Tag: KJ Williams

LSU forward KJ Williams named a Second Team All-SEC selection

Williams currently ranks second in the league with 17.4 points per game, and his 7.6 rebounding average ranks in the top 10.

It’s been a rough season for men’s basketball in Baton Rouge, but one of the few bright spots has been the play of [autotag]KJ Williams[/autotag], a transfer from Murray State who followed coach [autotag]Matt McMahon[/autotag].

The reigning Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Year, Williams could have tried his hand at the NBA draft after last season. Instead, he took his talents to the SEC against tougher competition, a decision that has seemingly paid off.

On Monday, Williams was named a Second Team All-SEC selection by the league’s coaches. He’s the only LSU player represented in the conference’s postseason awards.

Williams ranks second in the SEC in scoring this season with an average of 17.4 points. His rebounding average of 7.6 also ranks in the league’s top 10, and he has notched eight double-doubles this season.

The veteran will be heading to the league after this campaign as his one-year lease is expiring. Though his addition didn’t lead to a lot of success on the court, he still managed to become one of the most impactful players in the SEC this season.

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PHOTOS: LSU drops regular-season finale after second-half barrage from Florida

The Tigers couldn’t pull off the road upset on Saturday night despite leading by 12 in the final frame.

The Tigers concluded a disappointing 2022-23 regular season on Saturday night with a 79-67 road loss to the Florida Gators at Exactech Arena.

LSU (13-18, 2-16 SEC) led by four at halftime and by as much as 12 in the early minutes of the second half, but it turned the ball over eight times in the final 20 minutes. Florida (16-15, 9-9 SEC), meanwhile, scored 50 points in the second half and retook control of the game.

[autotag]KJ Williams[/autotag] came up just short of a double-double with 19 points and nine rebounds, while [autotag]Derek Fountain[/autotag] did record one with 13 points and 12 rebounds. Still, it wasn’t enough in this game.

The Tigers will now head to Nashville for the SEC tournament, where they’ll take on No. 11-seeded Georgia on Wednesday night as the No. 14 seed. That game will tip off around 8:30 p.m. CT.

Here were the photos from Saturday’s loss.

LSU basketball finishes regular season on an ugly note against Florida

The Tigers moved to 2-16 in SEC play with Saturday’s loss.

A tough regular season for coach Matt McMahon’s LSU basketball squad came to an end on Saturday night on the road against the Florida Gators with a 79-67 loss in Gainesville.

Despite the fact that LSU struggled offensively all game, shooting just 38.3% from the field, it managed to take a 33-29 lead to the locker room. The Tigers started the second half on an 11-3 run and stretched their lead to a game-high 12 early in the period.

[autotag]KJ Williams[/autotag] had a predictably good game in the absence of the injured Colin Castleton, one of the SEC’s best big men. He had 19 points and nine rebounds, while [autotag]Derek Fountain[/autotag] also had a 13-point, 12-rebound double-double.

However, the Tigers really struggled to defend the backcourt. Three Florida guards scored in double figures in Riley Kugel, Kyle Lofton and Will Richard, and the Gators made 10 shots from behind the arc.

They stormed back and took control in the final minutes, hitting seven of their final nine shots. LSU, meanwhile, hit just one of its final eight.

This game didn’t matter as far as SEC standings go. Regardless, the Tigers were going to enter the SEC Tournament this coming week as the No. 14 seed. With the regular season in the books, a tough year is almost in the rearview for LSU after Saturday’s most recent loss.

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LSU basketball players grateful for fans sticking by team during rough season

Tigers players thanked the fans for their support this year despite the team’s struggles on the court.

There’s no way to spin it. It’s been a tough season to be an LSU basketball fan.

Wednesday’s senior night contest against Missouri felt like a microcosm for the whole campaign, in which the team lost 14 straight games after starting the year 12-1. The Tigers had a chance to take a step forward, leading a likely tournament team for nearly 39 minutes, but they couldn’t finish it out and lost by five in the final home game of the season.

After the loss — which dropped LSU to 13-17 (2-15 SEC) in Matt McMahon’s debut campaign — senior [autotag]KJ Williams[/autotag] took the opportunity to thank the fans after his final game at the PMAC.

“With this being my first year, it is one of the things I was looking forward to coming to LSU,” he said in a release. “That’s why I came here because of the great fans they have and great fan base. And I’d like to thank them for their support of us throughout the season.

“Knowing what the outcome was, they still came out and supported and gave us great energy.”

A transfer from Murray State who followed McMahon, Williams could have declared for the draft after winning the Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Year in 2021-22. Instead, he signed on for what McMahon was building in Baton Rouge.

Williams became one of the best players in the SEC this season. His 17.3 points per game ranks second in the league, and his 7.5 rebounding average ranks seventh. He’s been the Tigers’ best player, but it clearly wasn’t the year he had in mind when he came to the SEC to join a team coming off an NCAA Tournament appearance.

Guard [autotag]Adam Miller[/autotag] also made a crucial decision to be a part of this team. A transfer from Illinois, Miller missed all of last season with a torn ACL. He initially entered the transfer portal after the Tigers fired coach Will Wade, but McMahon convinced him to stay.

He’s also had a solid season in spite of LSU’s struggles, asserting himself as the team’s most reliable sharpshooter. He averages nearly 12 points per game, and his 70 made threes ties for third in the SEC.

Miller echoed Williams’ sentiment, and he said that the opportunity to play in front of the fans at the PMAC was a primary reason he chose to come back.

“Everyone in the stands support us,” he said. “Majority of the reason I came back to LSU was because I didn’t get to play in front of these fans. So, for the ones that supported and stuck with us through the season, trials and tribulations, it was heartfelt for me because we had a duty to those fans.

“I just wanted to come out and do my best for them every night and do my hardest. First season back, being able to do that for them, I just want them to know I gave it my all.”

LSU is by no means a basketball blue-blood, but this is a program that has had pockets of success over the years. McMahon had to rebuild this roster almost entirely from scratch, and he’ll certainly get some leeway as a result. Still, he’ll likely enter Year 2 with a short leash after this team’s collapse in SEC play.

Based on the players’ sentiments, it’s clear LSU fans aren’t the only ones unsatisfied with the way this team performed on the court in 2022-23.

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LSU wastes major opportunity in failed upset bid against Missouri on senior night

The Tigers led for nearly 39 minutes of this game, but that wasn’t enough in the final home game of the season.

Despite leading for nearly 39 minutes of game-time, LSU came up short against a Missouri team that is likely tournament bound. The Tigers lost 81-76 on senior night, dropping the team to 13-17 (2-15 SEC).

Coach Matt McMahon’s squad has now lost back-to-back games after ending a 14-game losing streak against Vanderbilt last Wednesday night.

The Tigers flipped the script in this game, eschewing their typical slow start in favor of a red-hot one. They made four of their first seven shots and jumped out to an early 13-2 lead. Missouri would cut into that, but it never led in the first half.

LSU shot 48% in one of its better offensive first halves in recent memory, maintaining control of the lead and stretching it out to as much as 19 before carrying a 13-point advantage into the locker room.

Missouri took back the momentum coming out of the locker room, opening the second half on an 11-2 run that cut the LSU lead to four. The Tigers managed to extend that lead back out to eight, but an 8-0 Mizzou run erased it and tied the game at 59 at the under-12 media timeout.

LSU made 14 threes in this game, but the shots stopped dropping in the second half in which the team shot below 40%. Missouri, meanwhile, shot over 50% in the final 20 minutes, and it took its first lead of the game on a three-pointer with 1:37 to play.

Mizzou made its free-throws down the stretch, and LSU missed the chance to knock off one of the league’s stronger teams. [autotag]KJ Williams[/autotag] recorded a 24-point, 14-rebound double-double in his final game at the PMAC, while fifth-year senior [autotag]Parker Edwards[/autotag] made his first career start and scored six points in six minutes.

[autotag]Adam Miller[/autotag] scored 17 and knocked down five threes, but it ultimately wasn’t enough. The Tigers will conclude the regular season on Saturday when they hit the road to take on Florida.

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Red Panda to return to LSU for basketball’s Senior Night against Missouri

The acrobat will be performing at the PMAC during the Missouri game on Wednesday night.

LSU fans are likely eager to put the 2022-23 basketball season behind them, but this year’s squad has one more appearance at the PMAC before the SEC Tournament begins next week.

LSU hosts Missouri in its final home game on Wednesday night before traveling to Gainesville to close out the regular season against Florida on Saturday. Wednesday’s duel between Tigers teams will be senior night for players [autotag]KJ Williams[/autotag] and [autotag]Parker Edwards[/autotag], and there is going to be a special guest in appearance.

The famous acrobat Red Panda, who is known for balancing ceramic bowls on her feet and head while riding a 7-foot unicycle at college and NBA arenas and also appeared on America’s Got Talent, will be performing during the game.

LSU’s final home game of the season tips off at 8 p.m. CT on Wednesday night.

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LSU basketball embarrassed by coachless Ole Miss team on Saturday night

The Tigers couldn’t string together another win against a struggling Ole Miss team on Saturday.

Any hope that Wednesday night’s win over Vanderbilt was going to spark a strong close to the season for the Tigers was dashed on Saturday night.

Facing a previously 10-18 Ole Miss team that had fired head coach Kermit Davis the day prior, LSU was embarrassed on the road in an 82-69 loss in Oxford.

The Tigers (13-16, 2-14 SEC) had one of their stronger starts to the season. The opening minutes were competitive, but LSU controlled for much of the first half and led by as much as seven. However, the Rebels (11-18, 3-13 SEC) stormed back and ended the frame on a 13-5 run that allowed them to take a nine-point lead to the locker room.

“Number one, credit to Ole Miss. They had had a lot go on here in the last 48 hours and I thought they came out really inspired and played together with great energy,” coach [autotag]Matt McMahon[/autotag] said in a release. “They just really manhandled us on the perimeter. Bumped us off every cut, really physical. Then, as you saw there, especially in the second half, unable to guard them. Just got beat time and time again off the dribble.

“In the first half, you get off to the great start, 15-8, obviously they were trying to double KJ (Williams), they were trying to take him away in the post. We got some good looks on those doubles, we were unable to knock them down and then we also took a couple of just horrific shots off the dribble that really hurt us in that stretch. Then to close it out there, every time we got it down to six or seven, we just couldn’t get a stop. They scored on almost every possession in the second half.”

[autotag]KJ Williams[/autotag] had another big game on offense, leading the team with 29 points while [autotag]Adam Miller[/autotag] had 15. But while the Tigers were good on offense in the second half, Ole Miss was even better and shot north of 60%. LSU had 13 turnovers, seven of which came in the second half, and that resulted in 16 total points going the other way.

LSU scored the first five points of the half and cut the lead to four, but it never got that close again.

“Really unfortunate, I thought we made some progress there,” McMahon said. “We had some untimely turnover and those 13 turnovers, the turnover battle pretty similar, but they (Ole Miss) convert theirs into 16 points. We only turned our forced turnovers into four. That ended up being a big difference in the game as well.”

With the loss, LSU is back in sole possession of last place in the SEC. With remaining regular-season games at home against a good Missouri team and on the road against a Florida team it lost to in Baton Rouge earlier this season, the Tigers will likely be the bottom-seeded team in the SEC Tournament, barring something surprising.

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LSU coach Matt McMahon says players were ‘locked in’ for streak-snapping win over Vanderbilt

The Tigers ended their 14-game skid with an impressive win over a hot Vanderbilt team.

The Tigers men’s basketball team finally got over the hump on Wednesday night, beating Vanderbilt at home to end a losing streak that reached 14 games.

The 84-77 win doesn’t salvage a lost season for LSU by any means, but it gives this team some semblance of momentum after it went nearly two months without a victory. Now, facing an Ole Miss team that just fired head coach Kermit Davis on Saturday, the Tigers will hope to turn one win into two.

After the win over the Commodores, coach [autotag]Matt McMahon[/autotag] offered praise for his players, who he said were “locked in” coming into the game.

Per On3:

“I thought so Sheldon, and you know the streak is something we certainly don’t spend much time talking about,” McMahon admitted. “Trying to focus on doing the things that we need to do to play better, to get better as a team and find ways to win. And I thought our players were really locked into that.”

…

“One thing that stands out, I thought Vandy obviously punched us in the face there to start the second half. Three straight drives to get it down to one, they went on another run in the second half and our guys responded both times. And oftentimes when you’re going through a losing stretch sometimes you just find another way to lose, and I thought our guys were really dialed in to doing the things necessary to win the game,” McMahon said.

Forward [autotag]KJ Williams[/autotag], who scored a season-high 35 points, echoed that sentiment.

“Just us staying the course,” Williams said. “Of course, we went on that long losing streak and us coming out tonight — the energy and preparation it took for us these last two days — we took it to the heart. We came out with the mindset ‘no matter what, we’re going to get this win.’ Credit to my teammates, they were locked in today.”

LSU may not be playing for a tournament spot (barring an improbable run at the SEC Tournament) but ending the year with some positives to build on would be huge for McMahon. Wednesday night’s win was the first step.

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PHOTOS: LSU takes down Vanderbilt for first win since Dec. 28

The Tigers ended their 14-game losing streak against the Commodores on Wednesday night.

It was starting to feel like LSU basketball’s losing streak — which reached 14 games — was never going to end.

But the Tigers (13-15, 2-13 SEC) finally got over the hump, beating Vanderbilt 84-77 at the PMAC on Wednesday night to earn their first win since Dec. 28 and just their second victory in conference play.

[autotag]KJ Williams[/autotag] had a huge game, notching a double-double with a season-high 35 points, while [autotag]Adam Miller[/autotag] also scored 18, nine of which came at the free-throw line. LSU will try to start a winning streak now as it travels to play a struggling Ole Miss team on Saturday.

Here were the best photos from LSU’s streak-snapping victory against the Commodores.

LSU basketball finally snaps 14-game losing streak against red-hot Vanderbilt

The Tigers got their first win since Dec. 28 on Wednesday night.

For the first time in nearly two months, LSU’s basketball found itself on the winning side of a basketball game on Wednesday night.

Facing a Vanderbilt team that entered on a five-game winning streak that included wins against Tennessee and Auburn, the Tigers controlled the game nearly the entire way en route to an 84-77 win. It was LSU’s first since Dec. 28 in the SEC opener against Arkansas, and it snapped a 14-game losing streak that has largely defined coach Matt McMahon’s first season.

The Tigers (13-15, 2-13 SEC) had another trademark poor offensive start, missing their first five shots and falling behind 11-5 in the early minutes. But LSU started heating up and was particularly effective from three, hitting 6 of 13 attempts in the first half from behind the arc.

Between the three-point shots falling and a Vanderbilt field-goal drought that lasted more than five minutes, LSU took control in the half. It led by as much as 10 and ultimately took a seven-point lead to the locker room.

The Commodores (15-13, 8-7 SEC) began the half on an 8-2 run that largely erased that lead. But they only retook it briefly, and LSU controlled the game in the second half. It made nine threes in this game, five of which came from [autotag]KJ Williams[/autotag], who finished with a season-high 35 points and 10 rebounds.

The Tigers took advantage of opportunities at the line, scoring 21 points from the charity stripe, nine of which came from [autotag]Adam Miller[/autotag], who shot 90% on free throws while scoring 18 points.

LSU’s postseason hopes remain dead in the water, but the team will look to string together some wins and end the season with momentum. Next up is another winnable contest on the road against Ole Miss on Saturday, and the Tigers will look to turn their losing streak into a winning streak.

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