LSU to begin SEC Tournament today when it meets Auburn

Top-ranked LSU, the 2015 SEC regular-season champion, plays its first game in the SEC Tournament at 4:30 p.m. today when the Tigers meet Auburn at Hoover Metropolitan Stadium.
LSU (46-9) is the top seed in the tournament, while Auburn is the No. 9 seed.
Auburn (35-22) defeated eighth-seeded Kentucky, 6-3, Tuesday in a first-round elimination game.
LSU won two of three games against Auburn during the regular season in Alex Box Stadium, Skip Bertman Field.
The LSU-Auburn game will be televised on the SEC Network, and it will be carried on affiliates of the LSU Sports Radio Network, including WDGL 98.1 FM in Baton Rouge. Live audio and stats may be accessed at www.LSUsports.net.
LSU is ranked No. 1 this week in the six primary college baseball polls, marking the seventh week in a row and the 10th week overall the Tigers are No. 1 in at least one poll. LSU has won 23 of its last 27 games and 16 of its last 19.
LSU captured the 2015 Southeastern Conference championship last weekend as the Tigers won two of three games against South Carolina.
The Tigers claimed their third title during coach Paul Mainieri’s nine-season tenure.
LSU also won the SEC Western Division title for the 18th time in school history and for the fifth time under Mainieri.
LSU finished the regular season with 46 wins, the third-highest regular-season total in school history.
“Our goal is to have the best postseason we can possibly have,” Mainieri said in a news release, “and that includes playing well in the SEC Tournament. It’s a great event, and our players really embrace the opportunity to compete against the outstanding teams in our league. We had a tremendous regular season, and we’re looking forward to the opportunity to continue that success in the postseason.”
LSU is No. 2 nationally in base hits (660), and the Tigers are No. 3 nationally with a .322 team batting average.
LSU placed a school-record five players on the 2015 first-team All-SEC squad, matching the five first-team members the Tigers had in 2013. Catcher Kade Scivicque, shortstop Alex Bregman, third baseman Conner Hale, centerfielder Andrew Stevenson and pitcher Alex Lange all were named first-team All-SEC.
First baseman Chris Chinea was voted to the second-team All-SEC squad.
Bregman leads the SEC this season in stolen bases (29) and doubles (22), and he is No. 4 in total bases (128), No. 4 in runs scored (53) and No. 8 in base hits (73). Bregman’s 29 stolen bases this year marks the sixth-highest single-season total in LSU history.
Chinea is No. 2 in the league in hits (80), and he is third in batting average (.374), third in RBIs (53), fourth in total bases (128), seventh in slugging percentage (.598), eighth in home runs (11) and ninth in doubles (15).
Hale is third in the SEC in hits (78), seventh in RBIs (50) and eighth in doubles (16).
Scivicque is seventh in the SEC with a .363 batting average, and he is fifth in doubles (17).
Stevenson is third in stolen bases (22), fifth in triples (5) eighth in hits (73), ninth in batting average (.360) and ninth in runs scored (47).
Junior right fielder Mark Laird is third in stolen bases (22) and ninth in runs scored (47).
The LSU pitching staff is first in the SEC and 11th nationally with a 2.91 team ERA. Freshman right-hander Alex Lange is No. 2 in the SEC in ERA (2.11) and No. 2 in the league in strikeouts (91).
Freshman right-hander Jesse Stallings is tied for the SEC lead in saves with 12.
LSU has a league-best 72-38 (.655) all-time record in the SEC Tournament, and the Tigers own a conference-high 11 tournament titles.
LSU has won five of the past seven SEC Tournament crowns, claiming the title in 2008, 2009, 2010, 2013 and 2014.
LSU posted a 4-0 tournament mark en route to the title last season, defeating Florida, 2-0, in the championship game.
The Tigers are 22-4 under Mainieri in SEC Tournament games.