Coach Will Wade bristled a bit when asked about LSU's return to the Associated Press' top 25 on Monday.

The No. 25 Tigers (14-3, 4-0) climbed as high as No. 19 in the opening weeks of the season before dropping three of five games from Thanksgiving to mid-December.

Seven straight victories since then have them back on the list — their coach hopes with a more focused approach.

"Weelll, we didn't handle it very well the first time we were ranked — that's why we were out of that thing pretty quick," he said. "I mean, hopefully we'll handle it better. But when you get better, it's what I said earlier: There's no shortcuts. No shortcuts. Human nature is to relax. Human nature is to give in a little bit. And you've gotta fight human nature.

"You've gotta double-down with what you do. You've gotta be tougher with what you do. You've gotta be better with your details. You've gotta be better with how hard you compete. You've gotta be better with how connected you are as a group. All that stuff's gotta be better. And hopefully we've learned from the first go-around with this because we handled it very, very poorly the first go-around."

LSU overcame a variety of shortcomings — whether rebounding, turnovers, perimeter shooting or transition defense — on any given night to win seven of its first 10 contests.

South Carolina coach Frank Martin praised the Tigers on Saturday as one of the most athletic teams he's faced in his seven years in the SEC.

"I haven't played every team in the league (this year), but I kind of know everyone's personnel," Martin said. "They're as athletic as any team I've seen in the league since I've been here, top to bottom."

Admitted Wade: "This is as athletic of a group as I've coached. That's what you want. We realized real quick about halfway through the year last year you better have athletes in this league. You've gotta go out and get 'em. This is an athletic league. Everybody's got good players. Everybody's got good athletes. And we felt like we had some ground to make up there.

"My staff did a good job of going out and identifying some guys and getting some guys that could make a difference for us. I do feel like we're long, we're athletic and we get that into the game, which is important, because you can be long and athletic and not get it into the game. But our guys do a good job of getting that into the game."

But a roster featuring seven athletes playing their first season in purple and gold — compared to three healthy returners — needed more time to grow up and grow together.

"It's a lot different (in a game)," freshman forward Naz Reid said. "I mean, obviously in practice, you're playing for something. But in a game, you're playing to win and actually have to play a little bit harder than in practice. And being able to maintain focus if you're up by 30, or have mental toughness if you're up by one or just losing, period — things like that. We worked on that in the preseason, and it's finally coming into play."

Wade and the staff have attempted to balance being a bit more understanding — and even fun, with celebratory postgame dancing — with a focus "on the details," regardless of other circumstances such as the margin in a game.

The coach, for instance, carried the intensity of a 12-point deficit in the final minutes Saturday against the Gamecocks, despite a 20-point advantage en route to one of the most impressive victories in the program's history.

But, afterward, Wade and his assistants danced their way into the locker room for a second time in four nights.

The Tigers feel like a much different team from early December as a result.

"Oh, we're a way better team," freshman guard Ja'Vonte Smart said. "We've started playing together better. We've got a bond that I don't think can be broken. We never had a problem with each other, but things have just gotten better. So the outcome has gotten better. You can see it now."

LSU has climbed to No. 9 nationally in the Ratings Power Index (RPI), No. 13 in the NCAA Evaluation Tool (NET) rankings and No. 24 per KenPom.

Sophomore point guard Tremont Waters has averaged 16.7 points, 7.6 assists and 3.9 turnovers — a 1.96 assist-to-turnover ratio — and 2.9 steals per contest during the current win streak.

The Tigers have trimmed their average number of team turnovers by two during that stretch, compared to the rough patch a little more than a month ago.

LSU shot 42.7 percent from 3-point range as a team during those first six games before making up for an off night against South Carolina with a dominant 20-rebound advantage.

And Wade and company believe they're more prepared to continue those trends as a ranked team than they apparently were earlier this season.

"Being ranked, everybody started to get laid back," Smart said. "This time we've just gotta not worry about being ranked and just keep playing how we've been playing."