LSU Basketball Survives Physical Test From Ole Miss 76-73, Advance to SEC Tourney Semi Finals
For the first time of the Will Wade era, the LSU Tigers took care of business in tonight’s 76-73 victory over the Ole Miss Rebels in the quarterfinals of the SEC Tournament.
It was imperative that the Tigers receive great play from their "Big Four" on Friday night and all four had their moments to shine. Second-team All-Conference forward, Trendon Watford, finished with 24 points on 11-of-14 shooting and 7 rebounds.
With dominant play from Darius Days and Javonte Smart, the Tigers were clicking on all cylinders from start to finish, closing out the first half with a 29-27 lead. That season long truth of when Days plays well, LSU does well was certainly on full display with his efficient scoring and strong presence on the boards.
Days led the way on the glass for the Tigers, grabbing 12 boards with 20 points on an efficient 3-of-4 from three-point range.
For the Rebels, it was Jarkel Joiner getting it done for them all night, finishing with 26 points on 5-of-12 shooting from the three-point line. Joiner scored 21 of his 26 points in the second half alone, virtually keeping the Rebels in the game singlehandedly.
Wade’s squad earned this victory as their effort and tenacity was on full display against the Rebels, showing immense amounts of energy igniting the offense.
"We talked about winning the first game here which is something we haven't done in four or five years here," Wade said. "Really pleased. This is two straight games we've been really good in the six minute game and made plays."
LSU’s “Big Four” of Thomas, Watford, Smart and Days lit a fire underneath the Tigers, accounting for 72 of the teams 76 points.
"Coming into the game we knew it was gonna be physical and we embraced the physicality," Watford said. "It was good to finally play in the postseason, this was special. We're not satisfied yet, we're not done yet and we're gonna keep going."
On a slow night for Thomas, we saw the freshman phenom overcome a sluggish first half with a solid 14 second half points, keeping the Rebels on their toes all night.
The Tigers came out gunning to start the first half, but a slow five-minute stretch to end the half allowed the Rebels to stick around. Wade has preached to his squad how important it is to play consistent basketball throughout all 40 minutes, something they again struggled with tonight.
Starting the second half on a 9-0 run, the Tigers showed flashes of mastery, something Wade believes his squad can do for all 40 minutes. Even as the Rebels made a push back into the game, Wade was pleased with his team's poise down the stretch to not let a big run ultimately do the team in.
"I thought we did a great job getting off to a great start to the second half," Wade said. "It gave us that lead. We were able to withstand that barrage of threes from Joiner, hang in there and fight back. It's very good we've done that in back to back games which is real growth."
It feels as though this team has a chance to click at the perfect time in March. As consistency is the main message to this LSU crew, the time is now to play as effective as possible, with tonight being only the beginning.
"We came together as a team, got stops when we needed them and everybody did their job tonight," Days said. "Great team win.
The Tigers will face the Arkansas Razorbacks Saturday afternoon in Bridgestone Arena in Nashville on ESPN.
"We're excited to be back in the semifinals, we haven't done it in four or five years," Wade said. "It's the next step, we've got a huge game in front of us. There's a lot on the line for us tomorrow."
