Inspiration to beat Ole Miss will be staring the LSU men’s basketball team in the face Saturday afternoon.
Members of LSU’s 1981 and 1986 Final Four teams will be honored during halftime of the Tigers’ tilt at 12:45 p.m. against the Rebels, celebrating the 30th and 25th anniversaries of the prestigious seasons, respectively.
Those teams, in addition to the 1953 and 2006 Final Four squads, finished a combined 7-1 when playing the Rebels.
“The fact that they are honoring the Final Four teams at halftime, we could take that as motivation to step our game up,” said freshman guard Matt Derenbecker. “Those guys worked so hard, and that’s what we need to do. We need to start working our tails off to get in the position they were.”
LSU (10-8, 2-1) can earn its third Southeastern Conference win, one more than its total from last season, by defeating the struggling Rebels (12-7, 0-4).
Rudy Macklin, a forward for the 1981 Final Four team and one of the players being honored Saturday, sees the matchup as a chance to continue making a push in the SEC West.
“This team has a great chance to win the [SEC] West,” Macklin said. “Winning this Saturday will be a big boost, and I believe they can do it.”
The Tigers are tied with Mississippi State for second place in the SEC West, even after being pounded by Kentucky, 82-44, in Rupp Arena last Saturday.
The biggest obstacle for the Tigers’ defense Saturday will be limiting Ole Miss senior guard Chris Warren, the fourth-highest scoring player in the SEC with 18.3 points a game.
“He can control the game by himself,” said LSU coach Trent Johnson. “We have to make him work for everything he gets. Chris is, without question, one of the better players in our league.”
LSU’s own Warren, junior forward Storm Warren, is once again listed as probable. Storm’s minutes have increased every game since missing the Virginia game with tendonitis in his right Achilles.
“He hasn’t practiced,” Johnson said. “He’ll probably be like this all year long.”
LSU will continue to be without its leading scorer, freshman guard Ralston Turner.
Johnson said Turner will not play in the Ole Miss game, but he’s continuing to make progress after missing the past three games with a stress reaction in his right foot.
“He’s better,” Johnson said. “If you ask him, he’ll probably think he can play tonight, but we’ll treat it day by day.”
Junior forward Garrett Green will get his third start of the season Saturday after coming off the bench and scoring in double digits the past four games.
Green will be joined by junior forward Malcolm White in the frontcourt.
Saturday’s game will be White’s first opportunity to square up against his former teammates. The Baton Rouge native transferred to LSU from Ole Miss in 2009.
 
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Contact Michael Lambert at [email protected]