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Reid, Waters help No. 23 LSU hold off UNC-Greensboro 97-91

UNC Greensboro LSU Basketball

LSU guard Tremont Waters (3) shoots against UNC Greensboro guard Malik Massey in the first half an NCAA college basketball game in Baton Rouge, La., Friday, Nov. 9, 2018. LSU won 97-91. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)

AP

BATON ROUGE, La. -- Naz Reid scored 29 points and Tremont Waters had 21 points and 10 assists as No. 23 LSU beat North Carolina-Greensboro 97-91 Friday night.

The Tigers (2-0) led by 16 points with seven minutes remaining in the game, but they needed to withstand a late rally by the Spartans. UNC-Greensboro went on a 22-11 run to pull to 93-88 with 13 seconds to play.

Skylar Mays and Waters each made a pair of foul shots in the final seconds to preserve the victory for LSU. The Tigers made 28 of 31 foul shots in the game. Ja’vonte Smart joined Reid and Waters in double figures for the Tigers with 13 points.

Kyrin Galloway scored a career-high 32 points to lead Greensboro (1-1). Francis Alonso added 20 points, while Isaih Miller had 13 and Demetrius Troy 11.

LSU trailed for most of opening 11 minutes. Alonso scored eight points to help Greensboro move out to an 11-5 lead. LSU stayed within striking distance of the Spartans and tied the score at 23 on a basket by Kavell Bigby-Williams with 9:35 remaining before halftime.

After a 3-pointer by Alonso put Greensboro ahead 27-25, the Tigers answered with 12 consecutive points. A three-point play by Mays gave LSU the lead at 30-27. Reid’s 3 capped the 12-0 run and put the Tigers on top 37-27 with 5:05 remaining in the first half.

LSU added on to its advantage over the final minutes of the opening half. Waters converted a three-point play and Marlon Taylor made a 3 to help the Tigers go ahead 49-36 at the half.

BIG PICTURE

LSU: The Tigers have opened the season with victories against two mid-major teams who won conference championships last season. LSU defeat Southeastern Louisiana, which won the Southland Conference title, in its first game. Greensboro won the Southern Conference championship last season.

UNC Greensboro: The Spartans fell behind by double digits late in the first half, but they made things close in the final minutes due to their 3-point shooting. Greensboro, which lost two of three road games to ACC teams last season, has one more power conference opponent on its schedule -- at Kentucky next month.