The [autotag]Matt McMahon[/autotag] era is set to begin on Wednesday night as LSU kicks off the season with a home contest against Kansas City at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center.
Hailing from the Summit League, the Roos are coming off a solid season in which they finished 19-12 and 12-6 in conference play. They earned a four seed in the Summit League Tournament but were upset in their first game by South Dakota. They enter this game at 0-1 on the year having lost the opener to Division II Lincoln (Missouri) 59-56.
The Tigers aren’t the only team debuting a head coach this season, as former UMKC coach Billy Conlon resigned after the season to become an assistant coach at Clemson. His replacement is Marvin Menzies, a coaching veteran who previously helmed the programs at New Mexico State (2007-16) and UNLV (2016-19).
With the former, he finished with a 198-111 record, winning the WAC regular season three times and the conference tournament five times. In five NCAA Tournament appearances, Menzies never won a game. In three years with the Runnin’ Rebels, he went just 48-48 and never made the postseason.
This is a new look LSU roster that features a number of transfers, including three who followed McMahon from Murray State. Perhaps the most significant among them is forward [autotag]KJ Williams[/autotag], the defending Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Year and a two-time First Team All-Conference selection.
There will certainly be a lot to watch for in McMahon’s debut. Here’s what you need to know to watch it.