Will Wade leads the fifth-seeded LSU Tigers into the SEC men’s tournament in Tampa looking to find some momentum after going 9-9 in conference play. The Tigers won two of three to close the regular season and have some of the top individual talents in the league. Wade thinks his team is playing more like the team that started the season 15-1, rather than the one that scuffled through the SEC.
Cut 16 (13) “…we’re in Tampa.”
LSU will play Missouri at 1:30 today.
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Led by the bats of Gavin Dugas and Jacob Berry, the Tigers topped McNeese 6-3 at The Box last night. Dugas and Berry went a combined five-for-eight at the plate with two home runs and five R-B-I. Will Helmers pitched three scoreless innings to pick up his second win of the season for sixth-ranked LSU, which improved to 10-3. McNeese falls to 8-5.
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Louisiana Tech dominated Southeastern 13-1 in a mid-week matchup. Taylor Young went four-for-five with two R-B-I and Wade Elliott drove in three more for the Bulldogs.
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The New Orleans Pelicans have gone from one extreme to the other. After handing out beat downs during a four-game win streak, the Pels have lost three straight, including last night’s disappointing 102-106 defeat at the hands of the Orlando Magic. CJ McCollum scored 32 and Jonas Valanciunas added 30 more but they weren’t enough to overcome an early, 13-point deficit. Adding to the sting of the loss, forward Brandon Ingram will be out 7-10 days with a sore hamstring, meaning he will miss at least the next three games.
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In college hoops, Grambling and Southern will add another chapter to their rivalry when they meet in the SWAC tournament this afternoon at 2 pm. The Tigers took both games from the Jags during the regular season.
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Over in the Southland, McNeese advanced by beating Northwestern State Wednesday night. Their reward is a matchup with third-seeded UNO this evening. Top-seeded Nicholls and number two Southeastern are off until tomorrow’s semifinals.
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And Major League Baseball has announced the cancellation of 93 more games as the owner’s lockout drags on. So far 184 games have been chopped off the schedule, or just under eight percent. The earliest the season could begin is April 14th. Both sides continue to negotiate.