On Saturday, Mississippi State pretty much got what they wanted on the offensive end against Texas A&M, but defensively, there were lapses that allowed the Aggies to shoot 47% and rack up 81 points on the Bulldogs. Thursday night in Nashville, those lapses were non-existent, as MSU held A&M to 37% from the field in an 80-54 win in Thursday’s opener of the SEC Tournament. State continued its hot shooting, hitting at a 53% clip, including 11 three pointers, while racking up a +14 advantage on the boards. The Bulldogs will move to Friday, where they will look for revenge from their 71-54 defeat at the hands of the Volunteers ten days ago.
PETERS CONTINUES TO PLAY WELL
Where you going 12? (PSA March Lamar Peters has arrived) pic.twitter.com/eswXS6bxeP
— Dawgs Are Dancin’ (@DawgBites15) March 15, 2019
We’ve been saying it all season long, when Lamar Peters is going, this Bulldog team is incredibly difficult to stop. Peters must have been a Texas Longhorn at heart, as he has played two of his best games of the season against the Aggies, combining for 36 points in the last two. When he is hitting three pointers, it simply opens everything else up for his teammates. He also is the Bulldog whose confidence level raises his teammate’s intensity. A confident Peters makes Mississippi State dangerous in March.
COOL AS A Q-CUMBER
Q to the cup for a layup, MSU on a 7-0 run 💪
Dawgs up 22-7 at the 10:16 mark#HailState🐶 pic.twitter.com/XQ8VUrqs51
— Mississippi State Basketball (@HailStateMBK) March 15, 2019
It was no surprise to also see Quinndary Weatherspoon in double figures, and Thursday was no exception. Weatherspoon mixed the inside and outside game for 12 points to go with 9 assists and 4 boards. He has simply steadied the Bulldog ship every time out, and now that his teammates are starting to show up, he can become more of a facilitator. There will come a moment in March where the Bulldogs need Q to make that big shot, and I don’t see how you can’t have confidence in him to make it.
WHAT’S NEXT?
Tomorrow should be fun 💥
Interactive Bracket » https://t.co/HGsPh7xYyd pic.twitter.com/riXlqCQDTj
— Southeastern Conference (@SEC) March 15, 2019
There will be no shortage of orange in the Bridgestone Arena tomorrow night, as Tennessee takes the court for the first time in this postseason. Mississippi State didn’t play with the kind of effort you need to win in the SEC last week in Knoxville, but the team we saw on the court tonight is very capable of giving the Volunteers all they can handle. I’ll be here to bring you plenty of coverage, and of course, I’ll be on SportsTalk Mississippi tomorrow to recap and preview all the Bulldog basketball.
Photo courtesy of Mississippi State athletics
