Home court advantage – Can Johnny Jones reignite the Tiger Nation for hoops?

The former LSU player from DeRidder, who stayed on as Dale Brown’s assistant coach for 13 years before finally moving on, didn’t just come home. No, he took a program in dire need of a major shot of personality and injected new life into the Tigers, all the while saying and doing all the right things.

It’s shown up where it matters most: on the court. LSU basketball had two problems entering the 2012-13 season, Jones’ first in Baton Rouge since he left in 1997: They were picked to be about two rungs below mediocre, and no one cared to watch them play home games.

What’s more, after the Tigers went 9-2 in a typically nondescript non-conference beginning, they lost their first four Southeastern Conference games.

Suddenly, however, things changed. Johnny O’Bryant III, struggling early with a leg injury, became a wrecking crew down low. Speedy guard Anthony Hickey embraced Jones’ up-tempo offense and occasional full-court press that wreaked havoc in the league. The Tigers not only became the hardest-working team around, they finished 9-9 in the SEC and 19-12 overall. Most importantly, fans appreciated this team.

That feeling was mutual. After victories, Jones would run to the student section with many of his players in tow, high-fiving the kids and showing them the love they never got in four seasons from his predecessor, Trent Johnson.

And that’s not all. The lifeblood of any program is recruiting, and Jones proved himself from the start. As his team was gaining confidence and a following, players like local big man Jarrell Martin were committing to LSU. For the first time since the Baton Rouge-area harvest of the early 2000s that helped former coach John Brady build a team that went to the 2006 Final Four, local talent seems both abundant and interested in the home team.

This season, three tremendous freshmen are obviously going to become stars: Martin, forward Jordan Mickey from Dallas and guard Tim Quarterman from Savannah, Ga.

As LSU got off to a strong start this season, again it was off the court that the Tigers were making headlines.

Top Australian prospect Ben ?Simmons committed to LSU. He chose the Tigers over Kentucky, Kansas and Duke. Think about that. In the early signing period Jones got signatures from three guys who most prep-basketball observers say make a very strong class.

Will it translate to students camping out for prime seats as they did in the early 1990s? Perhaps interest will shift this month as LSU’s football season ends.

Under Brown, LSU went to the NCAA Tournament every year from 1979 to 1993. Since then? 2003, 2005, 2006 and 2009. Not exactly sellout stuff.

Jones remembers the good years because he lived it, played it and later recruited it.

In his time as a player at LSU, Jones went to the 1981 Final Four. He stayed on as a student assistant in 1985 and then was hired as a coach, staying with Brown until the legendary coach retired in 1997. During that time LSU went to the 1986 Final Four and was a couple of free throws away from returning in 1987, had Chris Jackson and Shaquille O’Neal, and played before an Assembly Center crowd that reached a fever pitch before games.

Jones left, but he always had an eye on returning. He spent two seasons at Memphis and another at Alabama before going to North Texas for his first head coaching position. Twice UNT was the Sun Belt Conference representative in the NCAA Tournament as Jones compiled a 190-146 record in 11 seasons. During that time he watched Brady get fired and Johnson get brought in, a square peg in a round hole from day one. But when Johnson surprised everyone with a move to TCU, both he and Brady recommended Jones for the job.

Brady was brusque. Johnson was boring.

Jones? The perfect fit. His time away prepared him well for coming back for his dream job.

You can’t go home again?

Try another Thomas Wolfe title that applies much better: Look Homeward, Angel.

LSU is glad Jones always did.