After losses, LSU and Missouri looking for first SEC win

LSU and Missouri both compiled impressive records during their pre-conference schedules.

Then both suffered losses in their Southeastern Conference openers Saturday.

Now both sets of Tigers will try to get a win when they meet Tuesday night in Columbia, Mo.

LSU (11-3, 0-1) lost at home to Vanderbilt 80-72, while Missouri (11-3, 0-1) went on the road and lost to No. 2 Auburn 84-68, its 21st consecutive SEC loss dating to the conference tournament in 2023.

"It's a tough conference, and we have to do a better job on our part to be prepared," Missouri coach Dennis Gates said following the loss to Auburn. "That's a good ball club we played, and we've just got to bounce back."

Though Missouri scored fewer than 75 points for the first time this season, its bench continued to be strong. The Missouri reserves outscored their Auburn counterparts 47-29 and for the season are averaging 41.8 points -- tops in the nation.

When Gates went to his bench, he relied heavily on graduate guard Marques Warrick, who was the teams only double-figure scorer (19 points).

Missouri had 13 steals, which is even more than its average of 10.5, which is sixth-best in the country. That could be a problem for LSU, which struggled with its ball security against Vanderbilt, which averages 10.7 steals.

LSU committed 11 turnovers and got outscored 15-2 in points off turnovers in the first half against the Commodores. The Tigers did better in the second half but were still outscored by nine points off turnovers for the game.

"I feel like in the first half we had our 'welcome to the SEC moment' for all of us," said guard Cam Carter, a transfer from Kansas State who is the team's leading scorer (17.3 points per game). "In the second half, I feel like we woke up and we were able to run our actions."

LSU is undersized and Vanderbilt had an 18-4 advantage in second-chance points.

"All season we haven't really put two halves together," Carter said. "We're in the SEC now, so, you've got to learn from every game."

--Field Level Media