National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Louisiana State 92, Mississippi St. 81
When: 8:00 PM ET, Wednesday, February 19, 2014
Where: Pete Maravich Assembly Center, Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Officials: # Patrick Adams, # Rick Hartzell, # Michael Kitts
Attendance: 7689

LSU 92, Mississippi State 81: Jarell Martin scored a career-high 20 points and grabbed eight rebounds as the Tigers claimed an SEC victory over the visiting Bulldogs.

Martin made 8-of-11 from the field and fellow freshman Jordan Mickey contributed 19 points and two blocks, but had seven of the 16 turnovers for the Tigers (16-9, 7-6). Shavon Coleman supplied 18 points and four steals and Andrew Stringer (14) and Anthony Hickey (13) also reached double figures as the Tigers improved to 12-2 at home.

Craig Sword did all he could in setting a career high at LSU for the second straight year, but he didn't get much help. He made 11-of-16 field goals and 10-of-14 free throws to finish with 33 points, and Gavin Ware added 10 points and 11 rebounds as the Bulldogs (13-13, 3-10) dropped their eighth straight game.

The Tigers looked as if they would run away with the game early on, leading 14-0 and 24-4 before the Bulldogs put together a run to get back into it. Sword scored eight straight points and I.J. Ready had six straight to key a 16-2 run, but the Tigers stopped the bleeding with back-to-back 3-pointers by Hickey en route to a 42-31 halftime advantage.

The Bulldogs closed to within seven points early in the second half on a three-point play by Sword, but after Colin Borchert was whistled for a foul and a technical foul, the Tigers hit all four free throws and Stringer made back-to-back 3-pointers to make it 59-44. Mississippi State tried to hang around but didn't have the manpower to match the likes of Mickey and Martin.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Mickey had 13 points and canned 7-of-8 free throws to lead the Tigers in the first half, while Sword made 7-of-11 from the line and had 13 for the Bulldogs. ... Sword had 25 points last season against the Tigers. ... F Johnny O'Bryant III had six points, six rebounds and five assists before fouling out late in the game for the Tigers, who finished with 17 assists.
Top Game Performances
 
Mississippi St.   Louisiana State
Craig Sword 33 Scoring Jarell Martin 20
Craig Sword 3 Assists Johnny O'Bryant III 5
Gavin Ware 11 Rebounds Jarell Martin 8
Craig Sword 10 Free Throws Made Jordan Mickey 11
Craig Sword 3 Steals Shavon Coleman 4
Craig Sword 1 Blocks Jordan Mickey 2
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Mississippi St. 81 50.0 3-8 26-36 8 27 2 9 16
Louisiana State 92 50.8 9-21 23-29 17 30 4 8 16