to see, you know, being at the lowest,” forward Jalen Reed said. “That moment really was amazing. Words can’t describe it.”
Ward’s play was especially significant because it was a rare instance of effort and awareness on the boards for LSU. The Tigers have had great struggles with rebounding this season, even losing in the final seconds against Georgia because of a putback.
“I’m really proud of the players buying into that, and the response has been really good for us,” head coach Matt McMahon said.
LSU faced a 15-point deficit early in the second half. In order to turn the game around, LSU needed to rediscover the activity and fearlessness on offense that it had in the game’s opening minutes. The Tigers scored 21 points in the game’s first 10 minutes by attacking the rim and generating open shots with constant movement.
However, LSU closed the first half by making two of 12 shots with 10 turnovers, which Kentucky capitalized on by pulling out to a 36-27 halftime lead. The Wildcats extended that further with two straight 3-pointers to open the second frame.
Now trailing by 15, the Tigers tapped back into that aggressive mindset offensively and kept their foot on the gas the rest of the way, shooting 48.5% from the field and putting up 48 points in the second half with only three turnovers.
“We do have the youngest team in the country. That stuff happens,” Kentucky head coach John Calipari said about his team allowing the comeback. “And it seems to happen at the wrong time.”
It was a complete effort offensively for LSU, and it needed to be in order to take down a team of Kentucky’s caliber. In addition to Ward’s 17 points, Wright and Reed each added 13 to reclaim and sustain the lead.
LSU struggled to contain Kentucky’s lethal 3-point shooting during the early stretch, which led to the 15-point deficit. The Wildcats rank No. 1 in the nation in percentage from 3-point range, and LSU frequently lost sight of the Wildcats’ shooters during their 16-0 run from the end of the first half to the beginning of the second half.
In order to forge a comeback, the defensive strategy for LSU against a team with so much 3-point shooting capability would have to be different. Many times this season, the Tigers have gone to a zone defense in order to close deficits by daring other teams to shoot from outside. Kentucky is a team you won’t win that bet against.
Instead, the Tigers did their best to close out hard on Kentucky’s shooters and funnel them toward the net, forcing them to finish at the rim or shoot mid-range shots.
“Just knowing personnel, knowing guys who are shooters,” Ward said of the defensive turnaround. “Running the shooters off the line and short closing on guys who aren’t shooters.”
LSU also tried to get the ball out of the hands of Kentucky’s stars. Though Kentucky’s Antonio Reeves and Rob Dillingham both went over 20 points, LSU held D.J. Wagner and Reed Sheppard in check. The duo of projected first round picks combined for seven points on three of 12 shooting.
Making the opposing offense settle for shots from its role players is something a defense will always be happy with, and it helped LSU close the gap.
The absence of Kentucky’s Tre Mitchell made a difference. With his ability to stretch the floor from the five spot in small ball lineups, the Wildcats become more difficult to defend.
Though his replacement in the lineup, Ugonna Onyenso, is a fearsome rim protector (his 3.1 blocks per game would lead the SEC if he met the games played qualification), he presents no threat from outside.
That leaves his defender free to help at the rim, and Kentucky’s lack of spacing made a big difference as LSU stormed back through its defensive efforts.
Mitchell’s absence made a big difference on the boards as well. He’s the No. 4 rebounder in the SEC, and without him, LSU out-rebounded Kentucky by eight and had 12 offensive rebounds.
The win was another marquee one for the Tigers, who now sit at 14-12 and 6-7 in the SEC. With games left against Mississippi State, Georgia, Vanderbilt and Arkansas, LSU has a real chance to run the table and push for a NCAA Tournament spot.
LSU will next host Mississippi State for the second match of a three-game homestand on Saturday at 7:30 p.m.
The Bulldogs are 17-8 on the season and 6-6 in SEC play. They’ve won four in a row, including an 83-71 win over Ole Miss on Wednesday.
Mississippi State is one of the top defenses in the SEC at No. 4 in points allowed, as well as one of the best rebounding teams in the country, ranking No. 25 in rebounding margin.
The team is currently projected to make the NCAA tournament, according to ESPN’s Joe Lunardi, and would be an impressive win for an LSU team seeking to extend its win streak.
