Niceville, Fla. — LSU shot a sizzling 68.6 percent from the floor en route to its seventh straight victory while capturing the championship of the Emerald Coast Classic Saturday night with a convincing 96-63 win past DePaul at Raider Arena on the campus of Northwest Florida State College.
It marked the second Emerald Coast Classic title for the Tigers who also captured the tournament title in 2021 under then head coach Will Wade.
The Tigers roared to a 50-22 halftime lead behind sizzling 68 percent shooting, making 17 of 25 shots.
Seven players scored in double figures for LSU. Pablo Tamba had a team-high 14 points and seven rebounds for the Tigers.
“I thought our guys played with laser focus and came out and played with incredible energy and intensity,” said LSU coach Matt McMahon. “Offensively, we played with tremendous unselfishness and got contributions from everyone,”
LSU junior guard Dedan Thomas Jr., was named the tournament’s most outstanding player after scoring 13 points following his 18 point effort in the opening round win against Drake. Senior guard Max Mackinnon also was named to the all-tournament team for LSU scoring 13 points against DePaul
Center Michael Nwoko and reserve Jalen Reece also tallied 13 points for LSU, while reserve Robert Miller III had 12 points and Rashad King netted 11 points.
LSU dominated the inside game, scoring 54 points in the paint compared to 16 by DePaul. LSU also outrebounded DePaul, 37-19.
Freshman guard Kruz McClure came off the bench to lead DePaul with a career-high 22 points
Senior guard CJ Gunn, DePaul’s leading scorer (14.6 avg.) was plagued by foul trouble and finished with nine points.
Gunn picked up second foul with 12:33 left in the first period and then collected his fourth foul 54 seconds into the first half.
DePaul, which fell to 4-3, will host Arkansas Pine-Bluff next Saturday.
LSU charged out of the gate, shooting 75 percent from the floor to race to a 22-10 lead with 12:06 left following a three-point shot from Mackinnon.
