LSU basketball has a chance to knock off No. 1 seed Michigan when they meet in the NCAA Tournament by taking advantage of a missing star and more.
If LSU basketball wants to keep their time in the NCAA Tournament going, they’ll have to go through one of the best teams in the field.
Michigan is a No. 1 seed, but they’re not impervious. In fact, the Tigers have a real shot at upsetting the Wolverines on Monday.
First and foremost, the Tigers need their best player to carry them. That means another huge performance from Cameron Thomas.
The standout freshman had 27 points against St. Bonaventure, proving the Big Dance wasn’t going to intimidate him. A similar scoring touch will be required to put pressure on Michigan.
More than anything, Thomas needs to put up points efficiently. Across the board, any upset will involve a strong shooting performance. LSU shot 40.3 percent from the field on Saturday. They need to keep that up.
This time around, they can’t start slow. LSU missed 10 of their first 11 attempts in the opening game. While the Bonnies were also ice cold to start, the Tigers can’t depend on Michigan doing them that same favor.
Something they will want to take from the St. Bonaventure game is dominance on the glass. Winning the rebounding battle 49-30 was a huge part of the blowout win. The Wolverines have a seven-footer in Hunter Dickinson, but third-leading rebounder Isaiah Livers is out with injury. His absence could give LSU an opening to exploit.
LSU must make Isaiah Livers’ absence a talking point against Michigan
Livers was Michigan’s second-leading scorer as well, so his offensive contributions will be missed along with his defense and leadership.
In 2020, the Wolverines went 4-6 during a stretch without the forward. After the stress fracture in his foot was diagnosed, they lost in the Big Ten tournament to Ohio State. Texas Southern didn’t have the juice to test the lineup without Livers, but LSU just might.
There are other ways to unsettle Michigan. Dickinson, the star freshman, had five fouls against Texas Southern while forward Austin Davis was also in foul trouble with four. LSU must attack the basket in hopes of creating similar worries for the Wolverines in their matchup. Every minute Dickinson is off the floor is an opportunity.
It certainly won’t be easy, but LSU getting a bunch of scoring from Thomas, winning the rebounding battle, making Livers’ absence an issue, and getting Dickinson into foul trouble are all possible. The Tigers will need to check all those boxes to pull off the upset.
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