Tag: LSU Men’s Basketball

LSU guard Carlos Stewart enters the transfer portal

A highly anticipated transfer from Santa Clara, Stewart appeared in 13 games with nine starts before a knee injury ended his season.

LSU’s men’s basketball team has seen another departure via the transfer portal. After just one injury-limited season with the Tigers, [autotag]Carlos Stewart[/autotag] entered the transfer portal on Tuesday night.

Stewart arrived as a highly anticipated transfer last offseason following two years at Santa Clara, where he was a First Team All-WCC selection in 2023 following his first year as a full-time starter.

He began the year in a big role for the Tigers, starting nine of the 13 games he appeared in early in the season before a knee injury ended his campaign. He averaged 19.4 minutes, 4.7 points, 2.2 rebounds and an assist this season.

LSU has now seen two players enter the transfer portal as Stewart joins fellow guard [autotag]Mwani Wilkinson[/autotag]. The Tigers also have a commitment from one incoming transfer in former Kansas State guard [autotag]Cam Carter[/autotag].

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LSU guard Jalen Cook declares for 2024 NBA draft

Jalen Cook returned to LSU after two years at Tulane, but he was injured and later suspended down the stretch.

LSU and former Tulane guard [autotag]Jalen Cook[/autotag] is entering the 2024 NBA draft, he told CBS Sports’ Jon Rothstein on Monday. Cook does have remaining eligibility and will have the opportunity to return to school after testing the draft waters, provided he hires an NCAA-approved agent.

Cook, a native of Walker, Louisiana, began his career at LSU before transferring to Tulane. After earning back-to-back First Team All-AAC honors with the Green Wave, he returned to Baton Rouge this season.

He was initially expected to sit out the 2023-24 season as a two-time transfer, but he received eligibility from the NCAA in mid-December.

Cook appeared in 13 games, making nine starts while averaging 15.6 points and 2.8 assists. However, he battled a leg injury down the stretch and was later suspended by coach Matt McMahon for reasons that were never disclosed.

If Cook opts to return to college basketball for a fifth and final season, it’s unclear if he will return to LSU or re-enter the transfer portal for a third time.

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4-star guard Vyctorius Miller commits to LSU men’s basketball

LSU has added its third commitment in the 2025 cycle.

The LSU men’s basketball team took some significant strides in Year 2 under coach Matt McMahon, but it will be expected to take another step next season.

The Tigers are off to a good start in terms of roster construction for 2024-25, and they landed another four-star commitment in the 2024 class in Vyctorius Miller.

The four-star shooting guard hails from Compass Prep in Chandler, Arizona, and ranks as the No. 53 player nationally according to both 247Sports’ and On3’s national rankings. LSU had a Crystal Ball projection to land Miller, but On3 had Oregon as the favorite for the blue-chip prospect, who is listed at 6-foot-5 and 170 pounds.

With Miller’s addition, LSU’s class now ranks 29th nationally and features three four-star recruits as forward [autotag]Robert Miller[/autotag] and point guard [autotag]Curtis Givens III[/autotag] have already signed.

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LSU among the final 4 for Appalachian State basketball transfer Tre’Von Spillers

Tre’Von Spillers earned First Team All-Sun Belt honors in his lone season with the Mountaineers.

The Tigers took some noticeable strides in Year 2 under [autotag]Matt McMahon[/autotag]. They finished with a winning record and improved their SEC win total from two games to nine this year, earning a bid to the NIT in the process.

But the team still wasn’t in the tournament mix, and after two transfer-heavy offseasons in Baton Rouge, McMahon is likely to hit the portal hard once again this time around.

LSU is already making progress in that regard. Over the weekend, it cracked the final four for Appalachian State basketball transfer [autotag]Tre’Von Spillers[/autotag], alongside conference foe Arkansas as well as Wake Forest and UAB.

A Charleston, South Carolina, native, Spillers joined the Mountaineers this season as a JUCO transfer and played a major role. He averaged 12.8 points and 8.9 rebounds while earning First Team All-Sun Belt honors.

The 6-foot-7 forward would be a nice wing addition for the Tigers, who have already landed a backcourt transfer in Kansas State guard [autotag]Cam Carter[/autotag].

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LSU men’s basketball lands first transfer portal commitment from Kansas State’s Cam Carter

The Tigers have landed their first commitment from the transfer portal this offseason.

After the conclusion of Year 2 under coach [autotag]Matt McMahon[/autotag], which saw the Tigers’ season end in the first round of the NIT against North Texas, LSU has landed its first men’s basketball transfer portal commitment of the cycle.

On Friday, Kansas State guard [autotag]Cam Carter[/autotag] announced his commitment to the Tigers, according to On3’s Joe Tipton. Carter finished his high school career in Virginia, but he’s a native of Donaldsonvile, Louisiana.

He’ll be making his return to the SEC after spending one year at Mississippi State before he spent the last two years in Manhattan, Kansas, with the Wildcats.

Carter was a rotational player with the Bulldogs but started all 70 games he appeared in at Kansas State. He averaged 14.6 points, five rebounds and 2.5 assists this season.

It’s a major pickup for the Tigers, which are set to lose both [autotag]Jordan Wright[/autotag] and [autotag]Trae Hannibal[/autotag] as well as possibly [autotag]Jalen Cook[/autotag] from the backcourt.

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LSU makes top 7 for 4-star power forward

Syracuse is a 14.6% favorite to land Sadiq White per On3.

LSU’s basketball season may have just ended, but the recruiting cycle is still heating up. [autotag]Matt McMahon[/autotag] improved the Tigers team from Year 1 to Year 2 under his leadership and he is continuing to try to land the best players in the country.

This time, he has the Tigers in the final seven for the No. 1 player in the state of North Carolina. [autotag]Sadiq White[/autotag] is a four-star power forward from Charlotte where he plays for Myers Park High School. The Myers Park Mustangs finished the 2023-24 season with a 27-3 record and a loss to North Mecklenburg in the Class 4A Elite 8.

LSU joins Alabama, Arkansas, Syracuse, Georgetown, Texas and Tennessee in the final seven. There are currently no crystal ball projections for White at this time but Syracuse is a 14.6% favorite to land him per On3.

LSU does not have any commits for the 2025 recruiting class in basketball yet.

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LSU men’s basketball’s Mwani Wilkinson enters transfer portal

Mwani Wilkinson entered the transfer portal as a graduate transfer on Friday.

After a loss in its NIT opener to North Texas, the LSU men’s basketball team has seen its first piece of postseason attrition.

On Friday, senior forward [autotag]Mwani Wilkinson[/autotag] entered the transfer portal as a graduate transfer. He will have one remaining season of eligibility.

A four-year player for the Tigers, he appeared in 100 games with 57 starts. He was a regular starter in 2021-22 and 2022-23 before his season ended due to injury after 12 games last year. As a senior this season, he appeared in 27 games with four starts while averaging 2.1 points and a rebound.

Wilkinson initially entered the transfer portal when [autotag]Matt McMahon[/autotag] was hired, but he opted to stay.

Now, he’ll be moving on to greener pastures, after all.

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Shaq’s son Shaqir O’Neal enters the transfer portal

Shaqir O’Neal appeared in 20 games this season with one start at Texas Southern.

Another son of former LSU star and NBA Hall of Famer [autotag]Shaquille O’Neal[/autotag] has hit the transfer portal.

Shaq’s son [autotag]Shaqir O’Neal[/autotag], who previously played for Texas Southern, has opted to transfer. A 6-foot-8, 201-pound forward from Los Angeles, O’Neal was a redshirt sophomore for the Tigers this season.

He’s appeared in 20 games with one start in each of the last two seasons, and in 2023-24, he averaged 1.8 points and 1.8 rebounds.

A three-star recruit who attended Union Grove High School in McDonough, Georgia, O’Neal ranked as the No. 284 nationally in the 2021 class, per the 247Sports Composite Rankings. His brother, Shareef, began his career at UCLA before transferring to LSU.

The elder O’Neal brother appeared in 24 games as a backup for the Tigers over two seasons. He went undrafted in 2022 and briefly spent time with the G League Ignite.

Shaqir is a largely unproven player, but coach [autotag]Matt McMahon[/autotag] could take a flyer on a legacy.

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Instant Analysis: LSU men’s basketball’s season ends in NIT opener against North Texas

The Tigers’ season came to an end on Tuesday night with a home loss in the NIT opener.

LSU’s stay in the NIT lasted just one game as the fourth-seeded Tigers were ousted in their opener with an 84-77 loss on its home court to defending tournament champion North Texas.

[autotag]Matt McMahon[/autotag] finishes his second year at the helm in Baton Rouge with a 17-16 record and moves to 31-35 overall as the head coach of LSU men’s basketball.

The first 10 minutes or so were back and forth, but LSU was in control. That changed at the eight-minute mark when North Texas began a 13-2 run to take the lead, which it wouldn’t surrender for the rest of the half.

With the Tigers shooting 11 of 31, UNT led by as many as 11 points and ultimately took a 38-30 lead to the locker room.

LSU came out of the game hot in the second half, making five of its first seven shots as it cut the Mean Green lead to four points. But it couldn’t sustain that run, and North Texas quickly regained control and stretched what was at that point a game-high 18-point lead.

The Tigers had one final rally in them, and they cut the lead down to just five in the final minute to make things interesting, but they couldn’t erase the deficit as their season came to an end.

[autotag]Jordan Wright[/autotag] had a huge game in what was ultimately his final collegiate outing, scoring a game-high 25 points. [autotag]Trae Hannibal[/autotag] added 15, but even shooting above 50% in the second half couldn’t get the Tigers out of the hole.

After a disappointing Year 1 for McMahon, who had to rebuild nearly the entire roster from scratch, LSU showed signs of progress in Year 2. Now, however, McMahon’s group will be expected to take another leap and compete for an NCAA Tournament bid next season.

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LSU coach Matt McMahon entering rematch vs. North Texas in NIT opener with a blank slate

This will be the second meeting between the two teams this year, with the Tigers winning the first by five on a neutral court.

When LSU hosts North Texas at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center on Tuesday night to kick off the 2024 NIT, it will pit two teams that have some familiarity with each other head-to-head.

This will be the second matchup of the season between the two teams after LSU won the first 66-61 in Charleston on a neutral court. Both teams have changed a lot since then, however, particularly LSU.

The Tigers hit their stride toward the back end of SEC play, and the Mean Green have improved as well. Coach [autotag]Matt McMahon[/autotag] said he isn’t relying too much on what he learned from the first matchup against UNT.

“I’m not sure how much the familiarity helps with this one,” McMahon said, per On3. “I believe it’s been 125 days since we played. I think we’re a lot different team from that game. Personnel, rotation is a little different. Style of play has certainly evolved since the season has gone along.”

McMahon did say that the team knows how physical North Texas can be, and that will help in preparation.

“Unfortunately, I think they’re an a lot better team as well from when we played them back in November. But I think there probably is a good thing for our players having gone through that game,” McMahon said. “They have immediate respect for the opponent because they know how tough and physical and aggressively they play, how disruptive they are on the defensive end of the floor, their ability to — they hit 12 threes in that game in the first matchup against us. So, I do think there’s some benefits to that familiarity from the first matchup.”

The Tigers are the No. 4 seed in their bracket and would likely face top-seeded Seton Hall with a win. LSU will host North Texas at the PMAC at 6 p.m. CT on Tuesday night.

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