November 13, 2025: during NCAA Basketball action between the Florida International Panthers and the LSU Tigers at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center in Baton Rouge, LA. Michael Bacigalupi
By Hunt Palmer
THE STORY
LSU stepped up a level in competition on Thursday, and it took 20 minutes for the Tigers to take control.
That happened in the second half courtesy of an 11-0 run that included a pair of Marquel Sutton threes to make a six-point lead a 17-point advantage with 13:13 to play. From there, the Tigers held visiting FIU off for a 98-81 win behind 55 points in the second half.
LSU (3-0) jumped out to a 12-point lead early, but that was erased when the Tigers went nearly six minutes without a field goal midway through the first half. LSU didn’t have to rely on field goals, though. The Tigers was 13-for-14 from the charity stripe before halftime. FIU was just 3-of-9.
The story of LSU’s offense was Sutton and Mackinnon on the wings.
On a night where point guard DJ Thomas failed to find much of a flow early, Sutton and Mackinnon combined for 36 points on 50 percent shooting.
Sutton’s emergence is becoming a trend through three games. He’s knocking down threes and dominating on the glass. His 19 points and 12 rebounds were both team-highs and accounted for his second double-double in as many games.
Threes weren’t falling for LSU. The Tigers shot just 4-of-17 (24%) from deep. Aside from Sutton’s 3-for-5 night, the Tigers went 1-for-12, so they attacked the basket possession after possession. That resulted in 34 free throw attempts which were cashed in for 30 points, a 17-point edge on FIU.
Michael Nwoko built on his career-high of 22 from Monday with a 19 point-night on 6-of-7 from the floor. He’s showing soft hands on the catch and nice touch around the rim when it’s called for. Mid-major programs don’t feature the strength and skill level on the block that the SEC does, but Nwoko is showing more offensive polish than he did in two seasons at Mississippi State.
LSU only trailed for 17 seconds in the game. Although there was an offensive lull in the first half, the Tigers once again cracked 90 points and made a bid for 100 on a night where some shots weren’t falling.
It’s another positive performance against a completely overmatched team.
THE STATS
LSU: 32/60 FG (53%)
LSU second half: 18/30 FG (60%)
LSU won FT: 30-13
LSU FT: 30/34 (88%)
LSU won paint points 50-38
FIU’s Corey Stephenson: 8/19 FG, 3/7 3pt, 6/6 FT, 25 pts, 10 reb
Marquel Sutton: 6/11 FG, 3/5 3pt, 4/4 FT, 12 reb (4 O-reb)
Michael Nwoko: 6/11 FG, 7/8 FT, 19 pts, 2 reb, 4 fouls, 16 minutes
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