LSU Basketball Comes Up Short In 80-79 SEC Championship Loss to Alabama
LSU wanted to prove that it could hang with Alabama. After two blowout losses during the regular season, the Tigers proved they could play with the best in the country.
LSU couldn't have asked for more as the Tigers emptied the tank in an emotionally charged, back and forth SEC Championship game that ultimately didn't fall their way. Two opportunities at the rim off a missed three in the final seconds helped Alabama hold on by the skin of its teeth to claim the 80-79 win.
If the Tigers convert on that final possession, the efforts of Trendon Watford and Javonte Smart go down in the LSU basketball history books. Both were absolutely sensational for the purple and gold down the stretch despite the loss. Watford went for a career high 30 points on eight rebounds. Smart chipped in 21 points, seven rebounds and five assists of his own.
"I just wanted to win. That was my biggest thing," Watford said. "I just wanted to do what I needed to do to win, whether it was scoring, rebounding, whatever it was. I didn't do enough."
It was the kind of back and forth game that makes postseason college basketball so unique.
The first big wave in the second half came when LSU fell behind 56-52. A game controlled by emotion and runs, the Tigers were on the brink of letting Alabama go on a long run but it was Smart who got LSU out of a jam. After missing five straight shots from the field, back-to-back triples from the junior guard set up the Tigers with a 58-56 lead and sparked a run for the purple and gold.
Then it was Watford's turn to take over. The sophomore went on a scoring spree for the ages, scoring 11 straight LSU points over a four minute stretch that helped the Tigers tie the game up 71-71 with 3:38 to go.
The teams traded baskets for much of the final 3:38 with Smart knocking down a pair of clutch threes. The inbounds play in the final 7.3 seconds will draw much of the attention.
A long inbounds pass had to be chased down by Watford, who took a contested step back three with time left on the clock. The ball came up short and forward Aundre Hyatt couldn't get the put back layup to fall.
"The play was supposed -- Trendon was supposed to go to the outside, from Days, and then he hit me," Smart said. "I kind of threw it too far. It went past his hands. That's the look we got, Trendon shooting a three again, the two shots at the end.
LSU's biggest problem in the game became Alabama's offensive rebounding and the transition defense. It's the two common factors that have continuously plagued the team and a very well coached Crimson Tide team took advantage.
Alabama grabbed 11 offensive rebounds in the first half and 19 for the game, leading to 16 second chance points.
As far as transition defense, LSU's shot selection down the stretch is what hurt the most as lots of poor shots helped the Crimson Tide get the Tigers out of position, leading to a 7-0 run and a 40-37 lead at the break.
With two highly competitive, physical teams, never wanting to let the other get the upper hand, this was a game of runs. The physicality and chippiness reached all new heights in the second half and it made for an entertaining back and forth.
"Very proud of our guys. We played really well all three games this weekend. We played extremely hard. We obviously came up a play or two short today," Wade said. "But we played extremely hard all weekend. I thought our guys gave it everything they had. We've got to get back and recover. Very proud to coach these guys, be a part of this program. I thought we left it all out there on the court. Just a little bit short there at the end.
Whenever LSU would make a run to take a lead, Alabama would respond. When it was the Crimson Tide who made a run, it was the Tigers reliance on Watford, Smart and Thomas that got them back in the game.
LSU will now wait and see who its opponent will be in next week's NCAA tournament, set to be announced at 5 p.m.
Yeah, I think we put the world on notice, not just the SEC. Coming into this tournament, nobody even expected us to make it out of the first round. LSU has never made it out of the first round since Coach Wade has been here," Watford said. "I think we woke the world up. We got more to prove. I got more to prove, all my guys got more to prove. Everybody come together, learn from this loss, just continue to improve."
