BATON ROUGE — Coming off a seven-day hiatus for final exams, the LSU men’s basketball team shot a season-high 63.8 percent from the field to dismantle the Texas A&M-Corpus Christi Islanders, 95-60, on Saturday night in the Maravich Assembly Center.
The Tigers (5-1) had little trouble against the hapless NCAA Independent which has allowed Division I opponents to score 92.8 points per game and shoot better than 55 percent from the field this season. TAM-CC fell to 2-5 this season including a win over Division III Trinity College.
Ronald Dupree, who has made 24 of his last 32 shots from the field (.750) in the past three games, made 9-of-12 to lead five Tigers in double figures with 18 points. Guard Antonio Hudson had 12 points, forward Jaime Lloreda had 11 and Collis Temple and Thomas Davis scored 10 each. Guards Torris Bright and Tony Gipson each added eight points.
LSU shot better than 60 percent from the field for the first time in two years and one day, making 37 of 58 shots. TAM-CC shot only 36.8 percent (21 of 57) and turned the ball over 20 times. Thirty of LSU’s 37 field goals were assisted.
TAM-CC (2-5) was led by point guard Brian Evans, who scored a game-high 20 points on 6-of-16 shooting. Aaron White was the only other Islander in double figures with 10 points.
After surrendering a pair of baskets to TAM-CC’s speedy point guard Brian Evans, the Tigers rolled off the next eight points to take an 8-4 lead before the first media timeout at the 16:35 mark. The run was capped by a three-pointer by Mitchell from the left wing and ended with a layup by the Islanders’ Corey Lamkin.
Coming out of the timeout, the Tigers scored the next five points including another trey by Mitchell on a well executed dribble penetration by Bright to lead 13-6.
After a basket by Derrick Murphy with 13:45 to play, the Tigers started a 18-0 run that lasted until the 7:56 mark of the first half.
The Tigers lead extended to 22-8 when a blocked shot by Bright led to a fast-break three-point play by Antonio Hudson. TAM-CC head coach Ronnie Arrow was also charged with a technical foul after the play after arguing that Evans’ blocking foul should have been called a charge on Hudson. Hudson made both technical free throws and the tail end of the three-point play to end the five-point trip.
LSU scored the next nine points to lead by 23, 31-8, before the Lamkin hit a jumper to end the drought.
On a layup by Dupree, the Tigers earned their largest lead of the half, 40-13, with 5:34 to play before halftime. With a 42-16 lead at the 4:00 mark, the Tigers were shooting 68 percent from the field, 17 of 25, with five of their misses from three-point range.
LSU led 46-23 at halftime on 65.5 percent shooting (19 of 29).
With an 21-3 run including seven straight points by Hudson to start the second half, LSU extended its lead to 67-26 with 13:22 remaining in the game. Temple put an exclamation mark on the run with a strong drive through the lane for a one-handed dunk.
Leading 72-33 with 11:37 to play, LSU head coach John Brady began to empty his bench, replacing his starters with guards Gipson, Mitchell and Charlie Thompson, and forwards Brad Bridgewater and Thomas Davis.
When reserve guards Courtney Trask and Xavier Whipple entered the game with just more than seven minutes to play, the Tigers had increased the lead to 81-37.
Seldom used walk-ons and crowd favorites Brian Green and Paul Wolfert entered the game with just more than a minute to play. Wolfert, whose father played for the Tigers in the 1970’s, scored his first career basket in the closing seconds of the contest.
The Tigers return to action on Tuesday night at 7 p.m. against Prairie View A&M. One lucky fan in attendance will have a chance to win $10,000.