Matt McMahon says Missouri 'dominated' the paint against LSU

LSU blew a 19-point lead in the second half against Missouri Wednesday night and dropped their 15th conference game of the season. Matt McMahon was disgusted in his team’s paint performance throughout the devastating loss.

“They dominated the paint in the first half. We only made one layup there in the first half,” McMahon said postgame. “In the second half, they go 13-of-21 from two. A lot of that is just putting the head down and driving it. We have to do a better job guarding the ball in those types of situations. We have to give them credit, too. It’s how they put us in a tough position.”

McMahon said some of the struggles his guys faced were the fact that every player on the court for Mizzou at any time could get to the rim and shoot the three if need be.

Overall, Missouri outscored LSU 32-12 in the paint and was able to score 20 points off turnovers compared to only two for LSU. Mizzou mismatches spread the LSU defense along the perimiter, which helped LSU outrebound Mizzou 33-29, but wasn’t enough thanks to Mizzou’s second-half scoring barrage.

Mizzou’s DeAndre Gholston and D’Moi Hodge combined for 43 points en route to victory and helped out on the defensive end as well, as LSU didn’t score a single basket in the final 2:38 on the ballgame. They led 74-72 before the drought, with only two free throws to their credit down the stretch. LSU couldn’t hold on, and Mizzou earned its 10th SEC win of the season and keeps them in play for a double-bye heading into the SEC Tournament.

LSU will try to salvage what is left of their regular season this Saturday when they travel to Florida Tip-off is scheduled for 6 p.m. ET live on the SEC Network. The Gators have an 88.8 percent chance of winning, according to ESPN’s Matchup Predictor.