Enigmatic LSU may be the nation's hardest team to figure out
Only one rule seems to apply when attempting to project how LSU will fare this season.
The enigmatic Tigers are a threat to beat the best opponents they face yet are also capable of getting upset by the worst ones.
LSU's deflating 81-77 home loss against rebuilding Auburn on Thursday night further cemented the Tigers' reputation for inconsistency and unpredictability.
They've beaten the only four KenPom top 40 teams they've faced this season — West Virginia (19), Ole Miss (30), Georgia (31) and Florida (35). They've also lost to five lesser-talented teams outside the top 50 — Old Dominion (63), Clemson (87), Auburn (153), Mississippi State (162) and Missouri (182).
Those results explain why LSU (16-6, 5-4) could be one of the most difficult teams for the NCAA tournament selection committee to decide what to do with next month. Most mock brackets had the Tigers in the 9-10 seed range entering Thursday, but how the selection committee will assess LSU is anyone's guess with that odd collection of quality wins and unsightly losses.
The wild swings are frustrating for LSU fans because the Tigers certainly aren't lacking for prospects.
LSU boasts the SEC's most talented frontcourt besides Kentucky despite the departure of All-SEC Johnny O'Bryant. Standout forwards Jarrell Martin and Jordan Mickey both are candidates to earn all-conference honors this season and to be selected in the NBA Draft this June. Highly touted junior college transfer Josh Gray, transfer Keith Hornsby and sophomore Tim Quarterman have solidified a backcourt that lost starters Andre Stringer and Anthony Hickey.
Scoring efficiently, especially from the perimeter, has been a season-long struggle for LSU in spite of that talent, but that wasn't the major problem for the Tigers on Thursday night. They allowed Auburn to snap a four-game losing streak and secure its first road win of the season at their expense because they simply made way too many sloppy late-game mistakes.
There was a defensive breakdown by Martin that enabled Cinmeon Bowers to score a go-ahead layup with just over a minute to go. There was an ill-advised turnover by Mickey that gave the ball right back to Auburn. There was an ill-advised foul by Quarterman that sent 73-percent free throw shooter Antoine Mason to the line when LSU could have defended for 35 seconds and still gotten the ball back. And there was an errant inbound pass by Hornsby with three seconds left when LSU had the ball with one last chance to tie or win at the buzzer.
And with that LSU suffered another bad loss that ratchets up the pressure on the Tigers to perform well over the final month of the regular season.
The schedule stiffens considerably beginning next Tuesday with a home game against top-ranked Kentucky followed by road games at Texas A&M and Tennessee. That would be bad news for most teams, but maybe it will bring out the best in mercurial LSU.
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Jeff Eisenberg is the editor of The Dagger on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at daggerblog@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!
