KJ Williams and Derek Fountain each had double-doubles to lead LSU to a 67-57 victory over North Carolina Central on Tuesday in Baton Rouge, La.
Williams scored 18 points by going 7 of 13 from the field and grabbed 12 rebounds, while Fountain added 17 points by shooting 6 of 9 from the field and had 14 rebounds.
Cam Hayes finished with 14 points and seven rebounds for LSU, which won its fourth straight game since suffering its lone loss to Kansas State, 61-59, on Nov. 23.
The Tigers (9-1), who had their 14-point halftime advantage cut to as little as four in the second half, shot 26 of 63 (41.3 percent) from the field, including a woeful 4 of 25 (16 percent) from 3-point range.
LSU outrebounded the Eagles 45-31.
North Carolina Central (5-6), which has dropped three of its last four, was led by Justin Wright, who had 14 points and four rebounds, while Brendan Medley-Bacon added 10 points. Devin Butts and Marque Maultsby chipped in 10 and nine points, respectively.
The Eagles shot 24 of 55 (43.6 percent) from the field, including 7 of 15 (46.7 percent) from beyond the arc.
After trailing 40-26 at halftime, North Carolina Central pulled to within 49-45 on Wright’s 3-pointer with 11:07 remaining. But LSU countered with an 11-4 run to take a 60-49 lead following Justice Williams’ jumper with 7:58 to go.
The Eagles didn’t get within seven points the rest of the way.
After the Eagles tied the game at 23 on Eric Boone’s layup with 6:24 left in the first half, the Tigers closed the half on a 17-3 run.
Fountain, with 15 points, and KJ Williams, with 14, accounted for 29 of the Tigers’ 40 first-half points, as the duo combined to shoot 10 of 13 from the field.
As a team, LSU shot 15 of 32 (46.9 percent) from the field, including an abysmal 2 of 12 from 3-point range in the opening 20 minutes.
North Carolina Central, which was led by Maultsby’s six points, shot 11 of 28 (39.3 percent) from the field in the half, including 3 of 6 from distance.
–Field Level Media
