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BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) Skylar Mays scored 18 points as LSU ended a two-game losing streak with an 84-60 victory against Tennessee-Martin on Wednesday night.
Mays had 16 points in the first half when the Tigers (4-2) built a 41-24 lead. Mays made four 3-pointers in 5 1/2 minutes before halftime when LSU outscored the Skyhawks (1-6) 18-10.
Duop Reath, who did not start for the first time this season, accounted for 15 points and a season-high nine rebounds in only 21 minutes for LSU. Reath made six of his nine field-goal attempts. Daryl Edwards also came off the bench to score 15 points for the Tigers.
''Coach told us before the game that they do a really good match-up zone,'' Mays said. ''It got to us at first, but Daryl really sparked us getting those open shots and that kind of got us going.''
UT-Martin jumped out to an early 9-4 lead but the Tigers went on an 9-2 run to take the lead for good. Edwards made two 3-pointers during that stretch and LSU's lead was never fewer than 12 points in the second half.
''It was a solid win,'' LSU coach Will Wade said. ''We guarded well in the first half. In the second half, it got away from us there and we gave up too many 3s. We shared the ball well on offense which was a positive. Overall, it was growth from our trip to Maui. Now we have some time off and we have to continue to improve.''
Matthew Butler led UT-Martin with 17 points, while Darius Thompson added 16 points. The Skyhawks committed 18 turnovers, which resulted in 29 points for LSU.
''It was a tale of two halves,'' UT-Martin coach Anthony Stewart said. ''We played spotty. We played tit for tat in the first half. We had a lead and a lot of enthusiasm. When we subbed, a couple of guys picked up some quick fouls. We went downhill with our energy and focus. We ended the half kind of bad.''
BIG PICTURE
UT-Martin: The Skyhawks' offensive problems continue as they failed to hit the 70-point mark for the fourth consecutive game. UT-Martin shot 44 percent from the field.
LSU: For the first time since their season opener, the Tigers held the opposition to fewer than 70 points. LSU had allowed at least 86 points in three of its previous four games.
HUGE PASSING NIGHT
After scoring 39 points in LSU's last game against Marquette, Tremont Waters effectively set up his teammates Wednesday. Waters handed out a season-high 10 assists with just one turnover in 34 minutes. Waters struggled from the field as he was just 2-of-10, including 1-of-7 on 3-pointers. Waters had eight points and four steals to go along with his 10 assists.
NO INSIDE SCORING
UT-Martin got just 14 points from its two starting post players. Fatodd Lewis, who entered the game averaging 12 points, was held to six points. Lewis missed five of his seven field-goal attempts.
UP NEXT
UT-Martin will attempt to snap its four-game losing streak when it plays at Chattanooga on Saturday.
LSU will have an 11-day break for semester exams before playing host to North Carolina-Wilmington on Dec. 10.
