Tag: Matt McMahon

LSU offers 2024 four-star power forward

The Tigers are going after a top-30 player in next year’s cycle.

[autotag]Donnie Freeman[/autotag] is a 2024, four-star, 6-foot-8, 190-pound power forward from Washington, D.C., where he plays for St. John’s College High School. The St. John’s Cadets finished the 2021 season 15-13 with a loss to the Sidwell Friends Quakers in the AA state semifinals.

There are currently no crystal ball projections for Freeman, but Iowa is a 55% favorite to land the talented power forward, per On3. [autotag]Matt McMahon[/autotag] is entering his first season as the head coach of the LSU Tigers, and his tenure got off to a nice start with a win in his first game of the season.

LSU currently doesn’t have any commits for the 2024 recruiting class.

PHOTOS: LSU takes down Kansas City in Matt McMahon’s debut

The McMahon era started off with a win in Baton Rouge for the Tigers.

The Tigers began the [autotag]Matt McMahon[/autotag] era in Baton Rouge on a high note Wednesday night with a 74-63 win over Kansas City, though it was a bit too close for comfort.

The Roos lost their opener to a Division II program in Lincoln, but they had this one within five with just over five minutes to play. However, LSU ultimately prevailed to avoid a spoiler in McMahon’s first game at the helm.

[autotag]Adam Miller[/autotag], a transfer from Illinois who tore his ACL before last year’s campaign, led the team in scoring with 18 points, while [autotag]KJ Williams[/autotag], a transfer from Murray State and the defending Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Year, finished with a 13-point, 14-rebound double-double.

[autotag]Justice Hill[/autotag], another Murray State transfer, also finished with 13 points in his LSU debut.

The Tigers will need to play better than this moving forward, but a win was a solid way for McMahon to begin his first season. The Tigers next host Arkansas State on Saturday night.

Here were the best photos from the opening win.

LSU basketball gets win over Kansas City in Matt McMahon’s debut

Matt McMahon began his tenure at LSU with a win over Kansas City that was a bit too close for comfort.

A new era of LSU basketball began on Wednesday night with a 74-63 win over Kansas City.

[autotag]Matt McMahon[/autotag] made his LSU debut, as did a slew of newcomers. [autotag]Mwani Wilkinson[/autotag] scored LSU’s first points of the year as LSU jumped out to a 9-2 lead.

From that point on, the Tigers hovered around a five-point lead for the rest of the half.

[autotag]Adam Miller[/autotag] made his long-awaited debut after transferring from Illinois in 2021. The guard was expected to be a top contributor on last year’s team before tearing his ACL in the preseason.

He was LSU’s leading scorer with 18 points.

In the spring, Miller being on the court for LSU was far from a sure thing. He had a smooth recovery, but upon Will Wade’s firing, Miller explored his options in the transfer portal. Miller returning to LSU was one of McMahon’s biggest gets as he’s set to feature in the offense.

Another Tiger making his debut was [autotag]KJ Williams[/autotag], who came with McMahon from Murray State. Williams is expected to be LSU’s top player in the front court and delivered in the opener with a double-double (13 points, 14 rebounds).

It was a win, but it could have been a lot smoother. LSU had a few chances to pull away, but Kansas City hung around. LSU turned the ball over 15 times and committed 23 fouls.

The Tigers will have some growing pains, but that was expected. Very few of these guys have played with each other before and this is a sport where chemistry is of critical importance.

Given some time, McMahon’s track record and the level of talent he has to work with now, it figures this team will improve throughout the year. LSU will try to move to 2-0 on Saturday when the Tigers host Arkansas State.

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LSU forward KJ Williams named to Coaches All-SEC Preseason Second Team

KJ Williams is the reigning Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Year.

The Tigers have a new-look roster heading into the 2022-23 basketball season, the first under coach [autotag]Matt McMahon[/autotag]. They’ve certainly reloaded the depleted depth with a number of transfers and incoming freshmen recruits, but one enters the year with especially high expectations.

[autotag]KJ Williams[/autotag], a fifth-year transfer from Murray State who followed Matt McMahon to Baton Rouge, was named a member of the Preseason All-SEC Second Team, according to the league coaches. Williams is the reigning Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Year and was a two-time First Team All-OVC selection with the Racers.

He joins LSU expected to be one of the top players in the league. Last season, he averaged 18 points per game and 8.4 rebounds per game. He notched 27 career double-doubles during his four years at Murray State.

The Tigers begin the 2022-23 campaign and McMahon era on Wednesday night when they host Kansas City in the season opener.

Here’s the full preseason First and Second Team All-SEC selections.

First Team Preseason All-SEC
Jahvon Quinerly – Alabama
Nick Smith Jr. – Arkansas
Colin Castleton – Florida
Oscar Tshiebwe – Kentucky
Sahvir Wheeler – Kentucky
Tolu Smith – Mississippi State
Kobe Brown – Missouri
Santiago Vescovi – Tennessee
Zakai Zeigler – Tennessee

Second Team Preseason All-SEC
Brandon Miller – Alabama
Wendell Green Jr. – Auburn
K.D. Johnson – Auburn
Kario Oquendo – Georgia
KJ Williams – LSU
Matthew Murrell – Ole Miss
Josiah-Jordan James – Tennessee
Henry Coleman III – Texas A&M

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LSU vs. Kansas City: Stream, injury report, broadcast info for men’s basketball season opener

Here’s what you need to know to follow the Tigers’ season opener Wednesday night.

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.

LSU forward expected to be one of college basketball’s most impactful transfers this season

KJ Williams, the reigning OVC Player of the Year, is expected to make a big impact after following Matt McMahon from Murray State.

When new LSU coach [autotag]Matt McMahon[/autotag] took the job last spring, the task set before him was a daunting one.

Following the firing of coach [autotag]Will Wade[/autotag], the Tigers saw a mass exodus of talent from the basketball program as players flocked to the transfer portal or NBA draft. McMahon managed to keep a couple of those guys around, and he made up for the losses with a fantastic recruiting and transfer class.

The transfers, specifically, are set to make a major impact in McMahon’s first season in Baton Rouge, and one of them was named among the top 25 transfers to watch in college basketball in 2022-23.

[autotag]KJ Williams[/autotag], a fifth-year forward who followed McMahon from his previous post at Murray State, came in at No. 9 in the transfer rankings from On3. Williams saw significant action in each of his four seasons with the Racers, and he spent the last two seasons as a full-time starter.

He’s coming off his best season yet. In 2021-22, Williams averaged 18 points and 8.4 rebounds per game. It was the third straight season that Williams averaged in double-figures scoring with the Racers. He was named the Ohio Valley Conference Player of the Year last season and is a three-time First Team All-OVC selection.

He was considered one of the top transfer portal options available this offseason, and he ultimately made the decision to join his head coach in the SEC. The 6-foot-10 forward — who is originally from Cleveland, Mississippi — is one of three transfers LSU landed from Murray State, alongside [autotag]Trae Hannibal[/autotag] and [autotag]Justice Hill[/autotag].

The Tigers are coming off a first-round NCAA Tournament exit in Wade’s final season (though he didn’t coach in the tournament). It’s hard to know what to expect from this new-look roster, but players like Williams raise the ceiling considerably.

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LSU AD Scott Woodward set to receive 4-year extension

LSU’s board of supervisors is set for a vote to approve Woodward’s extension — which would pay him $1.8 million annually — on Friday afternoon.

Tigers athletics director [autotag]Scott Woodward[/autotag] is sticking around for the near future.

Woodward is set to receive a four-year extension that will pay him $1.85 million annually. The university’s board of supervisors is set to hold a vote to approve Woodward’s extension on Friday afternoon.

Woodward’s contract includes academic incentives that could boost his pay by as much as $250,000 annually, per a report from ESPN’s Alex Scarborough. It could also net him $500,000 in bonuses for the 2025 and 2029 fiscal years if he meets certain incentives, and a national championship for one program or an SEC title for three would grant him an additional $500,000 in a “Milestone Performance Payment.”

LSU hired Woodward away from Texas A&M, where he pulled football coach Jimbo Fisher from Florida State, in 2019. Since joining his alma mater, Woodward has gained notoriety for his flashy coach hirings, which have included [autotag]Brian Kelly[/autotag], [autotag]Kim Mulkey[/autotag], [autotag]Matt McMahon[/autotag] and [autotag]Jay Johnson[/autotag].

Woodward is regarded as one of the top ADs in college sports, and it seems like he’ll be calling the shots at LSU, at least in the relative short term.

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LSU offers 2024 wing from Connecticut

Tyler Betsey is considered a top-100 prospect.

[autotag]Tyler Betsey[/autotag] is a 2024, four-star, small forward from Windsor, Connecticut, where he played for the Windsor Warriors before he transferred this offseason to St. Thomas More Prep School.

The Warriors finished last season 20-5 with a loss in the third round of the state playoffs to Notre Dame. New head coach [autotag]Matt McMahon[/autotag] has been working all off-season to prepare his team for the 2022 season.

The Tigers start their season on November 9, 2022, against Kansas City. LSU fans are anxious and excited to get the McMahon era begun on the Bayou, hopefully, it will bring a lot of great wins and maybe some championships.

LSU basketball coach Matt McMahon discusses potential NCAA sanctions

McMahon gave his thoughts on LSU’s trouble with the NCAA before he arrived.

As LSU was looking for its next basketball coach, there was a question about how the looming NCAA sanctions would affect the search.

Things turned out well with the hiring of [autotag]Matt McMahon[/autotag]. Taking over the job with an empty cupboard, McMahon worked the transfer portal, convinced a couple of guys to return and even picked up a few blue-chip high school recruits.

The initial success of the rebuild has made some LSU fans forget about the potential of severe sanctions being placed on the program, but McMahon recently discussed the situation.

“We’ve got to control what we can control,” McMahon said at a press conference. “Whatever’s happened in the past, I have nothing to do with it. We have nothing to do with it.

“We have nothing to do with what happens NCAA-wise moving forward. So, we don’t ever talk about it.”

McMahon added that he just wanted to focus on the daily process. He’s just focusing on moving the program forward. LSU fired [autotag]Will Wade[/autotag] following the IARP’s report in March that detailed the specific violations.

LSU opens its season in Baton Rouge on Nov. 9 against Kansas City. It begins conference play on Dec. 28 as the Tigers host Arkansas.

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Four-star point guard lists LSU in his top-six

The Tigers have made an impression on one of the top prospects in 2024.

[autotag]John Mobley Jr.[/autotag] is a 2024 four-star, 6-foot, 150-pound point guard from Las Vegas where he plays for Bishop Gorman High School. On Tuesday, he released a top six that included the Tigers

Mobley currently has no Crystal Ball projections per 247, but Creighton and Ohio State lead the way according to On3. LSU basketball coach [autotag]Matt McMahon[/autotag] currently doesn’t have any commitments for the 2024 class and only has one for the 2023 class.

Mobley was offered by LSU on July 14, and the new head coach has been hard at work trying to get him to take his talents to the Bayou. He will for sure be a guy to watch for the next two seasons before he finally signs his letter of intent to play at the next level.

Official practice for the 2022 basketball season started Sept. 28 as the Tigers get ready to take on Kansas City on Wednesday, Nov. 9.

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