LSU didn’t exactly ease into Monday night. The Tigers spent the opening stretch battling turnovers, whistles and a choppy rhythm, then flipped the game into a rout and buried Louisiana Tech, 90-50.
It was a game LSU controlled with pressure, depth and a burst of shot-making once things settled down. Center Michael Ružić powered the offense with 18 points, while forward Mohamed Dioubate added 15 points and six rebounds. But early on, a lot of LSU’s scoring came the hard way.
The Tigers were active defensively right from the jump, piling up steals in the first five minutes and turning most of Louisiana Tech’s mistakes into transition chances. After the first timeout, transfer guard Abdi Bashir Jr. checked in and knocked down LSU’s first 3-pointer of the night. Ružić followed by making his presence felt immediately, scoring on a layup, finishing a tough and-one and then throwing down a dunk off a Bulldogs turnover.
“We have eight starters,” said head coach Will Wade. “Eight guys that could be our leading scorer on any night.”
Bashir Jr. gave LSU a lift off the bench and entered halftime as the team’s leading scorer with 10 points in just 10 minutes, going 3-for-5 from the floor. Donovan Dent also made his mark on both ends, bringing energy, diving for loose balls and collecting a steal and a block before the break.
Skyy Clark found his range after a rough first half. He went 0-for-3 before halftime but came back to hit a 3-pointer, and he finished with five steals. Wade pointed to his all-around value afterward.
“[Clark] does so much stuff to help you win,” Wade said.
Ružić closed the first half by muscling inside again, helping LSU take a 27-point lead into the break. The Tigers shot 14-for-24 in the half and scored 47 points, but only three of their 10 attempts from deep went in. Free throws accounted for 16 of those points, a reflection of how often the game was being interrupted.
The whistles were constant on both sides. Louisiana Tech had 13 fouls by halftime, while LSU had seven.
The second half brought more of the same physical edge, with bodies hitting the floor and the Bulldogs sticking with their disruptive man-to-man defense. It didn’t change the outcome. Dioubate opened the half with a block 50 seconds in, Dent followed with a 3, and Ružić kept carving out space in the paint even when he was surrounded by three defenders.
Louisiana Tech had chances to chip away at the margin at the free-throw line, but couldn’t cash in. The Bulldogs went 0-for-5 from the stripe with 10 minutes left.
Tempers finally flared when Bulldogs guard Ethan Blackmon got handsy with Dioubate, sparking a brief scuffle. Three technicals were handed out - on Dioubate and Divine Ugochukwu for LSU, and on Blackmon for Louisiana Tech.
Dioubate answered with two straight baskets after the technical, though he later fouled out on his fifth foul. Bashir stayed hot from long range, drilling two 3-pointers in less than a minute.
By the end, LSU’s defense had started to loosen a bit, allowing some paint scores, but the Tigers still finished the night in control. Ružić even added a 3-pointer before LSU emptied the bench and closed out a 40-point win.
Wade said there’s still plenty to clean up before Saturday.
“We’ve got time to correct it, the good, bad and ugly,” Wade said.
LSU’s next test is its first road game of the season, a Saturday matchup at No. 14 Gonzaga. It will be the first ranked opponent the Tigers have faced this year, with tipoff set for 2:30 p.m.
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