LSU offense too much for Mississippi State
STARKVILLE, Miss. – When you break it down to its simplest form, the game of basketball is all about making shots. And when you can't stop your opponent from doing that, you'll likely find yourself in a load of trouble. Such was the case for Mississippi State on Wednesday.
Despite a strong offensive performance themselves, the Bulldogs couldn't slow down LSU and State fell to the Tigers 94-80 at Humphrey Coliseum.
"We were really poor defensively, inexplicably to me, in so many ways," MSU head coach Ben Howland said. "In transition defense, we gave up so many baskets. We gave up 24 points in transition. That's just crazy."
(CLICK HERE FOR VIDEO OF HOWLAND'S FULL POSTGAME PRESS CONFERENCE.)
It wasn't just in transition where the Bulldogs struggled defensively. MSU (11-10, 5-7) provided little resistance all night against LSU (12-6, 7-4). The Tigers shot 61 percent as a team for the game, and while State went blow for blow for awhile, LSU took a lead it'd never relinquish late in the first half. The Tigers held onto that advantage by shooting at a 66-percent clip over the game's final 20 minutes.
"We didn't have the right defensive tendencies I feel like," MSU forward Tolu Smith said. "You have to give (LSU) credit. They shot the ball really well. They were very efficient in the first half and second half."
(SEE SMITH'S FULL POSTGAME PRESS CONFERENCE WITH VIDEO AT THE TOP OF THIS PAGE. NOTE THAT THE VIDEO HAS TECHNICAL ISSUES, BUT THE AUDIO IS GENERALLY NOT IMPACTED.)
LSU's production spoiled State's own solid night of offense. Four Bulldogs scored in double figures, led by Smith, who had a double-double with 24 points and 11 rebounds. Derek Fountain continued his emergence for State with a 20-point night. Iverson Molinar scored 16 points and Deivon Smith added 12. The Bulldogs shot 54 percent from the field themselves, but it wasn't enough to overcome the hot-shooting Tigers.
LSU was led offensively by Cameron Thomas. He scored 25 points. Javonte Smart totaled 22.
Thomas, Smart and the rest of the Tigers hurt the Bulldogs from all over the floor. LSU scored 48 points from the paint and the Tigers were 10-for-22 (45 percent) from three-point range on the way to defeating MSU.
The loss continued what has been a downward spiral of late for Mississippi State. The Bulldogs have now lost five of their last six Southeastern Conference games after starting off the year 4-2 in league action.
MSU will attempt to turn things around on Saturday. That's when the Bulldogs will play host to Vanderbilt in a noon game.
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