BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) -Chris Johnson blocked a game-tying shot attempt in the final seconds and LSU held off McNeese State 62-59 on Monday night.
The Tigers (9-1) trailed by seven points at halftime, then opened the second half with a 16-0 run. LSU led 53-42 before the Cowboys (5-5) rallied down the stretch behind the 3-point shooting of Diego Kapelan and Stephan Martin.
After Kapelan's fifth 3-pointer of the night, McNeese State trailed 59-57 with 37 seconds left. LSU's Garrett Temple made one free throw, then two foul shots by Martin pulled the Cowboys within one point. Free throws by Marcus Thornton and Mitchell gave the Tigers the final margin.
Thornton had 15 points and a season-high 11 rebounds, while Mitchell added 12 points and 10 rebounds.
Kapelan led McNeese State with 15 points and Martin matched his season-high with 14 points.
