OXFORD, Miss. – Keith Hornsby racked up 20 of his 23 points during the second half and buried a career-high five three-pointers to vault the LSU men’s basketball team to a 75-71 road victory over Ole Miss on Wednesday evening at Tad Smith Coliseum.
For Hornsby, the 23 points was his second-highest scoring output of the season. He also drained a pair of critical free throws with 5.7 seconds remaining to give the Tigers (13-3, 2-1 SEC) a two-possession cushion and the four-point win.
LSU also had a trio of players secure double-doubles. Jarell Martin pumped in 18 points and equaled a career-high with 14 rebounds. He was a crisp 9-of-12 from the floor, and the 18 points was a season’s best for Martin in SEC play.
Josh Gray registered 14 points and dished out a career-best 10 assists, while Jordan Mickey tallied 11 points and 11 rebounds for his ninth double dip on the season. He also secured six blocks. Off the bench, Tim Quarterman chipped in eight points and three rebounds.
Ole Miss (10-6, 1-2 SEC) was led by M.J. Rhett’s 15 points and seven rebounds. Stefon Moody tallied 14 points and Jarvis Summers came away with 13 points for the Rebels.
As a team, the Tigers were 26-of-60 from the floor and dialed up a 6-for-20 clip from three-point territory. LSU also knocked down 17-of-23 at the free throw line which a 13-for-15 mark during the second half.
Trailing 26-19 at the 4:14 mark of the first half, LSU reeled off 13 of the next 15 points to turn the tables and snatch a 32-28 advantage heading into the locker room. Martin nailed a midrange jumper to ignite the spurt, and Quarterman sank a triple from the right baseline to give the Tigers a 27-26 lead. Mickey tacked on a layup, and Hornsby closed out the stanza with a trifecta from the left wing.
LSU kept the momentum and put together 11 of the opening 15 points of the second half. In total, it was a 24-6 flurry for the Tigers over a seven minute stretch which enabled LSU to open up a double-digit lead, 43-32, with 17:06 remaining. Gray added a pair of layup, and Hornsby drained another three-ball to highlight the run.
Ole Miss fired back with 12 consecutive points to regain a 44-43 edge with 13:49 to go. The Tigers responded and went up 53-46 with 11:40 left after Quarterman slapped home a highlight reel dunk, and Hornsby sank another triple. Both plays were set up by Gray assists.
The Rebels got within single possessions on multiple occasions, but LSU answered each time. Ole Miss made it 73-71 after a Summers runner with nine seconds on the clock. The Tigers inbounded the ball to Hornsby, and he calmly sank a pair of free throws for the final margin of 75-71.
Up next, LSU returns home to meet Texas A&M on Saturday morning. Tipoff is scheduled for 11 a.m. from the Maravich Center, and the game will be televised by ESPN2 along with www.WatchESPN.com and the Watch ESPN app.
The LSU Sports Radio Network also will broadcast the game on Eagle 98.1 FM in the Baton Rouge area and inside the Geaux Zone at LSUsports.net/live. Jim Hawthorne, Ricky Blanton and Kevin Ford will call the action.
For all of the latest news and information on Tiger basketball, visit www.lsusports.net/basketball. Fans can also follow the program on its social media outlets atwww.Facebook.com/lsubasketball along with @LSUBasketball and @LSUCoachJones on Twitter and @LSUBasketball on Instagram.