After the Tigers needed a comeback to get past Puerto Rico in Monday’s exhibition from Paradise Island, Bahamas, coach Matt McMahon’s LSU men’s basketball team took care of business easily on Tuesday against the host nation.
The Tigers dominated the Bahamas in a 120-59 win, using a 21-0 run in the second quarter to overcome a slow start.
“I think we learned a lot from yesterday’s game when we kind of fell apart there in the third quarter,” McMahon said in a release. “I was just so pleased with the character of the team and with so many new faces we found a way to come together, get over the hump, get the stops we needed and had guys hit big shots for us as we found a way to win. I think that carried over into today’s game. I loved the unselfishness that we played with, having 27 assists. I thought after a slow start on the defensive end in the first quarter we were a lot more disciplined, active and aggressive on that side of the ball for the final three quarters.”
[autotag]Tyrell Ward[/autotag] led the team in scoring once again with 18 points on 6 of 7 shooting alongside big man [autotag]Will Baker[/autotag], who also scored 18 points on 8 of 11 shooting.
“I thought Will (Baker) showed his versatility,” McMahon said. “He scored off the drives from the elbow area. I thought what helped him get freed up inside was that he set a lot of great screens and that gave him the opportunity to create an angle in the post. The guys did a terrific job feeding the ball into him. I was pleased in the second half that we were able to cut our turnovers down, only six there. I thought we were a lot more fundamentally sound than the first three halves we have played here.”
[autotag]Carlos Stewart[/autotag] had 16 points, [autotag]Hunter Dean[/autotag] and [autotag]Jordan Wright[/autotag] had 15, while true freshman [autotag]Corey Chest[/autotag] scored 10. [autotag]Trae Hannibal[/autotag] also nearly recorded a double-double with eight points and 10 rebounds.
Sophomore forward [autotag]Jalen Reed[/autotag] also made his first appearance after missing most of the summer with a knee injury.
“It was great to see Jalen (Reed) back,” McMahon said. “He has missed most of the summer with an injury and just got back last week. He’s had really good individual workouts here and was cleared to play, so I thought you saw his improvement on the defensive glass that was really good today and his ability to put the ball on the floor and make plays for not only himself but others as well. Really happy and excited to see him back on the court.”
LSU will finish up its exhibition tour in the Bahamas on Thursday when it faces Argentinas Obras Sanitarias at 1 p.m. CT.
[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=698014239]
Contact/Follow us @LSUTigersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Louisiana State news, notes, and opinions.
Follow Tyler to continue the conversation on Twitter: @TylerNettuno