Tari Eason scored 23 points and Xavier Pinson added 12 as LSU held off Mississippi State 69-65 on Saturday night in Baton Rouge, La.
Darius Days added 10 points as the Tigers (18-7, 6-6 SEC) overcame a poor start to the second half offensively.
Iverson Molinar scored 26 points, Tolu Smith added 15 and Garrison Brooks had 11 points and 11 rebounds to lead MSU (14-10, 5-6), which lost for the fifth time in its last six games.
Molinar had a three-point play and made a 3-pointer to complete a 21-6 run to open the second half that pulled MSU into a 43-all tie.
LSU missed 11 of its first 12 shots and committed five turnovers though Days broke the tie by making two free throws.
Shakeel Moore’s 3-pointer gave the Bulldogs a 48-45 lead before their offense went stagnant.
Pinson’s layup ended a 7½-minute field-goal drought for the Tigers and his two free throws and Eason’s 3-pointer gave them a 52-48 lead.
Smith answered with a layup, but Shareef O’Neal’s tip-in, Eason’s two free throws and a dunk and Eric Gaines’ free throw increased LSU’s lead to 59-50.
D.J. Jeffries’ two free throws ended a 2½-minute scoring drought for MSU, but the Bulldogs missed a layup and turned the ball over on their next two possessions.
Eason’s layup gave the Tigers a 61-52 lead before Molinar made two free throws and Smith made one.
Day’s 3-pointer gave LSU a 64-57 lead with 1:49 left, but Pinson missed two free throws.
Molinar made two free throws, but Gaines broke away for a dunk and LSU added three free throws.
The Bulldogs scored the first seven points of the game before the Tigers scored the next 12.
Jeffries stopped the second run with a layup and added another to get MSU within one point.
Pinson had two baskets and an assist as LSU took a 20-11 lead.
The Bulldogs trimmed the lead to five on two free throws by Derek Fountain.
Eason made back-to-back 3-pointers and the Tigers closed with an 8-0 run to take a 37-22 halftime lead.
–Field Level Media
