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LSU looks to overcome coaching distraction

Feb 9, 2008 - 11:32 AM No. 7 Tennessee (20-2) at LSU (8-13) 3:00 pm EST

BATON ROUGE, Louisiana (Ticker) - One day after a coaching change, Louisiana State hosts seventh-ranked Tennessee in a Southeastern Conference matchup.

On Friday, LSU announced the firing of John Brady, who was in his 11th season as coach. Assistant Butch Pierre has been named interim coach for the remainder of the season.

Brady's firing comes just two years after he guided LSU to its first Final Four appearance in two decades. During his tenure, Brady compiled a 192-139 record with four NCAA Tournament berths.

Pierre's first game would seem to be a major challenge since the Volunteers (20-2, 7-1 SEC East) have won four straight and 15 of their last 16 games, including a 104-82 home rout of No. 22 Florida on Tuesday.

Tennessee's 22-game start is the best in school history, reaching the 20-win plateau faster than any previous Volunteers squad.

LSU (8-13, 1-6 West) snapped an eight-game losing streak with an 81-80 win at Auburn on January 30, but is coming off an 81-72 loss at Alabama last Saturday.

Junior guard Marcus Thornton has been one of the few bright spots in a long season for the Tigers. Thornton is averaging 19.8 points and 5.9 rebounds.