With his team's lead down to 10 points, LSU freshman forward Ben Simmons single-handedly produced a 6-0 run midway through the second half, with two of the three baskets coming on massive dunks, to propel No. 23 LSU past a pesky South Alabama team 78-66 on Thursday in Baton Rouge, La.

Simmons and fellow freshman guard Antonio Blakeney, who buried three 3-pointers in the first six minutes of the second half, carried an otherwise inconsistent LSU offense, scoring 55 of LSU's 78 points. After Simmons' spurt, the Tiger deficit never dipped below 11.

Simmons finished with 23 points, Blakeney had 22, and center Elbert Robinson III added 10 before leaving midway through the second half with an ankle injury.

In a first half marred by scoring droughts and LSU's inability to stretch its lead, seldom-used forward Brian Bridgewater chipped in four big points late in the half to send LSU to the locker room up double digits 40-28.

South Alabama (1-2) could never find a rhythm from the field, making just seven of 24 from beyond the arc on a night in which it shot just 40 percent. Forward Don MuepoKelly paced the Jaguars with 10 points and 10 boards off the bench, while forward Nick Stover added 13 to lead the team in scoring.