Southeastern Conference play couldn’t have gotten off to a better start for No. 17 Mississippi State. The Bulldogs welcomed South Carolina to Humphrey Coliseum on Saturday and wasted no time in asserting Maroon and White dominance on the way to a comfortable 85-50 victory over the Gamecocks.
Prior to Saturday, Mississippi State had already shown how good it can be against tough competition on multiple occasions this season. The Dawgs trounced then-No. 18 Pittsburgh and blew right past then-No. 21 Memphis on the Tigers’ home court in the nonconference slate.
Now, MSU is already flexing its muscle in SEC action. Chris Jans’ crew never trailed on the way to Saturday’s win. The Bulldogs built themselves a double-digit lead less than seven minutes into the action, scored 28 of the game’s first 34 points, and led 43-18 at halftime.
The 25-point edge at the break stands as Mississippi State’s largest halftime lead in an SEC game in more than 20 years. The domination continued in the second half with the Dawgs leading by as many as 37 points before settling for the 35-point triumph that moves them to 13-1 overall this year.
Key Numbers
While the final score itself is the best indicator of Saturday’s success for State, a look under the hood shows the Bulldogs played about as complete a contest as possible on both ends of the floor. State shot 56.5% as a group while limiting South Carolina to 29.1% shooting.
The Bulldogs outrebounded the Gamecocks 40-32. Turnovers were also key. South Carolina had 14 of them with MSU taking advantage for 15 points.
Individually, Josh Hubbard led the way for State offensively with 21 points, including five 3-pointers. Claudell Harris, Jr. and KeShawn Murphy just missed out on double-doubles, as Harris totaled 17 points and nine rebounds, while Murphy scored 12 with eight boards. Riley Kugel also reached double figures in scoring for MSU with his 12 points.
Next Up
Mississippi State will travel to Nashville to battle Vanderbilt on Tuesday. Tip time at Memorial Gymnasium is set for 8 p.m. CT. The game will be televised by ESPNU and aired on participating SuperTalk Mississippi stations.
