The LSU men's basketball team snapped a three-game losing streak on Saturday with a dominating 95-74 win over Arkansas. The 21-point win ties the largest victory in program history over the Razorbacks. Seven-footer Will Baker led the way as he had a season-high 24 points and four three-pointers.
“Our preparation coming into this game was really good,” said Baker. “We had a bye week, everyday was an opportunity to prepare. It’s never easy coming off a losing streak like we did, but if we can lock in like we did this week, moving forward we can create some momentum.
Coach Matt McMahon credited better spacing and ball movement for Baker’s big game.
McMahon also made a line-up change to snap the losing streak. Trae Hannibal made his first start of the year and Jalen Cook came off the bench. The two combined to score 27 points, dish out seven assists and only one turnover was committed. McMahon says they got terrific point guard play.
“We’re still learning best combinations, who plays well together, just trying to find those right combinations, I though both guys handled it exceptionally well and obviously liked the result that it came with it,” said McMahon.
Coming into the game, Cook was in a funk. The senior from Walker had 21 turnovers in his previous six games and just eight assists. On Saturday, he had 20 points in 21 minutes and finished with three assists, one turnover and two steals.
McMahon said Cook was dialed in offensively as he believes coming off the bench can help a player refocus sometimes.
Meanwhile, Hannibal helped spark a 10-nothing run early in the game.
“His speed, his toughness, his physicality, impacts both sides of the ball,” said McMahon. “He got six defensive rebounds, which is an area we are looking to improve and again four assists, zero turnovers, I though he really had a huge impact on winning.”
LSU is 4-4 in conference play and in the middle of the pack. They have a tough game coming up this Wednesday at 5th ranked Tennessee who is 10-1 at home this season.
