The wait to get on the court was finally over for the LSU Tigers as they defeated Loyola-New Orleans 110-48.
Even with a sizable gap between the two squads, there were plenty of takeaways from Tuesday night’s opening exhibition matchup.
Scoring has improved
The shooting for LSU last season was a clear problem for the team, but in its first game, it shot the ball well beyond the arc. The team shot 48.6% from three and 55.7% from the field.
Players such as Jordan Sears, Cam Carter and Mike Williams were the leaders of a great shooting expedition and combined for 12-21 from three.
The Tigers had far too many stretches without buckets in 2023. The offense looked sluggish, and it was to the defense to keep the purple and gold competing. But that could all change this year.
“We want to be a very up-tempo team,” head coach Matt McMahon said in his season-opening press conference. “I know everyone says that in every opening press conference, but that’s the way we want to play. We have a proven track record of playing that way at a very high level and a very efficient level, and so we want to recruit to that. You have to be able to shoot the three in today’s game to have the floor properly spaced.”
Sears and Carter will be the offense that LSU needed during the never-ending scoring drought they endured last season. When they’re forced to come off the floor, Williams will be there to pick up the slack; we already saw him do so a season ago.
Cam Carter and Jordan Sears make up for an efficient backcourt
The two new transfers combined for 37 points.
Carter only shot 31% from three last season at Kansas State, but during last night’s exhibition, he shot 62% from three.
His defensive presence was already something that people knew he was bringing to the team, but his shooting was more of a question mark.
Carter was knocking down multiple catch-and-shoot opportunities and could be seen as a real 3-and-D threat.
As for Jordan Sears, it was something that was expected. The fifth-year senior from UT Martin led the team in scoring in the first half with 13 and finished with 16. A top-ten scorer in the country a season ago, McMahon brought in an elite-level shot creator
“He’s a guy who made over 75 threes last year,” McMahon said. “He did it at a high percentage, especially off the catch. Top five catch-and-shoot three-point guy in America last season, so we want him to shoot with a lot of confidence from behind the three-point line. Think you see his speed and quickness off the bounce, which hopefully can generate some advantages for our offense.”
Gotta go fast
The best offense is an opportunistic, physical and handsy defense.
The Tigers showed off all three of those factors against Loyola-New Orleans, with 12 steals and six blocks in the game, gobbling up 38 defensive rebounds and only allowing three offensive boards for the Wolfpack all night. The purple and gold also forced 19 Loyola-New Orleans turnovers.
It all led to 16 fast break points for LSU. The Tigers’ offense thrived off the defense’s momentum.
“I think we need to really take advantage of our speed, athleticism and length to play up-tempo on both sides of the basketball,” McMahon said at his opening press conference. “I think that’s the most fun way to coach, and players really enjoy playing that way.”
Expect both sides to continue to complement each other throughout the campaign.
Look out for Daimion Collins
It was a short season for Daimion Collins a season ago.
Only appearing in six games last year, many people were eager to see what the high flyer could do.
In Collins 19 minutes, he filled the stat sheet with seven points, nine rebounds, one steal and three blocks.
“Daimion Collins, we’ve said it for a long time; everyone knows he’s this elite athlete, once in a generation, and you saw some of those plays made tonight,” McMahon said about the forward.
Tyrell Ward could be the key to unlocking this offense’s true potential.
LSU shot 18-37 from behind the arc with Tyrell Ward, their top returning three-point sniper, watching Tuesday night’s game in sweatpants. The return of Ward will provide the Tigers’ offense with more ball handling, shooting, speed, and even better spacing.
With McMahon’s desire for an all gas, no brakes style following last year’s snail-paced attack, expect Ward to make a huge impact once he hits the lineup on opening night against Louisiana-Monroe next Wednesday.