The first 15 games of LSU freshman guard Antonio Blakeney’s college career had been far from smooth sailing, but he led the Tigers to a 90-81 comeback win against Ole Miss on Wednesday night in the PMAC.
Blakeney scored 13 of his 15 points in the second half to spark a stagnant Tiger offense, which trailed for the majority of the contest.
Blakeney hadn’t scored more than seven points in the Tigers’ (10-6, 3-1 Southeastern Conference) last five games, shooting just 32.2 percent from the field in those games.
But Wednesday, LSU coach Johnny Jones brought him off the bench for the first time this year, and the Sarasota, Florida native provided the needed boost when it mattered.
“I definitely think I helped coming off the bench,” Blakeney said. “It definitely was different for me. I never came off the bench in high school or here, but I’m just glad I could help coming off the bench and get the win.”
After recording just two points through the first 28 minutes of game time, Blakeney drained 2-of-3 three-point attempts and hit all five of his free throws in the final 7:57 of the game.
The Tigers’ victory was also characterized by a balanced scoring effort. Five different players finished in double figures, including sophomore forward Craig Victor II’s team-high 18 points.
Along with Blakeney, junior guard Tim Quarterman came off the bench for just the second time this season. The addition of senior guard Josh Gray and sophomore guard Jalyn Patterson marked Jones’ eighth different starting five of the season.
Jones said the lineup changes were more about Gray and Patterson’s performances in practice and less about recent outings from Blakeney or Quarterman, who finished with 14 points.
“I’m a big stickler about – regardless of if we win a huge game against Kentucky or we have a setback – we have to make sure the intensity level is [there] in practice,” Jones said. “A couple guys had done a tremendous job in practice of maintaining that and playing at a certain pace. We don’t want to ever feel that we’re comfortable with the lineup.”
Quarterman, however, characterized it as “a throwback” for him, having come off the bench for the first part of his LSU career.
“It was fun,” Quarterman said. “It was kind of a throwback. But it’s not about who starts the game. It’s about who finishes. Coach left me in the end of the game to finish the game. We got the win and that’s all that counts.”
Aided by Rebel senior guard Stefan Moody’s season-high 33 points and six made three-pointers, LSU trailed by as many six in the second half. But, as Blakeney and Quarterman came alive, so went the Tigers. LSU outscored the Rebels 14-5 in the final 4:22 of the game.
Ole Miss clung to small lead through the first six minutes of the second half, as the Tigers shrunk the deficit to one on three different occasions. But LSU couldn’t capitalize on a handful of opportunities, and Moody connected on another long triple with 13:51 left to give the Rebels a 55-49 lead.
Though it trailed by six with 10:41 left, LSU, again, rallied within one point of the Rebels after a 7-2 run. This time, though, the Tigers grabbed their first lead on three made free throws from Blakeney.
Despite a layup from Moody to tie it up on the following possession, Blakeney netted two more free throws and Patterson converted a fastbreak layup on LSU’s next offensive possession.
But Moody would not be denied, scoring five straight points to take 71-70 lead with 6:09 left. Blakeney continued to be aggressive on the following possession, drilling a corner three. Quarterman followed up Blakeney’s trey with one of his own to give LSU its largest lead up to that point, 76-71.
Moody then connected on his sixth three pointer on the next possession, and senior forward Anthony Perez knotted the score at 76 on the Rebel’s following attempt.
“[Moody] hit it from 40 feet with a hand in his face,” Quarterman said. “I don’t know what coach would’ve wanted us to do, actually. I guess you have got to let the ball do what it do.”
Ole Miss got the score within two points, but the Tigers finished the game on a 7-0 run, hitting four of their last five field goals and 5-of-6 free throws to close the game.
“We shared the ball a lot and played as a team in the second half,” Quarterman said. “People got their shots and made big shots on our team. It wasn’t just one person. It was a team effort. We went out there and won as a team.”
You can reach James Bewers on Twitter @JamesBewers_TDR