BATON ROUGE — It was a case of two much Kentucky and not enough LSU offense as the Wildcats down the Tigers, 68-56, Saturday afternoon in a Southeastern Conference men’s basketball game at the Maravich Assembly Center.
The seventh-ranked Wildcats improved to 16-6 and 6-4 in the SEC Eastern Division. LSU fell to 12-11, 2-8 in the SEC Western Division, having lost for the sixth straight time.
Tayshaun Prince scored 18 points, including four treys, with six blocks to lead Kentucky, while Jules Camara came off the bench to get 12 points on six-of-eight shooting. Gerald Fitch added 11 points. For LSU, Ronald Dupree had his fourth straight double-double in SEC play with 22 points and 13 rebounds, with Torris Bright hitting four treys in a 17 point night.
“I thought that outside of the first 12 minutes of the game, our team from a defensive standpoint played pretty good,” said LSU Coach John Brady of his team, which played without Collis Temple III, who missed the game with a sprained ankle. “In the first 12 minutes of the game, I thought that Kentucky really scored as they wished. We thought that we’d start off in a zone, but then Tayshaun Prince goes 4-of-4 from the three-point line. Outside of the first 12 minutes of the game, I thought our team defended well, and we out rebounded them by eight.”
Kentucky did take advantage of LSU early, jumping out to a 10-4 advantage before LSU tied at 10. But from there the Wildcats again took advantage building as much as an 18-points lead, 40-22, with 4:26 left in the opening 20 minutes before LSU cut its disadvantage to 14, 42-28, at the half.
The Tigers tried to rally twice in the second half, cutting it to nine, 44-35, at the 17:40 mark and then at the end when LSU cut it from 21 to the final margin. Jermaine Williams helped LSU defensively in the half with six steals and the Tigers had 20 offensive boards in the contest.
“We had 20 offensive rebounds which means that our team was trying to get to the ball after it was shot,” said Brady. “That was positive, but our biggest concern or problem is finding someone to score the ball besides two people.
From an offensive standpoint, we just fight that some. We need to find someone who can score the ball other than Ronald Dupree and Torris Bright.”
“I thought our guys really executed,” said Kentucky Coach Tubby Smith. “I know that LSU is a little shorthanded. Without Collis (Temple) you could tell that they weren’t really the same, but LSU has been a really solid team all year long. I was pleased with our effort, I thought Tayshaun (Prince) got us off to a good start.”
The Tigers stay at home for their next game Wednesday night against Mississippi State at 7 p.m. in the Maravich Assembly Center.