Improvements are being made, Antonio Blakeney said.
The sophomore scorer said LSU will be better than its strenuous 19-win, 14-loss season last year.
How?
“Defense, definitely,” the guard said. “We can still score the ball just as well as we could score last year. We just have to make sure we pick our defense up, game by game and practice by practice.”
Once the 2016-17 season begins tomorrow when the Tigers host Wofford for their season-opener at 1 p.m. in the PMAC, LSU’s new team knows what it must do to be successful this season: defend.
Even LSU’s younger faces know the importance of defense — it’s their route to more playing time.
“We spend at least an hour per practice on defense,” freshman point guard Skylar Mays said. “I understood pretty quickly that if I want to be able to play, then I’m going to be able to keep guys in front of me … It’s not going to be easy. Coaches tell me it’s not going to be easy, but they tell me you have to get it done.”
Specifically defense on Saturday, preventing the Terriers’ 3-point stroke is of maximum significance.
“They run a great system,” LSU coach Johnny Jones said. “They’re extremely patient. They have experienced shooters on their team … It’s a tough game for us out of the gate.
Against the Tigers, Reinhardt rattled in 13-of-27 3-pointers en route to 80 points, which was too many points allowed, LSU players said after the loss.
Wofford, though, is not Reinhardt.
“They’re a better 3-point type shooting team than we played the other night,” Jones said.
Wofford sophomore sharpshooter Fletcher Magee finished third in the nation in 3-point field goal percentage at 47.9 percent last year.
He’s tremendous, said Jones, who holds a 3-1 record on opening night.
“He’s very capable,” the coach entering his fifth season at LSU said. “He’s a guy they look for. He’s really good in terms of reading screens. He knows how to play. He can put it on the deck as well and get to the rim. We’ll certainly have to mix up our coverages on him and give him different looks as well to hopefully keep him off balance.”
In regards to defending Magee, LSU’s perimeter defense is expected to strengthen with the return of junior guard Jalyn Patterson.
Patterson and reserve center Elbert Robinson missed LSU’s exhibition against Reinhardt because of lingering injuries Monday but are expected to play Saturday.
Patterson and Robinson’s unspecified injuries date back to last season, yet both will dress against the Terriers, Jones says, as Patterson is expected to command most of LSU’s ball-handling duties beside freshman Mays, a Baton Rouge native.
“We look forward to those guys getting back and getting into the flow,” Jones said. “We’re hopeful that them getting back with us will help us in terms of our depth as well.”
Junior forward Craig Victor will also be absent for Saturday’s game for “violating team rules,” Jones said near the beginning of November.