FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. — A career night by Trey Thompson helped propel the Arkansas men’s basketball team to a 85-65 victory over SEC foe LSU on Tuesday night in Bud Walton Arena. The sophomore forward had a career-high 13 points on a perfect 6-for-6 shooting performance from the field, and was a team-best plus-25 in 29 minutes.
Meanwhile, Moses Kingsley went toe-to-toe with freshman phenom Ben Simmons, with a jack-of-all-trades performance of 21 points, 12 rebounds, four assists and three blocks. It was Kingsley’s fourth-consecutive double-double and 15th on the season.
The win was head coach Mike Anderson’s 100th with the Hogs and 300th of his career.
Early on, both teams found it difficult to but the ball in the basket, as Arkansas led 7-6 at the first media timeout. But a Kingsley dunk at the 15 minute mark opening things up, and the game was officially off to the races. Seven minutes later, the Razorbacks led 25-16, but a quick 10-0 run by LSU gave the visitors a one-point lead.
It would be the last the Tigers saw, as 12 first-half points from Jimmy Whitt helped give the hosts a 34-32 lead at halftime. Dusty Hannahs also put forth a productive first 20 minutes, with nine points of his own on 4-of-6 shooting.
The second half was particularly one-sided, with Arkansas outscoring LSU 51-33 to clinch the 20-point win. The Razorbacks shot 63.3 percent (19-for-30) from the field, including 5-of-11 from beyond the arc. Kingsley (17), Thompson (11) and Anthlon Bell (10) all scored in double digits in the final frame alone, while combining to shoot a 14-for-15 mark.
Simmons held his own for the Tigers, with 23 points, 12 rebounds and six assists in 37 minutes of playing time. However, the freshman also had five turnovers, and fouled out with two minutes remaining in the game on a technical foul.
