LSU Men's Basketball 2014 NIT Tournament Capsule

LSU Tigers
SEC (19-13, 9-9)

 

For much of the year it looked as if LSU was ready to make a run at second place in the SEC. But the Tigers could never string together a nice run in conference play and ended up at 9-9. In the end, that is a little disappointing for this group, but at least they are back in the postseason after missing out in 2013.

Big Wins: 11/8 vs St. Joseph’s (82-65), 1/21 Missouri (77-71), 1/28 Kentucky (87-82)
Bad Losses: 1/4 Rhode Island (70-74), 2/12 at Texas A&M (73-83), 3/8 Georgia (61-69)
Coach: Johnny Jones (14 seasons at LSU)

Why They Can Surprise:
Johnny O’Bryant III flirted with leaving for the professional ranks after his sophomore season, but the big 6-9 forward opted to return to school for at least one more year. And it is a good thing for LSU that he did. O’Bryant leads the team with 15.5 points and 7.8 rebounds per game. With O’Bryant by his side, freshman Jordan Mickey has had an amazing season. The athletic swingman attacks the basket with the best of them and is just about as productive on the glass as O’Bryant. With those two leading the way in the frontcourt, LSU is a strong rebounding team. They are an even better shot blocking team. Mickey averages 3.2 blocks per contest and O’Bryant and Jarell Martin can swat away some shots too. That can make it extremely difficult to score in the paint against LSU.

Why They Can Disappoint:
But teams still do score against the Tigers. LSU allows the opposition to shoot a healthy 36.1 percent from long range and that really hurts since many squads will shy away from attacking the basket and take advantage of those open looks outside instead. Points for the opposition also come from turnovers. LSU commits about 14 turnovers per game, ranking 13th in the SEC. Speedster Anthony Hickey creates more turnovers than he allows, but it is his job to make sure the big men get the ball where they can do something with it. Andre Stringer is another experienced guard, and the team’s best shooter, so it is feasible that he and Hickey can do better in the turnover department during March.

Probable Starters:
Anthony Hickey, Junior, Guard, 8.7 ppg, 3.7 apg, 2.0 spg
Shavon Coleman, Senior, Forward, 9.0 ppg, 4.2 rpg
Jarell Martin, Freshman, Forward, 10.2 ppg, 4.4 rpg
Jordan Mickey, Freshman, Forward, 12.8 ppg, 7.9 rpg, 3.2 bpg
Johnny O’Bryant III, Junior, Forward, 15.5 ppg, 7.8 rpg

Key Roleplayers:
Tim Quarterman, Freshman, Guard, 2.5 ppg, 1.5 apg
Andre Stringer, Senior, Guard, 11.8 ppg, 2.7 apg

By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 75.6 (63rd in nation, 3rd in conference)
Scoring Defense: 71.3 (214, 12)
Field-Goal Percentage: 44.3 (168, 7)
Field-Goal Defense: 40.9 (56, 7)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 6.6 (127, 4)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 33.4 (203, 9)
Free-Throw Percentage: 68.0 (235, 9)
Rebound Margin: 3.7 (64, 6)
Assists Per Game: 14.1 (76, 2)
Turnovers Per Game: 13.9 (300, 13)

Recent Postseason Appearances:
2012    NIT        First Round loss to Oregon
2009    NCAA    Round of 64 win over Butler
2009    NCAA    Round of 32 loss to North Carolina
2006    NCAA    Round of 64 win over Iona
2006    NCAA    Round of 32 win over Texas A&M
2006    NCAA    Regional semifinal win over Duke
2006    NCAA    Regional final win over Texas
2006    NCAA    National semifinal loss to UCLA
2005    NCAA    Round of 64 loss to UAB
2004    NIT        First Round loss to Oklahoma
2003    NCAA    Round of 64 loss to Purdue

*all team stats through 3/9

 

See All Men’s Basketball Postseason Capsules