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Matt McMahon says keeping LSU's morale up is 'tough'

On3-Social-Profile_GRAYby:On3 Staff Report•01/19/23
Matt McMahon, LSU Tigers basketball coach
LSU coach Matt McMahon gives instructions during a game on Jan. 3, 2023. (Icon Sportswire / Getty Images)

Three weeks ago LSU was on the verge of breaking into the AP Top 25 rankings after a win over then-No. 9 Arkansas. LSU’s morale was sky high. That seems like a long time ago now.

The Tigers dropped their fifth straight contest since that Arkansas win at home, falling Wednesday night to Auburn 67-49. The game was never all that competitive and came on the heels of a stunning 106-66 loss to then-No. 4 Alabama.

It all begs the question: Can LSU pick itself up off the mat?

“Not easy. Easier said than done,” coach Matt McMahon said. “But I think we always hear this, I think everyone’s been told this, ‘Adversity is here. It’s here. We’re staring at it.’ Find out what you’re made of. Find out how you’re going to respond.”

Things are decidedly trending in the wrong direction right now.

Asked point blank after the game, McMahon revealed the grim reality that flipping LSU’s morale right now is not going to be an easy task. The players can read the scoreboard too.

“I think it’s a great question. I think it’s tough,” McMahon said. “I do. I mean it’s the reality of what we’re in. You’re sitting there 12-1, you’re coming off a win over a top-10 team on your home court, just kind of scrapping and clawing and finding ways to win. As you know, we didn’t blow anybody out. Maybe once or twice.”

Salvaging LSU’s morale key to stopping the skid?

It’s easy to wonder if there are ways McMahon might be able to conjure up some magic to fix LSU’s morale.

Probably a bit much to ask for, though.

The road for LSU certainly isn’t going to get any easier in the coming weeks. Next up are games against No. 9 Tennessee and then at No. 25 Arkansas.

The current state of affairs is a little bleak. But McMahon acknowledges that and said he’s approaching it the only way he knows how.

“Now you’ve lost five in a row, some of them by large margins,” he said. “But the only way I know how to do it is to keep working, is to come to work with the right mindset. There’s not one man in that locker room that can fix it. It’s going to take everybody. And that’s what we’ll continue to do.”