LSU's Vyctorius Miller (0) drives to the basket through tough defense by Charleston Southern in the first half of their non-conference game Tuesday in LSU's Pete Maravich Assembly Center.
Vyctorius Miller's slender frame belies his willingness to be physical.
The LSU men's basketball guard dribbled with his left hand from the top of the key and used a behind-the-back dribble to change directions near the free-throw line.
Miller continued downcourt, knocked his defender off balance with a legal ram of his shoulder, gathered himself with two feet and finished at the rim with his non-dominant left hand around a late-arriving shot blocker.
This was one of a number of remarkable buckets the freshman had in only his fourth collegiate appearance as LSU beat Charleston Southern 77-68 at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center on Tuesday.
Miller had a team-high 19 points on 9-of-14 shooting and two steals. He was without a doubt LSU's top player as starters Cam Carter and Jalen Reed battled foul trouble early.
Before Tuesday, it was a hope that the silky shooting 6-foot-5 guard could be in the running as the team's sparkplug off the bench. Now, it would be almost a surprise if that didn't happen. His breakout performance makes his 15-point game over Kansas State seem like his baseline.
While the scoring output was similar, he carried the team's offense for long stretches against Charleston Southern rather than just playing a supporting role.
Miller kept the Tigers afloat in the first 20 minutes, as they struggled to find their offensive rhythm. In the first half, he scored 13 of their 29 points and was the only player with more than one made field goal.
The rest of LSU was a combined 4 of 17 as it trailed by five at halftime. Coach Matt McMahon said the team would've been down by 15 without Miller. His team didn't recapture the lead until the 11:47 mark of the second half when others finally hit shots.
Another contrast from Miller's performance was that he went 0 of 3 from the 3-point line against Charleston Southern compared to two 3s against Kansas State.
LSU wants Miller to make 3-pointers but it is nice that he can be effective still as a smooth off-the-bounce creator in the mid-range.
He especially punished Charleston Southern in ball-screen actions as it played a drop coverage -- a defensive scheme where the screen defender is close to the basket instead of the ball handler.
"I thought we saw (Miller's) skillset really thrive there in the first half with the way Charleston Southern was guarding," coach McMahon said. "You saw them in that deep drop coverage with their bigs. And thought he was able to get to his spots and get in the lane and hit a couple tough floaters there. I thought it just really was taking what the defense gave him there and stepped up and hit some big shots."
Miler said after the game that his ability to pick his spots is due to his high feel for the game and the time he puts in improving his skills.
"I feel like I be stacking great days in practice and it only leads out on to the court," Miller said.
Starting guard Jordan Sears also spoke highly of the freshman's work ethic.
"VJ, he come into work every day," Sears said. "Early mornings shots, whatever anything we need. ... The work is always going to show, so credit to him."
The most underrated moment in Miller's first signature game was his only assist of the evening.
With 11 minutes left and LSU tied at 54, the freshman came off a ball screen, tilted his head to sell a potential mid-range jumper and then swiftly dropped a bounce pass to the rolling Daimion Collins who scored in the paint.
Miller easily could have released a jumper as he had done multiple times, but instead made the decision to be unselfish.
Miller's back-to-back strong games as a freshman are more than encouraging. It's unlikely he will be this sharp ever game, but LSU should be pleased it has another threat that future opponents have to plan for.