Title image courtesy of LSU Athletics
Courtesy of North Carolina Central University Athletics:
57
NCCU
67
LSU
| Team | 1 | 2 | F |
|---|---|---|---|
| NCCU | 26 | 31 | 57 |
| LSU | 40 | 27 | 67 |
BATON ROUGE, La. – North Carolina Central University received 14 points from junior guard Justin Wright, but LSU took advantage of its rebounding and free-throw edge for a 67-57 victory on Tuesday night inside Maravich Assembly Center.
LSU (9-1) out-rebounded the visiting Eagles, 45-31, including 15 offensive rebounds that resulted in 18 second-chance points. The Tigers also converted 11-of-18 free throws, while NCCU connected on just 2-of-8 from the charity stripe.
The two teams exchanged the lead 10 times with five ties in the first 14 minutes. With the score knotted at 23-23 with less than six minutes remaining in the first half, LSU posted a 14-3 run to take a 40-26 advantage into the locker room.
NCCU managed to trim the deficit to four points when Wright nailed a 3-pointer at 11:07 of the second half to make the score 49-45, but the Tigers tallied seven consecutive points to pull back ahead by double figures.
Senior point guard Eric Boone distributed a game-high eight assists and grabbed a team-best six rebounds for the Eagles. Senior center Brendan Medley-Bacon and junior forward Devin Buttsregistered 10 points each, while senior guard Marque Maultsby contributed nine points.
NCCU’s second-leading scorer, senior forward Kris Monroe, fouled out in just over 16 minutes of action with just five points.
Up next, NCCU (5-6) travels to Boiling Springs, North Carolina, on Saturday, Dec. 17 to face Gardner-Webb University. The Eagles defeated the Runnin’ Bulldogs, 58-53, on Nov. 26 in Durham.
