It took longer than expected, but LSU baseball is exactly where they hoped to be after a second consecutive win in Omaha, just one more away from a trip to the title series.
The game was pushed to Tuesday morning, but the 9-5 win had Mike Detillier flying high to kick of SportsTalk.
"Great day to be a Tiger," Detillier said, "and this morning it started off really great."
Hear the full breakdown from Mike Detillier and Charlie Long in the player above. Can't see the embed? Click here.
There were a few familiar heroes in the game. Jared Jones drove in four runs, while freshman Casan Evans delivered in the clutch again, taking over upon the resumption of the 4th inning and delivering a shutdown performance until things started to get a bit dicey in the 8th, with UCLA plating two runs.
It was a similar lockdown performance for the young right-hander to what we saw in the closeout game of the Baton Rouge regional against Little Rock.
"Casan Evans, again, comes through for you in a pinch," Detillier continued. "Man, the freshman who is gonna be part of the starting rotation next year, there’s no question about it, really came through big for the Tigers.”
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But in the end the biggest hero was actually the smallest on the field, and that was shortstop Steven 'Moster' Milam. Along with the big bat he's swinging -- he went 2-for-4 and drove in a run -- lockdown defense in the middle infield helped stifle a host of potential Bruins rallies.
“He had a little lull there with the bat, but man is he on fire right now," Detillier said, "and he’s certainly a big cog offensively. … There’s no doubt [about his defense], no question about that, but now the bat has started to get hot for him and Monster Milam, .444 in the NCAA Tournament.”
The Tigers will have two chances to get one win when they face off in a rematch with either UCLA or Arkansas, who were playing in an elimination game Tuesday evening. The Razorbacks, with a significant rest advantage, were leading 3-0 in the 6th inning.
First pitch is set for 6 p.m., with coverage starting at 5:30 p.m. on WWL AM-870; FM-105.3 & the Audacy app.