Riddled with injuries, LSU looks for answers vs. Georgia

LSU takes on Georgia in the PMAC on Tuesday night with the status of several key players still in question. When Tyrell Ward left the game and did not play in the second half against Mississippi State, the Tigers’ offense struggled, only scoring 34 points in the final 20 minutes in a 20-point loss at home. 

Now, LSU looks to bounce back and head coach Matt McMahon gave the latest on his injured players.

*** Tyrell Ward is day to day with a hip injury.

“We’ll see how he is in practice today. Obviously that hurt us. He’s been our best player over our last five games, scoring the ball at a high level.”

*** Jalen Cook remains day to day with leg soreness

*** Carlos Stewart (Leg) and Daimion Collins (shoulder) remain out.

Take those four injuries with Corey Chest redshirting and LSU could be down to just eight healthy scholarship players for this game against Georgia. It’s already been a feat that the Tigers beat South Carolina and Kentucky, two ranked teams, without Cook, Stewart, and Collins, but now the questionable status of Tyrell Ward presents another challenge for McMahon’s team.

“I think guys love to play,” McMahon said of his player’s workload. “We’re coming down to the wire and the reality is we’re guaranteed 200 minutes this year, that’s it. Everybody is tired in February and everyone is beat up. We just have to figure out how to overcome the fatigue you saw set in on Saturday. We were able to rest yesterday  and mentally prepare for Georgia and our guys are prepared to turn the page and get after it tomorrow.”

Heading into Tuesday’s contest, here are the keys for the Tigers depending on each potential situation.

If Ward plays but Cook doesn’t…

We’ve seen this team win without Cook already, but a lot more hinges on the defensive side of the ball in order to withstand the inevitable droughts this team faces. LSU was relentless in attacking the rim in their games without Cook, led by seniors Trae Hannibal and Jordan Wright, and Ward was one of the primary recipients, getting good looks from 3-point range.

If Cook plays, but Ward doesn’t…

The dynamic changes quite a bit with Cook in as he hasn’t played in the last three games and four of the last six. I’d assume McMahon brings him off the bench and looks to give him the ball when the Tigers get in their droughts. He’s a flawed point guard prospect, but he has the ability to create his own shot in a way no one else on the team does. His offense in ball screens is something that immediately gives LSU a multitude of options on offense and they’ll need it if Ward is out.

If both do not play…

I struggle to see how LSU’s offense maintains any efficiency if Ward and Cook don’t play. You could argue Cook, Ward, and Stewart are three of the four best scorers on this team and to be without them I imagine would mean a lot more Will Baker possessions. Baker has been solid in conference play, shooting 55.3 percent from two and 38.7 percent from three, but it’s always been clear he’s at his best playing off the ball or when he can get it in the post and be decisive. He gets in trouble with over dribbling or taking bad shots too often.

Also, Jordan Wright needs to get going again. Wright has only scored over 15 points once in the past eight games. He’s cooled off significantly since that hot start to conference play, now shooting just 32 percent from three and 39.5 percent from two in conference play. He is 7th in free throw rate in the SEC, though, so it will have to be a huge game from him to get the win.

If both play….

It seems highly unlikely we see both play, but if they do, this becomes a must win for the Tigers. The offense should be versatile enough to put up a ton of points on Georgia, a team that ranks 12th in the SEC in defense on Kenpom and dead last in opponent effective field goal percentage. Last time these two played, LSU struggled on the interior, shooting just 35.3 percent and that number would have to go way up since Georgia allows teams to shoot north of 55 percent from two in conference.

We’ll see what hand Matt McMahon is dealt on Tuesday night, but for a program that looks to respond from a bad loss, this is a huge game to show those ranked wins were not a fluke.