BATON ROUGE – More accolades and notes are rolling in for the LSU men’s basketball team as it prepares for Friday’s exhibition contest against Morehouse State.
The game is open to the public free of charge at 7 p.m. in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center and two sets of football tickets to the LSU-Alabama game will be given away at halftime. A third set will be drawn for on Friday from among those who retweeted on Twitter and shared on Facebook the graphic advertising the game that was posted Monday morning.
The game will be available for viewing on the WatchESPN.com site and the WatchESPN app through SECN+ and the radio broadcast will be available on selected affiliates of the LSU Sports Radio Network.
Some more polls and accolades for the Tigers and various players as come out since our last notebook, including more of ESPN’s top 100 players that earlier featured sophomore Jarell Martin.
LSU sophomore Jordan Mickey made the list at No. 48 and earned this notation from the selectors for the web site: “The Tigers haven’t reached the NCAA tourney since 2009. But Johnny Jones hopes to break that streak as Jarell Martin and Mickey, an athletic forward who topped 100 blocks last season, lead the program.”
Jon Rothstein Including LSU
Jon Rothstein of CBSsports.com has been including LSU in some of his preview categories, starting with his 10 best (in no particular order) junior college transfers to watch.
In that group is junior Josh Gray, the point guard from Odessa College. Rothstein writes: “Former Texas Tech point guard was a lethal scorer last season in junior college, averaging 34.7 points. Gray’s ability to score and, maybe more importantly, his ability to sacrifice may very well dictate the type of season the Tigers enjoy in Baton Rouge. The 6-1 guard took 22 or more shots in 25 games last season.”
Also, in listing the top under- transfer players for the coming year, Rothstein wisely selected guard Keith Hornsby. Here’s what was written: “Johnny Jones said all summer that Hornsby is the hardest working kid he’s ever been around during his 30 years in coaching, and that type of drive could push Hornsby into the Tigers’ starting lineup this season. The 6-4 shooting guard averaged 15.0 points and shot 37.9 percent from 3-point range two years ago at UNC-Asheville.”
How About Garrett Temple?
How about former LSU basketball player Garrett Temple getting some love in the Washington Post as he starts the season in the off-guard position for the Washington Wizards. Through Monday night, the Wizards have played three games and he is averaging 34 minutes a game, 12 points and 3.7 rebounds a game.
He is in for Bradley Beal, who is his best friend and biggest supporter on the team who fractured his left wrist in the preseason. Glen Rice, Jr., initially moved into that spot but sprained his right ankle in the preseason. Temple had six points in the opener, but then had 12 in a win over the Magic and a career-high 18 against Milwaukee, playing the entire second half.
“It’s gratifying to know that the work you’re putting in is definitely paying off,” Temple said in the article. “It makes me want to work more.”
Coach Randy Wittman told The Post, “He’s playing with great confidence. And the energy and the effort that he can give us defensively is still there.”
Temple played on the NCAA Final Four team as a freshman for the Tigers in 2006 and the 2009 SEC Championship team.
One Exhibition and Then It Begins
The Tigers will play their exhibition on Friday and then basically will have seven days to get the mistakes corrected to prepare for the season opener against Gardner-Webb on Nov. 15 at noon. There will be no conflict with football as LSU and Arkansas will play on the road that night at 7 p.m. Following that it’s a quick turnaround to Nov. 18 at 8:30 p.m. for an ESPN2 game with Texas Tech to help conclude the annual ESPN Tipoff Marathon.
The Tigers will then leave the next morning for the U.S. Virgin Islands and the Paradise Jam Tournament beginning on Nov. 21.
Tickets for all non-conference games are on sale for individual sales as well as new season tickets and Pick 3 and Pick 5 mini-plans at LSUtix.net. Follow LSU Basketball at www.Facebook.com/LSUBasketball, on Twitter @LSUBasketball and Instagram @LSUBasketball.