More than likely, the LSU Tigers will have to win the SEC Tournament to make the NCAA Tournament.
Part of the reason why was the good defense and overall solid play on offense of Arkansas on Tuesday night, when it handed the Tigers a convincing 85-65 loss.
But most of the Tigers' problems have been their own fault. The results are a far cry from what fans expected after last year's recruiting class included No. 1 ranked Ben Simmons, No. 15 Antonio Blakeney and No. 42 Brandon Sampson.
For the second time this season, they are on a three-game losing streak, losing at home to Alabama and at Tennessee and Arkansas. The closest loss was to Bama 76-69.
In nonconference play, they fell to Marquette, North Carolina State and Charleston in consecutive games.
Not one of those schools has a winning record in its conference. The only way any of them are making the NCAA Tournament is by winning their conference tournament.
Granted, Alabama has gotten some attention as a bubble team, but the Crimson Tide are 16-11 and have a RPI of 48. That talk slowed considerably after the Crimson Tide lost its past two games.
Arguably, LSU has the second most talented team in the SEC, just behind Kentucky, but what fans saw Tuesday night against the Razorbacks was not impressive.
It seemed like the only rhyme or reason to what the Tigers were doing centered on getting the ball to Simmons and letting him decide whether he wants to score or dish it off.
The freshman had 23 points, 12 rebounds and 6 assists.
The remaining 42 points came from the other four starters. The four reserves were outscored by Arkansas' bench 32-0. Granted, the Tigers have suffered some injuries.
Sometime in the second half, Simmons seemed to weary of the whole thing and was ready for it to be over. He got his fifth and final foul on a technical after the game was out of reach.
It may be difficult for LSU Coach Johnny Jones and his staff to recruit any more five-star players (Simmons and Blakeney) if the best they can do is 9-6 in conference and 16-12 overall.
While the NIT should be absolutely salivating over the chance of having Simmons -- who is being projected as the No. 1 player in this summer's NBA Draft -- it has to be disappointing to a young man who thought he was going to play for the national championship before becoming an instant millionaire.
It often has been reported that one of the reasons Simmons chose LSU was his godfather, David Patrick, was an assistant there. Both are native Australians, and Patrick played with Simmons' dad in the National Basketball League in Australia.
Simmons came to the USA as a sophomore to attend Montverde Academy in Montverde, Fla., about the same time Patrick left the Houston Rockets as a scout to work for LSU.
Simmons, a McDonald's All-American, was recruited by every national powerhouse in the country but chose LSU and didn't hide the fact that Patrick was his godfather.
As his first season comes to an end, Simmons has proven he is the best player in college basketball this season.
He's quick, fast and skilled. He's 6-10 and 225 pounds, but he handles the ball extremely well. He leads the team in scoring with 19.5 points per game, in rebounding with 11.9 and assists at 5.
He also has 26 blocks and 50 steals. His Achilles' heel is free-throw shooting; he's made just 167 out of 250 attempts (55.8 percent).
However, he and the rest of this recruiting class should have been better, done more and made the NCAA Tournament.
Sports on 02/25/2016