LSU Tigers

BATON ROUGE, La. -- It was a clunky affair, but LSU got what it needed to maintain its winning streak.

The Tigers (17-10, 7-6) outlasted Georgia 61-53 on Wednesday to improve its current unbeaten run to four games.

The game plodded to a slow, unexciting finish, but LSU came away with a victory that keeps it in the hunt for fourth place in the SEC.

Stringer answers the bell: For a guy that's shooting a forgettable 28 percent from long range this year, Andre Stringer certainly found his stroke against the Bulldogs (12-15, 3-10).

Stringer led all scorers with 18 points and shot 50 percent from the field. Even more impressive than that, the sophomore connected on four of his game-high nine attempts from 3-point range. The production helped carry an LSU offense that couldn't seem to find its rhythm.

"When some of our teammates -- when shots aren't falling for them, we just try to be aggressive as a team and get the best shot possible. Some of those shots came open for me," Stringer said.

In such a defense-minded game, Stringer's big night almost doubled his season average of 10.1 points.

Free throw flurry: After coming up on the short end of the free throw battle at the beginning of conference play, the Tigers owned the line against the Bulldogs.

LSU took a whopping 30 free throws to Georgia's seven in the win. The Tigers only connected on 18 of them for 60 percent, but it was enough. The production from the line offset a frustrating night for the Tigers in the paint. Justin Hamilton tallied five of his seven points from the line, while Johnny O'Bryant III made six trips of his own to help him finish with 14.

Hamilton and Ralston Turner were particularly clutch from the charity stripe, combining to hit six of six in the final 30 seconds.

Sluggish pace: The Tigers will be excited to improve to 7-6 in conference play, but this fistfight with the Bulldogs was anything but thrilling. Both teams committed to perimeter defense from the outset, limiting the chances for breakaways and big dunks.

"You've got to give credit to Georgia's defense. They're going to take something away," LSU coach Trent Johnson said.

With the interior clogged up, shots started flying from the outside, but they weren't falling. Thanks to Stringer, the Tigers achieved a decent 5-of-14 stat line from the arc. Turner added LSU's only non-Stringer trey with a well-timed connection to push a four-point lead to seven with five minutes remaining.

The Bulldogs only connected on a meager 4-of-17 threes and couldn't keep pace. Senior guard Gerald Robinson did his best to carry the Georgia offense, shooting 7-for-12 for 17 total points, but the effort fell short.

The LSU baseball team outscored Air Force and Alcorn State by a combined 33-2 as the Tigers continued to dominate the opposition during the early part of the schedule.

The impressive efforts keep the Tigers (3-0) in the top 10 of ESPN.com's Power Rankings.