PREVIEW: LSU vs Yale Thursday March 21st 11:40am TruTv/NCAA.COM

Can alsowatch by downloading the March Madness App, couldn’t fit that in Title.

Well, despite the craziness, LSU manages a 3-seed. LSU is limping into the tourney without General Wade and getting completely shafted against UF. LSU is in a bracket against the almighty Duke (screw em) and Michigan State (come see me Sparty). It won't be a cakewalk, but March never is. Nonetheless, this post is specifically about the Yale Bulldogs. As Virginia learned last year and many many other teams have learned, you cannot take ANYONE lightly in the tourney.

Yale Starting Lineup and Bench

F Jordan Bruner 6'9 205 JR: 10.2ppg, 8.4rpg, 1.5bpg, 50% FG, 29% 3P%
F Blake Reynolds 6'7 240 SR: 11.3ppg, 4.5rpg, 55% FG, 44% 3P%,
G Miye Oni 6'6 210 JR: 17.6ppg, 6.4rpg, 3. apg, 46% FG, 38% 3P%
G Alex Copeland 6'3 175 SR: 13.4ppg, 3.3apg, 50% FG, 36% 3P%
G Trey Phills 6'2 185 SR: 7ppg, 3.4rpg, 34% 3P%

Bench
F Paul Atkinson 6'10 220 SO: 9.2ppg, 5.3rpg, 69% FG%
G Azar Swain 6' 185 SO: 7.5 ppg, 40% 3P%

About Yale

Oni is by far Yale's best player. He was the Ivy League Player of the Year. He is a prototypical scoring guard. He shoots well from outside, averages 5 3-point attempts per game, while also averaging 4 FT's per game.

However, Yale is more than just Oni. For an Ivy League school, they have good size with 2 players over 6'9. Yale love to run and share the ball. They have multiple players with decent assist numbers but no one stands out. Alex Copeland was also 1st Team All Ivy League. Copeland and Oni are a very good 1-2 punch. Yale is a good shooting team and have many players who CAN shoot it, but besides Oni, no one takes too many shots. (I'll get into stats soon)

Another big thing that stands out is the experience Yale has. They have 4 Senior starters so they won't be rattled or to nervous to take on our Tigers. Like you would expect from a lower mid-major though, they are not deep. Swain comes off the bench and literally is solely a spot up shooter. They have 1 other guard who plays when there is foul trouble, but the kid averages 2 points on the season. If they get in foul trouble it will be a huge problem for them.

Stats:
Yale
Offensive
PPG: 80.9 (13th nationally)
FG%: 49.6% (5th nationally)
3P%: 37.4% (32nd nationally)
2P%: 56.1% (14th nationally)
FT%: 73.3% (90th nationally)
APG: 16.9 (10th nationally)
TOPG: 13.3 (210th nationally)
ORPG: 7.6 (236th nationally)
Offensive Efficiency: 1.082 (42nd nationally)

Defensive
PPG: 73.7 (226th nationally)
RPG: 38.4 (31st nationally)
BPG: 4.3 (52nd nationally)
SPG: 5.7 (231st nationally)
Opponent FG%: 41.3% (42nd nationally)
Opponent 2P%: 47.1% (55th nationally)
Opponent 3P%: 31.2% (30th nationally)
Opponent ORPG: 8.2 (159th nationally)
Opponent FTAPG: 19.3 (193rd nationally)
Turnovers Forced: 11.1 (311th nationally)
Defensive Efficiency: .986 (124th nationally)

LSU
Offensive
PPG: 81.4 (11th nationally)
FG%: 46.2% (64th nationally)
3P%: 32.3% (274th nationally)
2P%: 53.4% (55th natinoally)
FT%: 75.4% (28th nationally)
APG: 13.1 (180th nationally)
TOPG: 13.2 (197th nationally)
ORPG: 12.4 (2nd nationally)
Offensive Efficiency: 1.102 (24th nationally)

Defensive
PPG: 73 (212th nationally)
RPG: 38.8 (25th nationally)
BPG: 4.3 (52nd nationally)
SPG: 9.1 (8th nationally)
Opponent FG%: 43.6% (139th nationally)
Opponent 2P%: 49.7% (151st nationally)
Opponent 3P%: 34.1% (160th nationally)
Opponent ORPG: 9.2 (265th nationally)
Opponent FTAPG: 20.2 (245th nationally)
Turnovers Forced: 15 (34th nationally)
Defensive Efficiency: .989 (127th nationally)

What Do The Stats Say?

Well, right off the bat, it's obvious to see that Yale and LSU are nearly mirror images on paper. Some of the defensive stats are uncanny, but let's dive a little more...

A big advantage for LSU is the turnovers. Yale rarely turns their opponents over, but are a bit sloppy with the ball. LSU turns their opponents over at a very high rate and are a little sloppy with the ball. If LSU can speed Yale up and cause more turnovers, it could be lots of trouble for Yale. However, Yale is also ELITE at sharing the ball. They seem to always make the extra pass. If LSU does not stay disciplined and locked in, they could be burned often.

The stats honestly say many things, but I do personally believe a level of competition needs to be taken into account.

PREDICTION:

LSU is a team that nearly got a 2 seed, and they have about as much talent and athleticism as anyone. Yale is a traditional IVY League team who play together and strong.

In my opinion, if both teams play their A+ game, LSU wins by 20. However, without Wade, only KBW has played in the tourney, Yale is very experienced...it will be much closer. Like always with LSU, how the refs call this game will determine the matchup. If LSU is allowed to be physical they will bully Yale out the gym. If LSU's aggressiveness and power are used against them, it gives Yale a good chance. Lastly, foul trouble...LSU is not deep anymore, but we are still much deeper than Yale. LSU can essentially go 9 deep (Marshall Graves would be Yale's 3rd best guard), and Yale can sub some guys in but they're just energy players that don't produce much of anything.

Every game is nerve racking in the tourney, and seeing how LSU has had a million heart attacks this season, I have no reason to believe they will blow Yale out. I think LSU actually played well enough to win against Florida, but a 15 foul discrepancy is nearly impossible to overcome in a game. I think the team will come out motivated and take an initial punch and will undoubtedly give up a run, but pull away a bit late.

LSU- 86
Yale- 75