National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Louisiana State 78, McNeese St. 66
When: 8:00 PM ET, Thursday, December 16, 2010
Where: Pete Maravich Assembly Center, Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Officials: # Les Jones, # Michael Kitts, # Mike Stuart
Attendance: 6445

Ralston Turner scored seven of his game-high 23 points in overtime Thursday, and Louisiana State avoided a second consecutive disappointing overtime loss at home by downing McNeese State 78-66.

LSU (7-3) rebounded from being upset Coastal Carolina in overtime on Monday.

Turner made the most of overtime, starting the extra time with a jumper to break a 60-60 tie. He then made two free throws to push the advantage to 67-62, and later hit a 3-pointer with 1:16 to play made it 72-62.

Ahead 29-28 at halftime, LSU scored 15 of the first 22 points of the second half, pushing its advantage to 44-35 on Storm Warren’s jumper with 12:37 to play. The Cowboys worked their way back into striking distance, pulling within 50-48 on Preston David’s jumper with 7:14 remaining.

The Cowboys took a 58-55 lead on three Diego Kapelan free throws with under two minutes left. But Turner tied the game at 58-58 for LSU with a free throw. The two teams swapped baskets in the final 38 seconds, Warren’s layup tying the game for LSU at 60-60 with 24 seconds left.

Warren added 17 points for the Tigers. Malcolm White scored 15 points.

C.J. Collins scored 15 points for McNeese State, which saw its four-game win streak end.

LSU plays host to Wichita State on Saturday. McNeese State returns home to face Sacramento State on Sunday.

Top Game Performances
 
McNeese St.   Louisiana State
C.J. Collins 15 Scoring Ralston Turner 23
Stephan Martin 3 Assists Andre Stringer 5
PJ Alawoya 11 Rebounds Malcolm White 9
Diego Kapelan 5 Free Throws Made Ralston Turner 8
PJ Alawoya 3 Steals Ralston Turner 1
Preston David 6 Blocks Malcolm White 3
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
McNeese St. 66 38.5 6-23 10-15 9 36 6 11
Louisiana State 78 43.9 6-20 22-31 16 33 7 3