Finishing strong, turnovers points of emphasis for LSU vs. Stetson

LSU had a recent run of games in which it overcame halftime deficits to win.

The Tigers seem to have gotten past that, but now second-half fall-offs are becoming a concern.

LSU will look for a complete 40-minute performance when it faces Stetson on Tuesday night in Baton Rouge, La.

The Tigers (8-2) are coming off a poor second-half performance in a 74-64 loss to SMU on Saturday in Frisco, Texas.

"The two things that really stand out to me in the second half are 13 turnovers and 26 points allowed in the paint," coach Matt McMahon said on the Tigers' post-game radio show after his team got outscored 47-31 after halftime.

LSU committed four turnovers in the first half but had 11 in the first 12 minutes of the second, which contributed to the points in the paint. McMahon knows that has to get fixed quickly with the start of Southeastern Conference play looming.

"That's just not going to be the formula for us to have any sort of success moving forward," McMahon said.

The Tigers had won four straight games prior to Saturday, and in the first three of those contests, they played strong second halves. However, they got outscored 44-38 in the second half of an 80-71 victory against Florida Gulf Coast on Dec. 8, setting the tone for what happened Saturday.

Daimion Collins committed five of LSU's 17 turnovers against the Mustangs. Cam Carter (four), Jordan Sears (three) and Vyctorius Miller (three) combined for 10 giveaways, but they lead the team's balanced scoring from the backcourt. Carter puts up 16.7 points per game and is followed by Sears (15.8), forward Jalen Reed (11.1), Miller (10.3) and guard Dji Bailey (10.0).

The Tigers' inconsistency issue is minor compared what's happening to Stetson (1-9), who have lost nine games in a row.

Hatters coach Donnie Jones is hopeful his team can "continue building" and eventually break through.

Jones said recently that his team is "close to turning the corner," and it got a career-high 25 points from Jordan Wood off the bench in the most recent outing, an 81-72 loss to visiting Florida International on Saturday.

--Field Level Media