Behind Enemy Lines: Wrapping up basketball’s regular season with LSU Wire
The final game of the 2022-23 men’s college basketball season is nearly nigh as the Florida Gators get set to host the LSU Tigers on Saturday inside the O’Connell Center in Gainesville, Florida.
It has been a rough campaign for both programs, with UF loitering around the .500 mark overall and in Southeastern Conference play while LSU has put up its worst record since 2016-2017 in which they won just 10 games. Neither team even has a sniff at the NCAA Tournament, so at this point, the two squads are simply playing for SEC tournament seedings and pride.
Gators Wire caught up with LSU Tigers Wire editor Tyler Nettuno to get the inside scoop on the Gators’ final matchup of the regular season. Take a look below at the Q&A with our sister site.
(Click here to check out our preview of the Gators’ side on LSU Tigers Wire.)
Clearly, it has been a rough year for LSU. Are there any silver linings to this season's story?
Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports
There are several, but frankly, they’ve been few and far between. KJ Williams has been one of the SEC’s top players, but he’s heading to the draft after a one-year lease so it’s hard to feel like there’s much to build on there. Adam Miller impressed on the offensive end, and bringing him back will be key. True freshman Tyrell Ward also made some positive impacts down the stretch. Otherwise, it’s hard to find much to be optimistic about.
KJ Williams has carried a heavy load for the Tigers statistically but things fall off quickly after him. Who is LSU's next-best player?
Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports
I’d have to go with Miller, a transfer from Illinois who missed all of last season with a torn ACL. He’s been LSU’s most reliable offensive weapon outside of Williams as he’s averaging almost 12 points a game and tied for third in the SEC with 70 made threes.
However, he didn’t bring a lot to the table this season beyond the outside shooting. He averaged just 2.3 boards and less than two assists per game. He’s also not a particularly active backcourt player defensively. Still, on a team with so few reliable weapons, his scoring has been crucial.
LSU has won just two SEC matchups — both against teams that beat Florida. What went right for the Tigers in those two games?
Nelson Chenault-USA TODAY Sports
The two games played out fairly differently. The win against Arkansas back in December was a defensive game that featured just 117 combined points. The Tigers played one of their best defensive games of the year holding the Razorbacks to just 36.9% shooting.
Last Wednesday’s win over Vanderbilt, on the other hand, was a much more offensively oriented game. It took a massive performance from Williams who had a career-high 35 points with 10 rebounds.
The Tigers dropped their first game against the Gators way back in January. Is LSU a better or worse team since that meeting?
Petre Thomas-USA TODAY Sports
That’s a good question, and it’s honestly hard to say. On the one hand, the Tigers had a lot more confidence at that point in the season as they hadn’t had their spirit beat out of them by a 14-game losing streak, but I do think this team has played better in recent outings despite the results not looking good.
This is a much better offensive team than it was in January, and my gut feeling is that they’ll give the Gators a tougher game than they did in Baton Rouge.
LSU's x-factor against Florida
Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports
It’s the same as it’s been in every game all season: KJ Williams. He’s this team’s best player by a mile, and the Tigers’ best chance in any contest is him getting hot. Florida had Colin Castleton in the first matchup, and without arguably the league’s best defensive big man, I could really see the Gators struggling to keep him in check.
Prediction
Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports
If you had asked me this question a few days ago, I would’ve picked UF fairly confidently. LSU couldn’t quite pull off the upset against Missouri on Wednesday night, but its performance gave some credence to the idea that this team is improving, even if it’s far too little, too late.
I still think I’ll take Florida at home but in a game between two teams with very little to play for aside from pride, I could see just about anything happening.
Florida 76, LSU 75
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