This is LSU's first opponent that they will play for a 2nd time this year. The Aggies won the first contest 71-57 in College Station. In the game, Ben Simmons could not get much going offensively, and Craig Victor was constantly in foul trouble. The 57 points scored by LSU is a season low. LSU shot only 37% and turned it over an incredible 19 times. Jalen Jones and Tyler Davis physically dominated as they combined for 38 points. Freshman Admon Gilder was the bright spot from the guards dropping in 13 points. Good news for the Tigers is they probably could not have played worse. The bad new though, guards Danuel House and Alex Caruso had very bad games for the Aggies.

Since the meeting, The Aggies are 2-4 with their lone SEC win coming against lowly Missouri. LSU is 4-2 with losses to Oklahoma and @South Carolina.

Projected Lineups:
Texas A&M-
C Tyler Davis 6'10 265 10.8ppg, 5.6rpg, 66% from the field
F Jalen Jones 6'7 220 16.3ppg, 7.2rpg
G Anthony Collins 6'1 175 5.1ppg, 4.5apg
G Danuel House 6'7 212 15.6ppg, 5.0rpg, 2.5apg
G Alex Caruso 6'5 186 8.0ppg, 3.5rpg, 5.1apg
Key Reserves:
F DJ Hogg 6'8 216 6.5ppg, good 3-shooter
G Admon Gilder 6'3 186 6.6ppg
F Tonny Trocha-Morelas 6'10 229 7.0ppg, 4.2rpg

LSU-
F Craig Victor
F Ben Simmons
G Antonio Blakeney
G Keith Hornsby
G Tim Quarterman

Offensively:
Stats-
PPG: 76.3 (92nd nationally)
FG%: 45.5% (84th nationally)
3p%: 37% (74th nationally)
FT%: 65.8% (302nd nationally)
APG: 17.7 (10th nationally)
Turnovers per game: 12.3 (127th nationally)
Offensive Rebounds: 10.5 (69th nationally)
Offensive efficiency: 1.072 (66th nationally)

Personnel wise, TAMU has not changed. However, something in their mojo has. 1st time we played, they were one of the best offensive efficiency teams in the country. Now, although still good, they've dropped to 66th. 2 of their last 3 games they have scored less than 65 points.

They will try to get it to Tyler Davis early. Last game he was able to establish the paint and get Victor in foul trouble. I see no reason why Billy K won't try to do the same exact thing again. Danuel House came into the PMAC last year and basically dominated. In the first meeting, LSU did a good job contesting jumpers from the guards, but did a terrible job keeping everyone out of the lane.

Defensively:
Stats-
PPG: 65.3 (30th nationally)
FG%: 40.8% (54th nationally)
RPG: 38.0 (78th nationally)
SPG: 7.4 (46th nationally)
BPG: 3.5 (151st nationally)
Turnovers forced: 15.6 (17th nationally)
Offensive Rebs Allowed: 9.5 (211th nationally)

As shown by our lowest output of the season, TAMU is a very good defensive team. However, their losing streak lately can be attributed in large part to their defense. They rely on stops and turnovers to get out in transition. Although they're still able to do that, they aren't doing it at as high of a clip.

Keys to the Game:

1.) Officiating: If you watched the bloodbath of officiating Wednesday night @USCe, you are fully aware of what poor (some say tight, I say poor) officiating can do. Yes, it was pretty bad both ways, but when the best players can't be factors in the game, it's a problem. In the first meeting, the refs let a lot of hand checking and body checks on the perimeter go, but were very strict in the paint.

2.) Tim Quarterman: Literally, what can I say about him that hasn't already been said? It's getting old and frankly, quite tiring. He shows up occasionally and can dominate a game, then not only disappears, but can kill us with sloppy passes and poor shots. He clearly has not transitioned to Ben Simmons yet, and at this point it may never happen. Everyone on the court knows Ben is the man...well, everyone except Tim. So who shows up tomorrow? We literally have no idea.

3.) Ben Simmons vs Jalen Jones: Jalen by far got the better of the matchup the first time around. It was team defense on Ben, but he has to do better. Jones was 9/14 for 20 points and 6 rebounds, Ben was 3/9 for 10 points. Ben tends to come out much more passive in big games, but many media members are starting to call him out on it, so it will be interesting to see how he comes out.

Prediction:

Recently, TAMU has dominated LSU. Even when LSU has a far superior team, TAMU has won. Last year LSU was winning until a late collapse and turnover. Last Saturday there was a very good crowd despite it being Mardi Gras. The students were nowhere to be found, but that's to be expected with a holiday. I'm very hopeful that we will have nearly a packed house for tomorrow. It's a noon tip so people can watch some basketball early, then have the rest of their day free. It also is a HUGE game. Texas A&M is squarely in the tournament, but they have lost 4 straight SEC games, and I am sure they don't want to make it 5. They're aiming for an SEC Championship, not 5th place. With LSU, the same can be said for winning an SEC Championship...but they also want to make the NCAA tournament. I know...I know...it's cliche...but this is virtually a must win for LSU unless they plan on winning at Rupp. LSU is running out of chances to beat highly ranked teams, and this is as good an opportunity as any.

People give CJJ a lot of hate, some of it deserved, but no one can deny LSU normally bounces back well after a loss. I think tomorrow there will be 2 very hungry teams battling it out, and it will come down to the end. I have this feeling that it is a turning for LSU and Ben Simmons. I think tomorrow down the stretch is the Ben we all hoped for. I'm gonna say LSU will be losing going into the under 8 timeout, Ben will then take over by scoring and getting open looks for 3's...LSU wins

LSU - 78
A&M - 73

According to Camp's bracket...which is on the bracket matrix website...LSU could fall out with a loss.

'Expert Analysis'