Matt McMahon made it plain he wanted more homegrown talent on his LSU roster last spring when he signed four players from Louisiana through the transfer portal.
At least initially, it seems like that is the strategy for this year as well.
When Kansas State guard Cam Carter, a native of Donaldsonville who completed his prep career at nationally renowned Oak Hill Academy in Virginia, signed with the Tigers on Friday, McMahon signed his first player from the portal.
After spending his first season at Mississippi State, the 6-foot-3, 195-pound Carter started all 70 of Kansas State’s games during his two seasons there. He is still eligible for one more year.
With an average of 14.6 points per game this past season, Carter was Kansas State’s second-leading scorer. He hit 84.0% from the free-throw line and made 59 shots from beyond the arc.
As the Wildcats finished 19–15, Carter also averaged 5.0 rebounds, 2.6 assists, and a team-high 1.4 steals. Iowa defeated them 91-82 in the first round of the NIT to terminate their season.
Under first-year coach Jerome Tang, Carter averaged 6.5 points and 3.0 rebounds while leading K-State to a 26-10 record and a peak ranking of No. 9 in the AP poll.
The Wildcats made it to the Elite Eight of the NCAA tournament, but a 79-76 loss to Florida Atlantic brought their run down short of the Final Four.
LSU fans may remember Carter, who starred at East Ascension, before heading to Oak Hill, for his performance in a Dec. 9 matchup against the Tigers in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center.
In front of numerous family members and friends, Carter played all but one minute of a 75-60 win over LSU and scored a game-high 21 points.
Carter added eight rebounds, four assists, two steals and one blocked shot.
“We are excited to welcome Cam Carter back to Louisiana to represent his home state,” McMahon said in a statement.
“We love his toughness and competitiveness on the defensive side of the ball along with his proven (offensive) production in the Big 12. Bottom line, Cam impacts winning and we’re looking forward to coaching him at LSU.”
In three collegiate seasons, Carter has been a part of 63 wins.
In two seasons at K-State, he knocked down 94 3-point shots — three coming in the win over LSU in December.
Carter scored a career-high 28 points against Miami in November and has 37 career double-digit scoring games. He reached double digits in 27 of 34 games this season with 14 in a row.
McMahon needed to beef up the perimeter for next season with only one guard expected to return in rising sophomore Mike Williams.
Starters Jordan Wright and Trae Hannibal completed their eligibility and Jalen Cook, who was suspended from the team on March 4, is unlikely to return.
Carlos Stewart missed the final 19 games of the season with a knee issue and his status for next season is uncertain.
To help fill the void, McMahon has signed four-star point guard Curtis Givens of Memphis and national power Montverde Academy in Florida.
The 6-3 Givens, ranked as the No. 66 overall player nationally and No. 10 point guard by On3 Sports, picked LSU over hometown Memphis and Texas and signed last November.
LSU’s other early signee is 6-10, 225-pound power forward Robert Miller of Houston.
Leave a Reply