By GLENN GUILBEAU, Tiger Rag Editor
As valuable a player that LSU junior point guard Dedan Thomas Jr. is with 15.3 points and 6.5 assists a game this season, the Tigers are 0-3 in the Southeastern Conference games in which he has played this season.
Thomas played in three straight losses – 79-61 at No. 17 Florida, 85-81 at No. 21 Arkansas and 80-66 at home to Mississippi State last week. He missed the first five games of the SEC season with a foot injury, played in three in a row, then missed the Tigers’ 92-87 win at South Carolina Saturday in overtime after aggravating the foot injury against State.
LSU is not dead. Tigers snap 3-game losing streak with overtime win at South Carolina.https://t.co/rWvQOoFoUq
— Glenn Guilbeau (@SportBeatTweet) January 31, 2026
Thomas also missed LSU’s two best losses – 75-74 at home to Kentucky on Jan. 14 and 75-72 at Texas A&M in the SEC opener on Jan. 3. But there is no question, he makes LSU better. And he likely would have made a difference in the Kentucky loss and may have in the A&M loss.
LSU coach Matt McMahon said Monday night on his weekly radio show that there is a chance Thomas could return to action when the Tigers (14-8, 2-7 SEC) next play on Saturday against Georgia (16-6, 4-5 SEC) in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center (5 p.m., SEC Network).
“He was in a lot of pain last Thursday, so the decision was made to rest it,” McMahon said.
Thomas aggravated the injury early in the State loss, but had his ankle and foot retaped and played on it, scoring 14 points on 6-of-13 shooting with 2 of 4 from three-point range and four assists. He will have been off for seven straight days when LSU doctors reevaluate him on Thursday heading into Saturday’s game.
“Not a definitive answer for you, but that’s exactly where it’s at and where it stands,” McMahon said.
In Thomas’ absence, other players have gradually improved their play. In the win at South Carolina, it was senior Rashad King who played the point for most of the game, scoring a season-high 18 points with seven rebounds and three assists. He hit 3 of 6 shots from three-point range. And guard/forward Max Mackinnon added 15, including 3 of 6 from long range, and eight assists.
McMahon’s plan was to have Mackinnon distribute more in Thomas’ absence.
“We were very efficient,” McMahon said. “We’re a lot better when the ball moves from side to side, and we limit the dribbling with more passing and screening.”
Like South Carolina, which had lost two straight coming into Saturday, Georgia will come into Baton Rouge this Saturday after losing three straight – 92-77 at Texas A&M on Saturday, 86-85 to No. 25 Tennessee and 87-67 to Texas.
LSU was 2-7 in the SEC at this time last season, and did not get its third league win until it lost 10 SEC games. If the Tigers can inch closer to .500 over its last nine league games, they could have an outside shot to sneak into the NCAA Tournament. But LSU’s NET (NCAA Evaluation Tool) dropped double digits to 57 with the loss to Mississippi State, which has a NET of 94 after falling to 11-11 and 3-6 with a loss to Missouri Saturday.
Georgia’s NET is 36, so a win by LSU would be significant for the Tigers’ NET.
“Players understand the long term and the big picture,” McMahon said. “Now, it’s about having the laser focus each day.”
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