LSU expects challenge vs. Indiana St.

• By GARY LANEY
• Advocate sportswriter
• Published: Nov 16, 2009

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What you don’t want to run into when you are a young team trying to develop, LSU coach Trent Johnson said, is a team that runs precision patterns designed to exploit mistakes.

Too bad, young Tigers. Johnson said that’s exactly the kind of team Indiana State is bringing to town today for the first round of the NIT Season Tip-Off at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center. The Sycamores, off to a 1-0 start after going 11-21 a year ago, run Princeton-style sets that can make a team like LSU that will start two sophomores and a freshman look bad.

“It kind of worries me because when I was at Stanford I was in this same situation against Air Force,” Johnson said, looking back at a 79-45 Falcons win over his Stanford team on Nov. 16, 2006. “We had a bunch of freshmen like Brook Lopez and we look up at the score, and we’re down 30 at home. My point is, the system Princeton and Air Force runs, it exploits inexperience.”

The limited on-court experience for LSU has been good so far. The Tigers opened Friday with an 82-62 home win over UL-Monroe, a win in which LSU jumped out to a 14-0 start almost eight minutes into the game.

The Tigers will quickly add to the experience with two games in two days in the opening two rounds of the 16-team tournament spread around four opening round sites.

The Tigers are hosting the South Region, playing the second game of a doubleheader following a 4:30 p.m. game between Western Kentucky (0-0) and Milwaukee (1-0). The losers and winners match up in a Tuesday doubleheader with the winner there advancing to the tournament’s Final Four next week in New York in a field that could include powers like Duke, Arizona State and UConn.

Falling short of New York will put teams in a consolation bracket next Monday and Tuesday.

On the surface, the win over ULM should bode well for LSU today considering that ULM is similar to Indiana State in record last season (ULM was 10-20), conference level (Sun Belt for ULM, Missouri Valley for Indiana State) and returning starters (four for both teams).

But there are differences, like a different style of play. The Warhawks attempted to play an up-tempo, pressing style that, while it did force 13 turnovers, also led to easy baskets Johnson said won’t be available tonight.

“We are going to be put in situations where on the half-court, we are really going to have to execute,” Johnson said. “They aren’t going to let us come down and take easy shots. They are going to try to take our two best, experienced players away, so it’s going to put a premium over other guys making good decisions and shooting the ball in rhythm.”

Bo Spencer and Tasmin Mitchell, LSU’s two returning starters, combined for 38 of LSU’s points against ULM, with Spencer scoring a career-high 23 points while enjoying several open looks. Storm Warren also scored 15 for the Tigers, showing signs of providing the Tigers with a viable third scoring option.

The other difference between ULM and ISU is the infusion of new talent the Sycamores, who opened with an 88-58 win over Division II Nebraska-Kearney, is enjoying.

Jake Kelly, a 6-foot-6 guard who started at Iowa in the 2008 season before transferring, scored 16 points in his ISU debut against Nebraska-Kearney to lead his team. He joins a backcourt that was already productive last season with seniors Harry Marshall (13.6 points per game in 2009) and Rashad Reed (11 ppg).