The LSU men’s basketball team forced 12 turnovers, scored 26 points in the paint and shot 55.6 percent from the field in the first half against American University on Tuesday night. That’s usually recipe for a solid lead against any opponent.
But facing the Eagles’ methodical and efficient Princeton offense, the Tigers (7-4) entered halftime with just five-point advantage.
Eventually, though, LSU’s athleticism and defensive intensity won out.
“For the most part,” said American coach Mike Brennan, “we were just overmatched everywhere.”
Led by freshman forward Ben Simmons’ 23 points, the Tigers hit 68 percent of their shots in the second half while holding the Eagles (2-9) to just 25.9 percent from the field after halftime enroute to a 79-51 victory at the PMAC. The win was LSU’s third straight and kept the Tigers unbeaten at home on the year.
With a break for Christmas on the horizon, LSU coach Johnny Jones’ message to his team was the importance of staying mentally locked in for the full 40 minutes of the contest. While the Tigers struggled to establish the tempo they usually play with in the first half, Jones felt his team did what it need to do in the second half for a convincing victory.
“It’s always difficult playing that last game prior to the Christmas break,” Jones said. “We wanted to make sure that we didn’t check our prior to because a lot of things happen to teams because they do [check out]. We are fortunate that we weren’t one of those tonight. The second half allowed us to do that.”
But the first half wasn’t nearly as easy.
The Eagles led by as many as four points at the 6:30 mark in the first half, finishing the half shooting 72.2 percent from the field with a 4-of-8 clip from three-point territory. Most of American’s baskets came on open looks, generated by trademark screens and backdoor cuts that led to eight assists on 13 made baskets.
“It’s a different look and something new to us,” said sophomore forward Craig Victor. “They moved the ball well, and they don’t force shots even if they are open. On our end, we just had to be disciplined. It kind of got boring, but we had to stay active and do as much as possible to stay focused and locked in on defense.
Despite American’s efficiency, LSU closed out the half on a 14-5 run to regain the lead, 36-31, at the break. Though most of the scoring came from Simmons and Victor, who had 12 points apiece in the first half, the Tigers had just one turnover as a team entering halftime.
The lack of turnovers balanced out just one LSU basket in transition in the first half.
“When they shoot as well as they did in the first, we don’t get many rebounds that we can get in transition for,” said senior guard Keith Hornsby. “It was tough, but we have to be ready to make changes on the spot. I think we picked it up in the second half.”
Once play resumed, LSU made the necessary changes, surging to a 19-4 run to open up the second half. The Tigers forced 10 more turnovers in the second half – eight via steals – while holding the Eagles to just seven made baskets. In total, the Tigers scored 35 points off turnovers, which was aided by switching on screens in the second half.
On its way to its largest margin of victory of the season, LSU scored 50 points in the paint with four players in double figures, including Hornsby and sophomore forward Aaron Epps’ 10 and 11 points, respectively.
The Tigers return to action against Wake Forest on Dec. 29 at 6:00 p.m. from the PMAC.
“We are at an improved state, but we still have a ways to go to fulfill the potential that we think we have,” Hornsby said. “We are making strides. I think the second half tonight was a good example of the adjustments we made defensively. The first half was little like the old team in the beginning. It’s all about the effort.”