What He Said: LSU's Matt McMahon Discusses Potential of the Tigers

Matt McMahon and the LSU Tigers knocked off Northwestern State on Friday night to cap off their non-conference slate. Now, all focus shifts towards SEC play in January.

McMahon recapped the victory and dove into the potential of the Tigers moving forward.

Opening Statement…

“Good way to come back from Christmas break. I thought our guys came back and prepared the right way. We had one of the better practices I have been a part of the day after Christmas, and I believe that set the tone for the week. We had a slow start in the first half, but when Mike Williams, Trey Hannibal, and Hunter Dean came into the game, the defensive energy picked up, and everyone else sustained that for the rest of the half. There were some outstanding individual performances, but overall, I am excited about the win and look forward to starting preparation for SEC play. From an availability standpoint, Jalen Reed has been out with the flu, Tyrell Ward has been out with an illness, Mwani Wilkinson has been out with a hip injury that has been bothering him for the last two weeks, and I am hoping to have those guys back in practice starting Sunday.”

On the impact Hunter Dean gives off the bench…

“He’s fantastic, which was displayed in his double-double tonight. Also, he’s a lot more athletic than people think; he plays above the rim, moves well, and has elite basketball intelligence. With his ability to see the game, process what's going on offensively and defensively, and fix many of our mistakes on both sides of the floor, he can free our guys up for open shots very well.”

On this team's potential…

“I think we have made great progress in the last two and a half games, starting with the second half against Texas. Our assist-to-turnover ratio has been a major problem for us all season long, and there has been a lot of improvement in that area over the past two and a half games. As the competition level rises next week, it needs to continue to be an area of improvement for us. Our three-point defense had been really poor through the first 11 games, but improvements have been made. Our defensive rebounding has been atrocious early in the season and we have also been making improvements there. I believe our guys played great tonight, and I believe they competed well on the defensive end and displayed great unselfishness on the offensive end of the floor.”