MCBB: Mississippi State, Ole Miss drop multiple spots in AP Top 25

Both Mississippi State and Ole Miss took a hit in the latest rankings from the Associated Press as the tolls of a Southeastern Conference schedule continue to prove to be burdensome.

The Bulldogs (16-6, 4-5 SEC) dropped eight spots to No. 22 after logging back-to-back losses. Chris Jans’ crew fell to top-five Alabama in a midweek heartbreaker before suffering a dominating defeat against a rising Missouri squad.

Humphrey Coliseum was packed and loud for the entire duration of the late Wednesday night affair, but a missed go-ahead layup by KeyShawn Murphy enabled the visiting Crimson Tide to walk away with an 88-84 victory. Josh Hubbard stood out in the loss with a team-best 38 points. On Saturday, a strong showing by Missouri from behind the arc was too great for the Bulldogs to overcome. Mississippi State dropped the contest 88-61, despite a 24-point performance by Hubbard.

Next up for the maroon and white is a Saturday afternoon battle at Georgia. The game will tip off from Stegeman Coliseum in Athens at 5 p.m. CT.

The Rebels fell to No. 25 after splitting its two most recent outings. Chris Beard came out victorious over his employer, Texas, in a 72-69 thriller. Nonetheless, valiant efforts by Ole Miss were not enough to oust top-ranked Auburn in front of a raucous crowd on Saturday.

Sean Pedulla led the Rebels in scoring with 19 points versus the Longhorns, but Dre Davis had the biggest impact with 17 points, seven rebounds, and two blocks in the home nail-biter on Wednesday night. On Friday night, droves of Ole Miss students camped out beside the SJB Pavilion in anticipation of Saturday’s matchup against the Tigers. The home team led a strong effort that was ultimately not good enough to slay the dragon. Pedulla was Ole Miss’ leading scorer with 29 points in the 92-82 loss.

Next up for Ole Miss is a Tuesday matchup versus No. 14 Kentucky. The contest will begin in Oxford at 6 p.m. CT.

As always, Ole Miss and Mississippi State games are aired on participating SuperTalk Mississippi stations as well as various TV providers. The full AP Top 25, which features nine SEC teams, can be found below:

1. Auburn
2. Duke
3. Alabama
4. Tennessee
5. Houston
6. Florida
7. Purdue
8. Iowa State
9. Michigan State
10. Texas A&M
11. Marquette
12. St. John’s
13. Texas Tech
14. Kentucky
15. Missouri
16. Kansas
17. Memphis
18. Maryland
19. UConn
20. Arizona
21. Wisconsin
22. Mississippi State
23. Illinois
24. Michigan
25. Ole Miss