The LSU men’s basketball team will try to get its second straight win over a ranked opponent tonight when they host 17th-ranked Kentucky. The Wildcats average 88 points a game, third highest in college basketball. Kentucky also shoots 41% from three-point territory. That’s the highest mark in the country.
Tigers Coach Matt McMahon says transition defense will be a key, because of the speed of Kentucky’s guards.
“They have unbelievable speed, their guards are so explosive off the dribble, they change ends of the floor quickly, you can’t turn the ball over and you can’t take bad shots, because they make you pay every time.”
“The other thing they’ve done a great job of is top 5 in the country in blocks which also fuels their transition attack,” said McMahon.
Fifth-year senior Antonio Reeves leads the Wildcats. The potential second-round pick averages close to 20 points a game and shoots 44% from three-point territory. Two of Kentucky’s top NBA prospects, Rob Dillingham and Reed Sheppard come off the bench.
“They look at the mock drafts, they know there are seven Kentucky players in the Top 40, two of the top ten picks in the draft off the bench on Saturday in their win at Auburn, have great respect for the program and understand what It’ll take to give ourselves an opportunity to win.”
It will come down to defense and rebounding.
LSU has struggled to keep up with the elite teams in the Southeastern Conference. In losses against Alabama and Tennessee, the Tigers allowed those two teams to shoot 55% from the field.
Earlier this month in back-to-back losses to Bama and Florida, the Tigers gave up 19 offensive rebounds in each game.
Tip-off is at 8 PM.
