I've been planning on posting this song for some time, as a plea for a victory. Now that we have that victory, I find it no less relevant.
The important thing to remember is that this victory is not my victory, your victory or your grandma's victory. It's Trent's victory, Taz's victory, the team's victory. I gave up early in the season. My Tigers didn't.
The subtle, creeping improvement of those "other guys" that aren't Bo, Taz and Storm has finally paid off. The Tigers have never been this balanced, and it's never had this many guys step up and play hard.
Mitchell led scoring with 16 points, while Spencer added 10, doing most of the damage in free throws at the end.
The stars of the show were walk-ons Daron Populist and Zach Kinsley, who got 8 points and 9 points respectively, the former sinking a pair of 3-pointers and the latter slamming down a spectacular dunk that got the crowd wild.
Dennis Harris and Garrett Green got six points each. Green played particularly well in the early going, and he even finished the game with three steals.
LSU out-blocked the Razorbacks 9-1. We also out-rebounded them, out-assisted them and out-stole them. That's how you win a game.
So what now? With the shame of potentially going winless behind us, what's left to play for? The season's still a lost season outside of that ever-present chance at the SEC tournament, but our young team is getting better with help on the way. That's what I wanted at the beginning of the year, when I figured LSU would struggle.
Guys like Garrett Green, Dennis Harris, Chris Bass, and even walk-ons like Populist and Kinsley, we'll need them next year to provide us quality minutes even if they get supplanted by young guys, and with the experience they've gotten this year, they'll be better prepared to do so.
But most of all, I'm happy for Tasmin Mitchell. I've been saying win one for Taz, and we have. Maybe his up-and-down LSU career won't have such a miserable ending. GEAUX TIGERS!!!