LSU Tigers

The LSU Tigers men’s basketball team (aka. The Louisiana State University Tigers team) represents Louisiana State University in NCAA Division I men’s college basketball. The Tigers are currently led by head coach Matt McMahon. They play their home games in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center located on the LSU campus in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The team participates in the Southeastern Conference.

The first season of LSU men’s basketball was the 1908–09 basketball season. That same season, continuous dribbling and shots off the dribble were allowed for the first time.^[2] The first game in program history was a 35–20 away game victory versus Dixon Academy.^[3] The first home game in program history was an 18–12 victory over Mississippi A&M (now Mississippi State).^[4] The team first saw success after hiring former Mercer coach C. C. Stroud in 1914. LSU won the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Association (SIAA) conference championship in 1917 under coach Stroud.

Wake Forest alum Harry Rabenhorst coached the team from 1925 to 1957. In 1932 LSU joined the Southeastern Conference (SEC) .

The 1934–1935 Tigers – keyed by the play of first LSU All-American Sparky Wade – finished the season at 14–1. The Tigers defeated the Eastern Intercollegiate Conference co-champion Pittsburgh Panthers in the American Legion Bowl by a score of 41–37 in their final game of the season. LSU’s lone defeat came to the Southwest Conference co-champion Rice Owls by a score of 56–47 in Houston.^[5] LSU has claimed a national championship for the 1935 season (pre-NCAA tournament), but not on the basis of any determination by an external selector.^[6][a]

Rabenhorst also led the Tigers to the 1953 Final Four with a team that finished 22–3 overall and 13–0 in conference play, and which included future NBA Hall of Famer Bob Pettit, in college notable for his hook shot.^[9] Rabenhorst’s 1953–54 Tigers repeated as SEC champions—again finishing undefeated in conference play at 14–0, and at 20–5 overall—and played in the Sweet Sixteen game of the 1954 NCAA tournament, falling 78–70 to eventual national third-place Penn State.

From 1957 to 1966, LSU was coached by Jay McCreary (1957–1965) and Frank Truitt (1965–66 season). They combined for a record of 88–135. Significant players included George Nattin Jr.^[10]

Press Maravich was head basketball coach from 1966 to 1972. He had an overall record of 76–86 at LSU. He led the team to three winning seasons, but did not win an SEC championship or make an NCAA tournament appearance. His 1969–70 team advanced to the NIT Final Four. This era is best known for the exploits of Press Maravich’s son, “Pistol” Pete Maravich whom he coached from 1967 to 1970. Pete dominated at the collegiate level averaging 44.2 points per game and was named National Player of the Year in 1970.

The 1971–1972 season was the Tigers’ first playing in the LSU Assembly Center, renamed the Pete Maravich Assembly Center after his death in 1988. Collis Temple Jr. of Kentwood also became LSU’s first African-American varsity athlete during Press’ final season of 1971–1972.

Dale Brown was head LSU basketball coach for 25 years from 1972 to 1997. During his time at LSU, he led the basketball team to two Final Fours, four Elite Eights, five Sweet Sixteens, and thirteen NCAA Tournament appearances. He also led the Tigers to four regular season SEC championships and one SEC Tournament championship.

In 1981, small forward Rudy Macklin led LSU to the Final Four. The 1989 team featured Chris Jackson, later Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf. In 1991, Shaquille O’Neal received the Adolph Rupp Trophy.

In 1996–97, Dale Brown signed Baton Rouge high school phenom Lester Earl, who led Glen Oaks High School to three consecutive Louisiana High School Athletic Association state championships (two in Class 4A, one in Class 5A, the highest classification), with all championship games played at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center. Earl played just 11 games at LSU before he was suspended and transferred to the University of Kansas soon afterward (ironically, Earl played for LSU in an 82–53 loss to Kansas in that season’s Maui Invitational). While at Kansas, Earl said that an LSU assistant coach gave him money when he was at LSU. The NCAA quickly began an investigation. It found no evidence that Brown or his assistants paid Earl. However, it did find that a former booster paid Earl about $5,000 while he was attending LSU. The basketball team was placed on probation in 1998.

In September 2007, Lester Earl issued an apology to Brown, then-assistant head coach Johnny Jones, and LSU in general for his role in the NCAA investigation. Earl now has altered his original claims that the NCAA pressured him into making false claims against Dale Brown or else he would lose years of NCAA eligibility. Earl said, “I was pressured into telling them SOMETHING. I was 19 years old at that time. The NCAA intimidated me, manipulated me into making up things, and basically encouraged me to lie, in order to be able to finish my playing career at Kansas. They told me if we don’t find any dirt on Coach Brown you won’t be allowed to play but one more year at Kansas. I caused great harm, heartache and difficulties for so many people. I feel sorriest for hurting Coach Brown. Coach Brown, I apologize to you for tarnishing your magnificent career at LSU.”

The NCAA has declined any new comments on the situation. However, Brown says that he has forgiven Earl. “The most interesting journey that a person can make is discovering himself. I believe Lester has done that, and I forgive him.”

In 1997, John Brady replaced the legendary Dale Brown as head coach at LSU. When Brady arrived, the program was under probation and stinging from a recruiting scandal. Brady’s first two years were rough.

In 2000, the Tigers broke through, posting a 28–6 record and an NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 appearance. However, due to the loss of Stromile Swift and Jabari Smith to the 2000 NBA draft, the Tigers could not carry their momentum to the next year, going 13–16 in 2001.

Brady’s team entered the 2005–06 season unranked, but were coming off a solid season in which they went 20–10 and made the NCAA tournament. Led by Glen “Big Baby” Davis and Tyrus Thomas, the Tigers won their first outright SEC regular season championship since 1985, and earned a #4 seed in the NCAA tournament. After wins over Iona and Texas A&M, LSU defeated the #1 seed Duke and #2 seed Texas to make it to their first Final Four since 1986. Set at the RCA Dome in Indianapolis, Indiana, the 2006 Final Four was the first since 1980 to feature no #1 seeds (LSU, #2 UCLA, #3 Florida and #11 George Mason). Facing the #2 seed Bruins in the national semifinals, the Tigers were unable to solve UCLA’s defense, losing 59–45, dropping LSU to 0–6 all-time in the men’s Final Four (and 0–11 in all Final Four games, including an 0–5 mark in the women’s Final Four). Despite the loss, the 2005–06 season will be remembered as one of the most successful in LSU men’s basketball history.

John Brady was fired in the middle of his 11th season as LSU’s head basketball coach and just two seasons after the Tigers’ latest Final Four appearance.

On February 8, 2008, Brady was fired from LSU. Earlier news reports stated that he would coach the Tennessee game on February 9, but LSU officials stated that his termination is immediate. Brady’s assistant coach, Butch Pierre, took over as the interim head coach.^[11][12]

In ten and a half seasons at LSU, Brady compiled a 192–139 record, including two SEC titles and four NCAA tournament appearances. He currently serves as the color analyst on LSU men’s basketball radio broadcasts.

On April 10, 2008, Trent Johnson was officially named the 20th head coach of the LSU Tigers men’s basketball team. With the hiring, Johnson became the first African-American head coach of a men’s sports team at LSU. In his first season at LSU, Johnson led the Tigers to 27 wins, tied for the third most wins in a season in LSU history. The Tigers won the SEC regular season championship with a record of 13–3. LSU returned to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2006. In the opening round, LSU defeated nationally ranked Butler one year prior to the Bulldogs starting their run of two straight trips to the NCAA Championship game. They advanced to the second round before falling, 84–70, to North Carolina. LSU had a second-half lead on the Tar Heels and the game was still in the balance entering the final eight minutes. The Tar Heels went on to capture the national championship, their second under Roy Williams and fifth overall.

Johnson was named the 2009 consensus SEC Coach of the Year and was a finalist for four national coach of the year honors as he became the first LSU men’s basketball coach to win the league title and take the team to post-season play in his first year at the school.^[13] The next two seasons were not nearly as successful, as the Tigers won a combined 5 conference games and went 11–20 in consecutive years.

LSU improved to 18–15 in 2011–12 and earned a berth to the NIT, losing 96–76 in the first round at Oregon. Johnson resigned as LSU coach on April 8, 2012, in expectation of taking the same position at TCU.

On April 13, 2012, Johnny Jones was officially named the 21st head coach of the LSU Tigers men’s basketball team. He had an overall record of 90–72 in five seasons at LSU. In the 2014–15 season, Jones led LSU to its first appearance in the NCAA tournament since the 2008–09 season, where the Tigers fell to North Carolina State in their opening game, 66–65. In the 2015–16 season, Jones led the Tigers to a disappointing 19–14 overall record, including 11–7 in conference play. LSU was ranked 21st in the AP and 19th in the USA Today Coaches poll to start the season. Much of the hype was centered around a top 10 recruiting class which included the No. 1 overall recruit, Ben Simmons. LSU failed to earn a bid to the NCAA tournament, and declined to participate in any postseason play. Following the season, Simmons announced he would leave for the NBA draft.

The Tigers started the 2016–17 season 8–2, but finished the season with a 1–17 slide, ending 2–16 in SEC play and 10–21 overall. Jones was fired at the end of the season.^[14]

On March 20, 2017, Will Wade was officially named the 22nd head coach of the LSU Tigers men’s basketball team.^[15] During his second season, Wade coached the 2018–19 team to an outright Southeastern Conference regular season championship, LSU’s 11th on record.^[16] However, the LSU Athletic Department suspended Wade before the conference tournament, after he refused to meet with university officials to discuss his role in conversations he is alleged to have had with a federally convicted college hoops middleman.^[17] LSU named Tony Benford interim head coach during Wade’s suspension,^[17] and he coached the Tigers to the Sweet Sixteen of the 2019 NCAA basketball tournament.^[18] Wade was reinstated after the season, having met with university officials, answered their questions, and denied wrongdoing.^[19]

During the 2021–22 season, the NCAA gave LSU a notice of allegations with regard to those recruiting violations, following a multi-year investigation.^[20] Wade is accused of five Level I and two Level II recruiting violations in the notice,^[21] and was fired for cause days later.^[22] Kevin Nickelberry was named as interim head coach, as the Tigers were eliminated in the first round of the 2022 NCAA basketball tournament.^[23]

Murray State head coach Matt McMahon was announced as Wade’s permanent successor, signing a 7-year deal.^[24][25] In the first month of his tenure, all 11 scholarship players who were set to return instead chose to enter the transfer portal, a situation Jeff Borzello of ESPN described as “fairly unprecedented.”^[26]

The Tigers struggled in McMahon’s inaugural season, suffering through a 15-game losing streak in January and February before ending it by defeating Vanderbilt. LSU finished 14–19 overall and last in the SEC at 2–16.

Year	Coach	Record	Result
1934–35	Harry Rabenhorst	14–1	LSU 41 Pittsburgh 37 (American Legion “Rose Bowl”)
Total national championships: 1

LSU claims a national championship for the 1934–35 season. In 1935, the American Legion sponsored an intersectional “Rose Bowl”, promoted as a basketball game “for the national collegiate title,” on April 13 at the Convention Hall in Atlantic City, New Jersey.^[27]

LSU defeated eastern champions Pittsburgh 41–37 and claimed the national collegiate basketball championship based on this victory.

LSU has played in four Final Fours in the NCAA Men’s Division I Basketball Championship tournament. The Tigers are 0-6 all-time in the Final Four, losing the third place game in 1953 and 1981. The third place game was discontinued after LSU’s 78–74 loss to Virginia in 1981.

Year	Coach	Record
1952–53	Harry Rabenhorst	22–3
1980–81	Dale Brown	31–5
1985–86	Dale Brown	26–12
2005–06	John Brady	27–9
Total Final Fours: 4

LSU has won a total of 11 conference championships and one conference tournament championship since becoming a founding member of the Southeastern Conference (SEC) in 1933.

Year	Conference	Coach	Overall Record	Conference Record
1934–35	SEC	Harry Rabenhorst	14–1	12–0
1952–53	SEC	Harry Rabenhorst	22–3	13–0
1953–54	SEC	Harry Rabenhorst	20–5	14–0
1978–79	SEC	Dale Brown	23–6	14–4
1979–80	SEC tournament	Dale Brown	26–6	14–4
1980–81	SEC	Dale Brown	31–5	17–1
1984–85	SEC	Dale Brown	19–10	13–5
1990–91	SEC	Dale Brown	20-10	13–5
1999–2000	SEC	John Brady	28–6	12–4
2005–06	SEC	John Brady	27–9	14–2
2008–09	SEC	Trent Johnson	27–8	13–3
2018–19	SEC	Will Wade	28–7	16–2
Total conference championships: 12

A group of 72 members selected from the ranks of the band constitute the Bengal Brass Basketball Band, often simply referred to as Bengal Brass.^[28] This group of musicians (and percussionist on a drum set) is often split into two squads—purple and gold—and performs at LSU select home volleyball matches, many home gymnastics meets, all home men’s basketball, and all home women’s basketball games in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center. Bengal Brass also travels with the men’s and women’s basketball teams during postseason play. The group is led by assistant director of bands, Mr. Dowie.

The LSU cheerleaders consist of both male and female cheerleaders that perform at men’s and women’s basketball games. The cheerleaders lead the crowd in numerous cheers during game play and breaks. The cheerleaders are located along the baseline for home basketball games. LSU’s cheerleaders also compete against other universities cheerleading squads in competitions sanctioned by the Universal Cheerleaders Association (UCA). The 1989 Tiger cheerleaders won the UCA National Championship.^[29]

The LSU Tiger Girls were established as a danceline for the LSU men’s and women’s basketball teams. The all-female squad performs during all home games and other university and non-university sponsored functions. The Tiger Girls also compete against other universities dance teams in competitions sanctioned by the Universal Dance Association (UDA).^[30]

The Tigers have appeared in the NCAA tournament 24 times. Their combined record is 27–27.

Year	Seed	Round	Opponent	Result
1953		Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four National 3rd Place Game	Lebanon Valley Holy Cross Indiana Washington	W 89–76 W 81–73 L 67–80 L 69–88
1954		Sweet Sixteen Regional 3rd Place Game	Penn State Indiana	L 70–78 L 62–73
1979	No. 3 (Mideast)	Round of 32 Sweet Sixteen	No. 6 Appalachian State No. 2 Michigan State	W 71–57 L 71–87
1980	No. 1 (Midwest)	Round of 32 Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight	No. 8 Alcorn State No. 5 Missouri No. 2 Louisville	W 98–88 W 68–63 L 66–86
1981	No. 1 (Midwest)	Round of 32 Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four National 3rd Place Game	No. 8 Lamar No. 5 Arkansas No. 6 Wichita State No. 1 Indiana No. 1 Virginia	W 100–78 W 72–56 W 96–85 L 49–67 L 74–78
1984	No. 7 (West)	Round of 48	No. 10 Dayton	L 66–74
1985	No. 4 (Southeast)	Round of 64	No. 13 Navy	L 55–78
1986	No. 11 (Southeast)	Round of 64 Round of 32 Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four	No. 6 Purdue No. 3 Memphis State No. 2 Georgia Tech No. 1 Kentucky No. 2 Louisville	W 94–87 2OT W 83–81 W 70–64 W 59–57 L 77–88
1987	No. 10 (Midwest)	Round of 64 Round of 32 Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight	No. 7 Georgia Tech No. 2 Temple No. 3 DePaul No. 1 Indiana	W 85–79 W 72–62 W 63–58 L 76–77
1988	No. 9 (East)	Round of 64	No. 8 Georgetown	L 63–66
1989	No. 10 (West)	Round of 64	No. 7 UTEP	L 74–85
1990	No. 5 (Southeast)	Round of 64 Round of 32	No. 12 Villanova No. 4 Georgia Tech	W 70–63 L 91–94
1991	No. 6 (Midwest)	Round of 64	No. 11 Connecticut	L 62–79
1992	No. 7 (West)	Round of 64 Round of 32	No. 10 BYU No. 2 Indiana	W 94–83 L 79–89
1993	No. 11 (Midwest)	Round of 64	No. 6 California	L 64–66
2000	No. 4 (West)	Round of 64 Round of 32 Sweet Sixteen	No. 13 SW Missouri State No. 5 Texas No. 8 Wisconsin	W 64–61 W 72–67 L 48–61
2003	No. 8 (South)	Round of 64	No. 9 Purdue	L 56–80
2005	No. 6 (Midwest)	Round of 64	No. 11 UAB	L 68–82
2006	No. 4 (South)	Round of 64 Round of 32 Sweet Sixteen Elite Eight Final Four	No. 13 Iona No. 12 Texas A&M No. 1 Duke No. 2 Texas No. 2 UCLA	W 80–64 W 58–57 W 62–54 W 70–60 OT L 45–59
2009	No. 8 (South)	Round of 64 Round of 32	No. 9 Butler No. 1 North Carolina	W 75–71 L 63–77
2015	No. 9 (East)	Round of 64	No. 8 NC State	L 65–66
2019	No. 3 (East)	Round of 64 Round of 32 Sweet Sixteen	No. 14 Yale No. 6 Maryland No. 2 Michigan State	W 79–74 W 69–67 L 63–80
2021	No. 8 (East)	Round of 64 Round of 32	No. 9 St. Bonaventure No. 1 Michigan	W 76–61 L 78–86
2022	No. 6 (Midwest)	First Round	No. 11 Iowa State	L 54–59LSU