NATIONAL TITLES 1935 SEC CHAMPIONS 2015-16 1935 • 1953 • 1954 • 1979 • 1981 1985 • 1991 • 2000 • 2006 • 2009 NCAA FINAL FOUR LSU 1953 • 1981 • 1986 • 2006 LSU Fighting Tigers vs. Southwest Baptist EX Exhibition Game No. 1 *Pete Maravich Assembly Center * Baton Rouge, La. November 6, 2015 * 7 p.m. CT * Streaming Video: SECN+ * Radio: LSU Sports Radio Network LSU (0-0, 0-0) LSU POSSIBLE STARTING LINEUP H - 0-0; A - 0-0; N - 0-0; OT - 0-0 (G) Jalyn Patterson November No. 15 * So. * 6-1 * 183 * Alpharetta, Georgia Fri. 13 MCNEESE STATE (ESPNU) 8 p.m. 2015-16 Averages Notables Recent Games LEGENDS CLASSIC In Australia, played all 5 gms Point guard at Montverde 10 gms in double figures Mon. 16 KENNESAW STATE (ESPNU) 8 p.m. primarily backup point guard Captured two ESPN national titles in 2015; season best 20 Thurs. 19 SOUTH ALABAMA (SECN) 8 p.m. 13 mpg, 2.2 ptts, 1.2 rpg 2013, hit game-winning 3 in National Final at Arkansas Mon. 23 vs. Marquette (ESPN2) 6 p.m. 4 assists, 6 steals Started final 11 in ‘15; 6.8 ppg, 2.2 apg Tues. 24 vs. NC State/Arizona State (ESPN2/U) TBA Mon. 30 at Charleston 6 p.m. December (G) Wed. 2 NORTH FLORIDA (SECN+) 7 p.m. No. 2 * Fr. * 6-4 * 190 * Orlando, Florida Sun. 13 at Houston (ESPNU) 7 p.m. 2014-15 Averages Notables Recent Games Wed. 16 GARDNER-WEBB (SECN) 6 p.m. Sat. 19 ORAL ROBERTS (SECN) 7 p.m. In Australia, started 4 of 5 gms Mr. Basketball Florida at Oak Ridge High Tues. 22 AMERICAN (SECN) 7 p.m. Averaged 29.2 mpg, 13.8 ppg Averaged 29 pts, 6.9 rebounds, 2.7 assists Tues. 29 WAKE FOREST (SECN) 7 p.m. 6.2 rpg (2nd team) Mr. Basketball state of Florida January 27-65 FG (41.5%), 9 treys McDonald’s, A-A Sat. 2 *at Vanderbilt (ESPN2) 8 p.m. Tues. 5 *KENTUCKY (ESPN) 8 p.m. Sat. 9 *at Florida (CBS) TBA (PF) Wed. 13 *OLE MISS (ESPN2) 8 p.m. No. 25 * Fr. * 6-10 * 240 * Melbourne, Australia Sat. 16 *ARKANSAS (SECN) 7:30 p.m. 2014-15 Averages Notables Recent Games Tues. 19 *at Texas A&M (ESPN) 8 p.m. In Australia, started all 5 gms Preseason POY Selection by SEC Media Sat. 23 *at Alabama (ESPNU) 1 p.m. Led with 20 ppg average, 9.0 rpg Ranked at or near top in several nation player rankings Tues. 26 *GEORGIA (ESPN/U) 8 p.m. SEC/Big 12 Challenge 27 assists, 11 blks, 18 steals No. 1 ranked HS player, McDonald’s, Jordan A-A Sat. 30 OKLAHOMA (ESPN) TBA 52.2% FG, 36-69 Gatorade, Naismith HS POY at Montverde February Tues. 2 *at Auburn (ESPN/U/SECN) 6 p.m. (C) Elbert Robinson III Sat. 6 *MISSISSIPPI STATE (ESPN2) 5 p.m. No. 3 * So. * 7-1 * 292 * Garland, Texas Wed. 10 *at South Carolina (ESPN2) 6 p.m. Sat. 13 *TEXAS A&M (CBS) Noon 2014-15 Averages Notables Recent Games Wed. 17 *ALABAMA (SECN) 8 p.m. Played 4 games in Australia Started first four games a season ago Sat. 20 *at Tennessee (ESPNU) 4:30 p.m. Averaged 11.3 minutes pg Saw action in 11 games, averaged 0.5 ppg, 1.5 reb Tues. 23 *at Arkansas (ESPN/U/SECN) 6 p.m. Sat. 27 *FLORIDA (ESPN/2) TBA Averaged 1.5 ppg, 3.3 rpg MARCH 7 of 13 rebounds, offensive Tues. 1 *MISSOURI (SECN) 8 p.m. Sat. 5 *at Kentucky (CBS) 1 p.m. 9-13 SEC Tourn. (SEC Network/ESPN) TBA (G) Tim Quarterman No. 55 * Jr. * 6-6 * 190 * Savannah, Georgia * SEC Games; SEC Tourn. -- Nashville; All Times Central; Home Games 2014-15 Averages Notables Recent Games in Boldface. Nov. 23-24 games in Legend Classic in . In Australia, 2nd in scoring 16.4 ppg Preseason All-SEC 2nd team by media 27 pts in double OT win over 5.2 rpg, 23 assists-14 turnovers Great 2nd yr, 11.5 points, 40 treys, 4.0 assists UGA when LSU came from 9 down 28.8 mpg, 32-66 FGA 33.6 mpg, 133-80 -to-turnovers final 2:20 of 1st OT On the Air 10 steals 2/28/15 -- 1st LSU Triple-Double since ‘92 (18-10-10a) Radio * LSU Sports Radio Network Kevin Ford, play-by-play (in for Jim Hawthorne); Ricky Blanton, BREAKDOWN analyst Streaming Video * SECN+ (Watch ESPN) LSU SOUTHWEST BAPTIST Lyn Rollins, play-by-play; Jordy Hultberg, analyst Record 22-10, 11-7 in 2015 Record 11-18 in 2015 Ranking Preseason 19 USAT; 21 AP Ranking NA Last Game Last Game At Louisiana Tech, Nov. 5, 2015 Head Coach Johnny Jones Head Coach Clark Sheehy Career Record 266-199 (16th season) Career Record 193-124 (11th season) LSU Record 61-37 (4th season) SBU Record 11-18 (2nd season) Coach Jones in LSU exb. games: 3-0 Upcoming LSU Basketball Media Calendar 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY SUNDAY PRE-GAME MEDIA Game 1 -- MCNEESE STATE SESSION, 1:50 p.m. AT LSU, Maravich Center, 8 p.m. (Tickets at LSUtix. net). TV: ESPNU; Radio: LSU Sports Radio Network

WHO TO CONTACT LSU Media Services Sports Information Office (225) 578-8226 Network affiliates. The first show is Tuesday, Dec. 1, Michael Bonnette - [email protected] Media Availability because of a game on Nov. 30. Coach Johnny Jones is available in his office for Assoc. AD/Sports Information Director early morning appointments and phone interviews. C. Kent Lowe - [email protected] Please contact Basketball SID Kent Lowe (225-578- Inside LSU Basketball Sr. Assoc. Sports Information Director 1864, [email protected]) at least 24 hours in advance. Presented by Academy Sports and Outdoors (Basketball Contact) Coach Jones’ weekly TV show is on a state-wide Matt Dunaway - [email protected] and regional network ... WBRZ-TV, Channel 2, airs Assoc. Sports Information Director SEC Teleconference the show at 10:35 p.m. Sundays. Television affiliates The 14 SEC coaches are featured on a teleconfer- Jake Terry - [email protected] for the show are listed online at LSUsports.net/tvaf- ence each Monday beginning Jan. 4, beginning with Associate Sports Information Director filiates. the start of conference play. The conference starts The first TV show is set for Dec. 6 and will air at 10 a.m. (CST). Coach Jones is on at 10:28 a.m. weekly once conference play begins through the LSU Sports Information Mailing CST. To access the media only number contact Kent end of the regular season. Address Lowe or SEC Media Relations Office (205-458-3010). Athletics Adm. Building, Post Game Baton Rouge, La. 70803 Media Sessions Coach Jones will be in the media room of the Coach Jones meets, when travel schedules practice facility after the game, the NCAA cooling permit, usually one or two days prior to games in off period and his courtside radio show ... Requested non-conference play and usually on Mondays and players will be brought to the practice facility ON THE INTERNET Thursdays during the SEC season. The sessions media room as well. ... THE LSU DRESSING ROOM take place in the practice facility meeting room. IS CLOSED ... To reach the media room, take the www.LSUsports.net/media Times are announced based on practice plans with Northwest Corridor portal (where the LSU team The Official Website of LSU Athletics is home to all requested players brought first, followed by Coach enters the floor) ... When reaching the multi-purpose the basketball information you need. Schedules, Jones. Some travel and scheduling issues may room and the glass doors, turn right ... Before reach- results, rosters, bios, statistics and game notes can change the time and day so media should contact ing the steps, turn left and then take a right down be found and are always up to date. the Sports Information Office to confirm start time the first hallway to the double wood doors and ... Player requests need to be in to Kent Lowe at enter the media room. LSU marshalls will help direct [email protected] no later than 24 hours in advance. http://media.lsusports.net you to the area ... The visiting coach will be available Media can access images for all LSU athletic teams, in the Northeast Corridor after Nov. & Dec. games including action shots, heads shots, logos, etc. To and in the media room during the post-game pro- The Johnny Jones Show gain access to the high-resolution pictures, email cess for SEC games. Presented by Capital One Bank Michael Bonnette. You will be assigned a login and The weekly call-in show takes place primarily password that will enable you to retrieve pictures. on Mondays at 7 p.m. from T.J. Ribs on Acadian This service is for the media use only. Thruway ... The show airs in Baton Rouge on local flagship Eagle 98.1 FM, on the Internet at www. LSUsports.net/media LSUsports.net and on many LSU Sports Radio Request credentials online, go to the men’s basket- ball credentials link.

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2015-16 LSU MEN’S BASKETBALL The Jones File NAME: Johnny Jones Johnny Jones BIRTH DATE: March 30, 1961 Head Coach • 4th year at LSU (16th year as head coach) AGE: 54 BIRTHPLACE: DeRidder, La. Consistency and Improvement. The two floor teams that will play hard from start to finish WIFE: Kelli watchwords of the first three years of Johnny and play a style of basketball that makes players Jones tenure as LSU men’s basketball coach. want to showcase their talent in a team concept. CHILDREN: John, Jillian In his opening statement after being hired, COLLEGE: LSU, BA, 1985 19 wins. 9 SEC wins in 2013 Jones brought back the “HIT” philosophy of LSU 20 wins, 9 SEC wins in 2014. NIT bid Basketball that Coach Dale Brown used when 22 wins, 11 SEC wins in 2015. NCAA Jones played and coached. The “HIT” philosophy Tournament appearance. Top 3 in the SEC. stands for “Hard, Intelligent and Together.” PLAYING EXPERIENCE More than anything, Jones, since his hiring on LSU In three years, Jones has won 61 games overall April 13, 2012, has gone out of his way to embrace and 29 in the Southeastern Conference. That’s all aspects of the community, traveling throughout Was a freshman on the 1981 more than any coach at LSU has won in their first the state on the LSU Tiger Tour and speaking to NCAA Final Four team in 1981 three years on the job in Baton Rouge. Jones is civic groups and youth organizations. Included also the first LSU coach to take his team to two in his points in all his stops was how much he ... Played in 121 games, starting post-season events in their first three years as the wants people to embrace LSU basketball. It’s not 54 career games ... Led LSU in head coach. only fans he wants to hear that message but high Now as Jones prepares for his fourth season school coaches who are excited again to have LSU assists (124) as a junior and was at the helm as head coach of the LSU Tigers, he coaches visiting with them on a regular basis. ranked among top five in the prepares to bring in a recruiting class that some LSU and Coach Jones has a successful booster publications has named No. 1 in the country. There club that gathers before each game for food and SEC that year ... Remains ranked is No. 1 overall high school recruit Ben Simmons, scouting reports in the practice facility prior to 11th in career assists with 271 who grew up in Australia and played at Montverde each home game, Jones is also hosting public in Florida. No. 14 player Antonio Blakeney luncheons each month to talk to fans about their and is just one of 28 players in also of Florida and Mr. Basketball of Louisiana, basketball program and the luncheons are draw- the history of the program to of Madison Prep in Baton ing strong crowds each month during the season. Rouge. This is Jones’ third career head coaching posi- have dished out 200 assists or Throw in New Orleans native Craig Victor tion he has served as the interim head coach at more ... His 136 career steals who has transferred from Arizona, seniors Keith the University of Memphis during the 1999-2000 Hornsby and Josh Grey, along with junior Tim season and began his run as the head coach at the ranked 14th all-time on a list of Quarterman and several players with a year’s expe- University of North Texas prior to the 2001-02 sea- 21 LSU Tigers that have record- rience in the program and the consistency and son. improvement is set to continue for LSU Basketball. When Johnny Jones suited up for his first ed 100 career stats For Johnny Jones, his head coaching tenure game as an LSU Tiger against Colgate in the Great is cementing his legacy at LSU after 21 years Alaskan Shootout on Nov. 28, 1980, it would mark involved with the program: the first of 121 games that he would play for LSU. Then the player would turn assistant coach and be COACHING EXPERIENCE Four years as a player. on the bench with Coach Dale Brown for another 13 years a member of Dale Brown’s coaching staff. 407 contests. 1984-85 - Student Assistant, LSU In his fourth year as the head coach at LSU. As a player at LSU, besides playing on the 1985-87 - Assistant Coach, LSU 1981 NCAA Final Four team, Jones started 54 For Jones, just the fifth LSU alum to hold the career games. Jones is the only person in LSU his- 1987-88 - Admin. Assistant, LSU top position in the men’s basketball program and tory to both play (1981) and coach (1986, asst.) in 1988-94 - Assistant Coach, LSU the third to have played and served as head coach, an NCAA Final Four. his beliefs about reaching out to fans and giving Johnny Jones and his wife Kelli, have two chil- 1994-97 - Associate Coach, LSU them an exciting style of basketball to watch in the dren, John and Jillian. 1997-99 - Assoc. Coach, Memphis Pete Maravich Assembly Center has been a strong selling point to fans and recruits alike. 1999-2000 -- Interim HC, Memphis Jones in his three seasons have put on the 2000-01 -- Asst. Coach, Alabama The Johnny Jones Record 2001-12 -- Head Coach, North Texas /----OVERALL---/ /---CONF.---/ YEAR SCHOOL W-L PCT. W-L PCT. FINISH April 13, 2012 -- Named 21st head 1999-00 Memphis 15-16 .434 7-9 .437 2001-02 North Texas 15-14 .517 8-7 .533 coach at LSU 2002-03 North Texas 7-21 .250 2-13 .133 March 2014 -- Took LSU to first post- 2003-04 North Texas 13-15 .464 8-8 .500 2004-05 North Texas 14-14 .500 6-9 .400 season appearance since 2009, 2nd 2005-06 North Texas 14-14 .500 6-9 .400 2006-07 North Texas 23-11 .676 10-8 .555 NCAA First Round round NIT 2007-08 North Texas 20-11 .645 10-8 .555 2008-09 North Texas 20-12 .625 11-7 .611 March 2015 -- First LSU Coach to win 20 2009-10 North Texas 24-9 .727 13-5 .722 NCAA FIrst Round gms twice and take team to post-sea- 2010-11 North Texas 22-11 .667 8-8 .500 2011-12 North Texas 18-14 .562 9-8 .529 son twice in 1st 3 years as HC; Takes 2012-13 LSU 19-12 .613 9-9 .500 2013-14 LSU 20-14 .588 9-9 .500 NIT Second Round LSU to NCAA for 1st time since 2009. 2014-15 LSU 22-11 .667 11-7 .611 Totals 15 Years 266-199 .572 127-124 .506 Memphis 1 Years 15-16 .434 7-9 .437 North Texas 11 Years 190-146 .565 91-90 .503 LSU 3 Years 61-37 .622 29-25 .537

2015-16 LSU MEN’S BASKETBALL CAREER SPECIALTY NUMBERS 2015-16 LSU Men’s Basketball Roster NO. NAME POS. HT. WT. CLASS EXP. HOMETOWN/LAST SCHOOL CAREER DOUBLE-FIGURE GAMES 0 Brandon Sampson G 6-5 185 Fr. HS Baton Rouge, La. (Madison Prep) Keith Hornsby 26 2 Antonio Blakeney G 6-4 190 Fr. HS Orlando, Fla. (Oak Ridge HS) Tim Quarterman 20 3 Elbert Robinson III C 7-1 292 So. 1L Garland, Texas (Lakeview Centennial HS) Jalyn Patterson 10 4 Keith Hornsby G 6-4 208 Sr. 1L Williamsburg, Va. (UNC Asheville) Josh Gray 7 5 Josh Gray G 6-1 180 Sr. 1L Lake Charles, La. (Odessa College) Brian Bridgewater 1 10 Henry Shortess G 5-9 154 Jr. 2L Baton Rouge, La. (University HS) 15 Jalyn Patterson G 6-1 183 So. 1L Alpharetta, Ga. (Montverde Academy) CAREER DOUBLE-FIGURE REBOUNDS Tim Quarterman 1 20 Brian Bridgewater F 6-5 272 Jr. 1L Baton Rouge, La. (Scotlandville HS) 21 F 6-9 220 So. 1L Ball, La. (Tioga HS) CAREER DOUBLE-FIGURE ASSISTS 22 Darcy Malone C 7-0 246 Jr. 2L Canberra, Australia (Academy of Sports) Josh Gray 1 25 Ben Simmons F 6-10 240 Fr. HS Melbourne, Austrlia (Montverde Academy) Tim Quarterman 1 32 Craig Victor II F 6-9 234 So. RS New Orleans, La. (Arizona) 45 Brandon Eddlestone F 6-8 254 Jr. 2L Slidell, La. (Northshore HS) CAREER DOUBLE-DOUBLES 55 Tim Quarterman G 6-6 190 Jr. 2L Savannah, Ga. (Johnson HS) Tim Quarterman 2 Josh Gray 1 Head Coach: Johnny Jones (LSU ‘85), 4th year at LSU CAREER THREE-POINTERS Assistant Head Coach: David Patrick (Louisiana-Lafayette, ‘12), 4th year at LSU Keith Hornsby 72 Associate Coach: Brandon Suhr (Montclair State, ‘73), 1st year at LSU Tim Quarterman 50 Assistant Coach: Al Pinkins (NC State, ‘98), 1st year at LSU Jalyn Patterson 44 Director of Operations: Charlie Leonard (Christian Brothers, ‘75), 4th year at LSU Josh Gray 14 Video Coordinator: Zach Kendrick (LSU, ‘11), 5th year at LSU Darcy Malone 3 Director Student-Athlete Development: Ronald Dupree (LSU, ‘15), 2nd year at LSU Henry Shortess 2 Aaron Epps 2 Brandon Eddlestone 1 Transactions Keith Hornsby underwent surger for a minor unspecified nagging injury on Nov. 3 ... Out indefinitely, but CAREER ASSISTS Tim Quarterman 169 expected by conference play ... Craig Victor II is able to practice with the team, but will be eligible once grades Josh Gray 118 are posted at the end of the fall semester. Keith Hornsby 69 Jalyn Patterson 68 The Numbers Game Darcy Malone 14 Here are some of the important numbers with the LSU basketball program: Brian Bridgewater 6 108 – This was the 107th season of basketball at LSU. Elbert Robinson III 5 21-3 -- LSU record when scoring 80 or more points in the Coach Jones era. Aaron Epps 4 21 -- No. of games LSU hit at least 9 treys in a game in Coach Jones’ tenure. Henry Shortess 2 21 -- 21st time LSU won 20 games in season (2015). 5-5 -- Record in overtime games in Jones tenure. CAREER BLOCKS 5 -- Number of overtimes in 2014-15, sets school record. Tim Quarterman 27 40-16 -- Record in Jones era when outrebounding opponent Keith Hornsby 16 18-0 -- Record in Jones era when holding opponents to 36.4 percent or lower percentage. Darcy Malone 13 11-0 -- LSU last season when opponents record 63 or fewer total points. Aaron Epps 5 Elbert Robinson III 3 12 -- Wins in Jones tenure when down at halftime in 38 games Brian Bridgewater 3 3 – Number of wins in Jones tenure when down double digits at halftime (Texas Tech, 2014; at Mississippi Jalyn Patterson 3 State 2013; Seton Hall, 2012). Josh Gray 1 13 – Number of wins since the start of 1980-81 season when LSU was down double digits at halftime. 20-1 -- Record in Coach Jones era when shooting 50 percent or higher from the field (9-0 in 2014-15) CAREER STEALS 19-1 -- LSU record under Coach Jones when opp. has 20 or fewer field goals made. Tim Quarterman 71 10-3 -- When LSU records 45 or more rebounds in the Coach Jones era. Keith Hornsby 37 8-4 -- Record last season when LSU is outrebounded by opponents. Jalyn Patterson 37 18 -- Wins by 5 or fewer pts in Jones era. Josh Gray 31 55-4 – LSU record when shooting better than opponent in the Jones era. Brian Bridgewater 7 19-0 -- Under Johnny Jones when allowing fewer than 60 points (5-0 in 2014-15) Elbert Robinson III 5 47-9 -- Record when leading at halftime in Johnny Jones tenure Darcy Malone 5 3 -- Number of SEC road wins by 18 pts or more last season; Last time it happened: 1946. Aaron Epps 4 8 -- Number of wins when down with 5 minutes to play in Johnny Jones era Brandon Eddlestone 2

Henry Shortess 1 LSU In Exhibition Games Counting every exhibition game and foreign tour that LSU has taken, LSU is 71-12 since 1952 ... Johnny Jones returned the annual exhibition game to the schedule after Coach Trent Johnson elected to take advan- tage of the NCAA rules allowing the closed scrimmage against DI teams. The Tigers under Jones are 3-0 at the Maravich Center in the exhibition games beating UA-Monticallo, 82-66, in 2012; Xavier of New Orleans, 80-45, in 2013; and, Morehouse, 71-47, in 2014. Jones and the TIgers were 3-2 in the Australia trip in August so LSU enters the Southwest Baptist exhibition with a 6-2 record in these type of games.

About Southwest Baptist Friday’s exhibition game is against Southwest Baptist, from Bolivar, Missouri. The Bearcats played at Louisiana Tech on Thursday night before coming to Baton Rouge for the Friday game. SBU was founded in 1878 and is a part of the Mid-America Athletic Conference, a DII conference that the Bearcats have won on four occasions. There is an interesting family connection involving the two schools as Ben Simmons’ brother, Liam, is an assistant coach on the SBU squad. Liam Simmons is entering his second year (2015-16) on the bench as the men’s basketball assistant coach.

2015-16 LSU MEN’S BASKETBALL Prior to coming to SBU, Simmons served as assistant coach at Nicholls State University during the 2013 season, helping lead NSU to their first winning conference record since 2008-09. Prior to coaching at NSU, CAREER Simmons spent two years coaching at Northwest Christian High School, one year as the Head Coach and the DOUBLE-DOUBLES other as an Assistant Coach, leading his team to the Arizona State Tournament both years. In 2007, Simmons was an assistant men’s basketball coach for San Diego Christian College, helping coach his team to the NAIA TIM QUARTERMAN (2) National Tournament. Simmons has also spent time coaching U16 and U18 teams in Australia. Game Date Pts Reb/Ast 2014-15 (2) Liam graduated from San Diego Christian College with a Bachelor of Science in Kinesiology. Simmons played basketball for SDCC from 2003-06. While at SDCC, Simmons helped lead his team to an NAIA National vs. Southern Miss 12-29-14 12 14R Tournament appearance, two top 10 NAIA national rankings, and an NCCAA National Championship. He vs Ole Miss 2-28-15 18 10R-10A would also go on to earn a Master of Education from Australian Catholic University. Liam Simmons currently resides in Bolivar, Missouri with his wife, Tiffany. Southwest Baptist is coached by Clark Sheehy in his second season. He came to SBU after seven seasons JOSH GRAY (1) as head coach at John Brown University where he was 154-77 and led the team to three NAIA national cham- Game Date Pts Ast. pionship appearances. He was also head coach for two years at Fresno Pacific. His career coaching record is 2014-15 (1) 193-124. at Ole Miss 1/14/15 14 10

So Where Does LSU Stand? So a new season begins without two NBA draft picks in Jarell Martin and Jordan Mickey ... The pair pro- vided 32.3 ppg of LSU’s 73.4 season average and 19.1 rebounds of LSU’s 39.2 season average in boards ... The pair also made 393 of LSU’s 892 field goals and 235 of LSU’s 450 made free throws. Now what LSU does have returning in abundance is the people that made a lot of the passes to these two guys to score. In fact, overall, LSU loses just 101 of the 516 assists LSU charted last season.

LSU Finds A National Ranking The Tigers are ranked 19th in the USA Today Coaches Poll and 21st in the Associated Press Media Poll in the preseason voting. It marks the first time the Tigers were ranked since the final regular season poll of 2009 when LSU was No. 19 in the AP poll. It marks the 196th time LSU has been ranked in the AP poll since LSU’s first ranking in December 1952. LSU was last ranked in the preseason poll at the start of the 2006-07 season and the 11th time overall

Picks and Accolades LSU was picked to finish fourth in the SEC by the media panel for this year’s SEC TipOff with Kentucky the predicted winner. LSU was 11 points behind third place Texas A&M and 26 points behind second place Vanderbilt with Georgia in fifth.

Preseason Media Poll/Pts 1. Kentucky/406 2. Vanderbilt/357 3. Texas A&M/344 4. LSU/333 5. Georgia/266 6. Florida/258 7. South Carolina/204 8. Mississippi State/203 9. Ole Miss/184 10. Auburn/168 11. Arkansas/118 12. Tennessee/86 13. Alabama/85 14. Missouri/33

New “Rules” To Play By There will be a few subtle diff erences in the game this year with the main diff erence being the shot clock reduced from 35 to 30 seconds. The shot clock was last reduced for the 1993-94 season when it went from 45 seconds to 35. Teams will also have one fewer team timeout (only three can carry over instead of four) in the second half. Offi cials will focus more on resuming play quickly after a timeout and will issue a delay-of-game warning when a team does not comply and a one-shot technical foul on subsequent violations. Also this year: Adjusting the media timeout procedures to allow a timeout called within 30 seconds of a break (at the 16:30 mark) or at any time after the scheduled media timeout becomes the media timeout. Removing the ability for a coach to call timeout when the ball is live. Allowing a total of only 10 seconds to advance the ball to the front court (with a few exceptions). Reducing the amount of time allotted to replace a disqualifi ed player from 20 to 15 seconds. Also approved was the expansion of the restricted-area arc from 3 feet to 4 feet. Moving the arc a foot farther from the basket is part of a continued focus on reducing the number of collisions at the basket. Offi cials can use the monitor to review potential shot clock violations and eliminating the fi ve-second closely guarded rule while dribbling the ball.

Season Opener Week Away The Tigers open the 2015-16 men’s basketball season with three straight home games -- Nov. 13 vs. McNeese State, Nov. 16 vs. Kennesaw State and Nov. 19 vs. South Alabama. All three are 8 p.m. starts with the first two televised by ESPNU and the South Alabama game on the SEC Network. All games will be broadcast on the LSU Sports Radio Network. Season tickets, non-conference single game tickets (with the exception of Oklahoma game) Pick 3 and 5 mini-plans and group tickets remain on sale at LSUtix.net.

2015-16 LSU MEN’S BASKETBALL