BATON ROUGE – The LSU men’s basketball team returns home to the Pete Maravich Assembly Center to host Western Division leader Alabama in an 8 p.m. game Thursday that will be the first of two consecutive games nationally-televised on the flagship network of SEC basketball, ESPN.
Carter Blackburn and lead SEC analyst Jimmy Dykes will call the game on ESPN, while as usual, Jim Hawthorne, Ricky Blanton and Kevin Ford will have the call on the affiliates of the LSU Sports Radio Network (WTGE New Country 100.7 FM The Tiger in Baton Rouge) and at www.LSUsports.net/live.
Entertainment & Promotions Schedule
Tickets are available at www.LSUtix.net, at the LSU Athletics Ticket Office during the day on Thursday and then beginning at 6:30 p.m. at the upper ticket windows of the PMAC. LSU students get in free of charge with their college ID. The student lounge will be open beginning at 6:30 p.m. on the upper concourse with food and drink courtesy of Acme Oyster House.
Thursday’s game is also a designated “Student Point Game” in which students earn priority points based on their attendance at the game that can be used to help with ticket priority for future events. Also, one student will win a free ticket to September’s Cowboys Classic football game in Arlington between LSU and Oregon.
Two season ticket-holders in attendance will receive a pair of club tickets for Friday night’s season-opening baseball game at Alex Box Stadium between LSU and Wake Forest. Finally, Krystal The Red Panda acrobat will perform her act at halftime, courtesy of Peoples Health.
LSU is 10-15 on the year, 2-8 in the SEC, while Alabama leads the SEC Western Division by 3 ½ games with a record of 16-8 and 8-2. In the first meeting between the two teams on Jan. 29, Alabama used its muscle to gain its 70-46 win, out rebounding LSU, 43-24 and 20-8 on the offensive glass. JaMychal Green had 20 points to lead Alabama, while Tony Mitchell added 14 points. Andre Stringer had 13 points to lead LSU, while Matt Derenbecker scored 10 as LSU played without both Ralston Turner and Storm Warren.
“We’re playing a really good basketball team (in Alabama) that I think is an NCAA Tournament team without question,” said LSU Coach Trent Johnson at his Tuesday media session. “Alabama has pretty much had their way with us since I’ve been here. We need to play well and we need to shoot the ball. (Alabama’s success) is not a surprise to me. I just felt like the key to a lot of teams in our league was staying healthy. If you look at when (Alabama) lost some games in non-conference, it was because Green and (Charvez) Davis weren’t around. They’ve got a special group, no question.”
LSU will play four-of-its-last-six at home and hopes for the type of performances that saw the Tigers best defensive efforts in narrow losses to South Carolina and Mississippi State.
LSU is expected to stay with its freshman backcourt of Andre Stringer, Matt Derenbecker and Ralston Turner with junior Storm Warren and Malcolm White at forwards. Stringer and Turner each average 12.2 points per game and Derenbecker leads the team in SEC scoring at 10.3 points per game.
Green averages 16.0 points per game for the Tide with Tony Mitchell, who has had four straight 20-plus point games, averaging 15.8 a contest for second-year Coach Anthony Grant.
The Tigers will have to follow this game by hosting Eastern Division leader Florida on Sunday at noon on ESPN. Follow LSU Basketball on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/LSUBasketball and on Twitter @LSUBasketball and @LSUCoachJohnson.