Mississippi State Men's Basketball End Its Regular Season In An Overtime Loss Against No. 17 South Carolina

The Bulldogs have now lost four games in a row and have likely played their way into the NCAA Tournament bubble.

STARKVILLE, Miss - The Mississippi State Bulldogs have ended the regular season on a four-game losing streak as they drop to No. 17 South Carolina in an overtime loss 93-89.

Josh Hubbard had another fantastic game but a missed free throw at the end closed the upset door for the Bulldogs. he finished the game with 28 points and now has the most 3-pointers made in a season for the Bulldogs with 98. 

The starting lineup for the Bulldogs also came to play as Tolu Smith III, Cameron Matthews, and Dashawn Davis all had double-figure points. Davis was right beside Hubbard all afternoon and proved to develop into a dynamic backcourt between the two. He finished with 16 on 5-8 shooting and they can use that duo in tournament play coming up.

Matthews and Smith were battling throughout the whole game with B.J. Mack and Collin Murray-Boyles. The duo for the Gamecocks combined for 44 points and played with their size for the majority of the game. Head coach Chris Jans credited the duo for their play in their loss.

"They are really good players and they did it so effectively. Mack had 25 on 11 shots and Boyles had 19 on 10 shots. They were 17 for 21 and eight for nine from the free throw line. I would call that efficient at the highest level," Jans said.

MSU will have to go through the gauntlet of the SEC Tournament starting next week to improve to chances to be placed into the NCAA Tournament. It will be the eight vs nine seed to see who will advance to the next round of play. 

Second Half/Overtime

This story will be regularly updated throughout the game.

Mississippi State Final Box Score

South Carolina Final Box Score

Final: South Carolina 93, Mississippi State 89

0:06 - South Carolina intentionally fouls the Bulldogs, and it is a great call from their head coach because of the troubles the Bulldogs have at the line. Jefferies goes one of two and ends the regular season of the Bulldogs.

0:16 - Hubbard gets fouled on an attempted 3-pointer. He has a chance to tie the game and is too strong on his last one. South Carolina 89, Mississippi State 88

0:30 - B.J. Mack is having his way with Smith in the paint. He has been playing bully ball all night with him and it has not stopped. South Carolina 89, Mississippi State 86

1:00 - Smith gets sent to the line however he goes one of two from the line. He tries to chase his miss and the play is under review to see who it went off of last. It is South Carolina's ball. South Carolina 87, Mississippi State 86

1:12 - Rotating on defense is what is killing the Bulldogs. They can score on offense but they can't get a stop on defense. South Carolina 87, Mississippi State 85

3:45 - The Bulldogs over-commit in their rotations on defense and leaves Johnson wide open for a three. Hubbard gets fouled on the other end and makes both his free throws. South Carolina 82, Mississippi State 79

End of Regulation: South Carolina 77, Mississippi State 77

0:01.4 -  With no time left in the game, Davis gets fouled and goes to the line. Ironically, the season comes down to free throws as the Bulldogs have struggled all season long with three throws. But unlike most games earlier in the season, he makes both. South Carolina 77, Mississippi State 77 

0:04 - With under four seconds remaining, Smith gets caught up with a defender and gets a foul called on him. The free throws are good and it is a two-point game with 4.2 seconds remaining. South Carolina 77, Mississippi State 75

0:32 - Hubbard elevates and gets the jumper to fall. He takes it before the 30-second shot clock so there is a possible two-for-one opportunity for the Bulldogs. South Carolina 75, Mississippi State 75

0:43 - Each team trades points back and forth in this epic closing minute. Jeffries back in the starting lineup has been amazing for Mississippi State as he hits a clutch corner three. But like most of the game, it has been one step forward, two steps back as a crashing Gamecock gets the put back in the paint. South Carolina 75, Mississippi State 73

*With that 3-pointer made by Hubbard, he has the most 3-pointers made in a season for Mississippi State with 98.

4:15 - Davis is keeping it close as it is now a three-point game. Hubbard comes down the court and ties the game as the dynamic backcourt has put the Bulldogs are their back with a 6-0 run. The Bulldogs are fighting and have tied the game South Carolina 70, Mississippi State 70

7:21 - The Bulldogs were on a scoring drought that lasted nearly three minutes. Tolu Smith is starting to make an impact on the game. As of now, no Bulldogs are in foul trouble so all hands are on deck for the closing minutes of the game. South Carolina 66, Mississippi State 61

10:39 Media timeout on the floor. It's one step forward two steps back for Mississippi State. They can score and tie the game on multiple occasions but the Bulldogs can't stop anything in the paint. South    Carolina 61, Mississippi State 57

13:09 - Jefferies ties the game up and leads the Bulldogs on a 7-0 run. South Carolina 52, Mississippi State 52

15:55 - Media timeout on the floor. The Bulldogs are scoring but the issue is stopping the open shots from three from falling. Slow rotations on the zone defense and leaving people open at the wing have started to hurt the MSU. South Carolina 50, Mississippi State 44

18:02 - Hubbard starts the half with a three for the Bulldogs. If he has it going in the second half, then it is a positive sign for the Dawgs. South Carolina 42, Mississippi State 40

First Half

South Carolina Halftime Box Score

Mississippi State Halftime Box Score

Halftime:  South Carolina 38, Mississippi State 37

The Bulldogs have found their groove on defense but offense has been the question mark all day. Hubbard, Davis, and Matthews are leading to charge on offense. B.J. Mack for South Carolina leads them with 11 points. It will be a competitive second half for the Bulldogs are they are desperately looking for a win.

2:40 - Chris Jans is hot and so are the players with some questionable calls by the refs. Smith is trying to get himself involved in the game but the ball is not moving in his favor. South Carolina 35, Mississippi State 30

5:35 - D.J. Jeffries's presence is being felt all over the floor. He has gotten back-to-back steals and finds Davis in the corner for a three. Cameron Matthews is also the game wrecker that he is. South Carolina 27, Mississippi State 27

7:25 - Media timeout on the floor. The Bulldogs are giving the energy they need to finish the game strong. The issue is that the Gamecocks are finishing everyone and one opportunity. Tolu Smith is a player that everyone is expecting to get going but he has not been able to get to his normal spots. South Carolina 25, Mississippi State 18

10:16 - Mississippi State has started to find the energy that has made the team gel all season. Hubbard has only taken one three in the game which is shocking but has made an effort getting to the paint. South Carolina 21, Mississippi State 18

12:47 - Hubbard gets fouled on his way to the paint. The Bulldogs have been struggling to stop the Gamecocks in the paint so head coach Chris Jans inserted Jimmy Bell Jr. to add some size. South Carolina 17, Mississippi State 10

15:54 - Media timeout on the floor. there seems to be a lack of energy at MSU. The Bulldogs tend to play slowly in the first half but this game is not the game to start playing as they have the past few games. South Carolina 9, Mississippi State 4

17:04 - The Bulldogs have started this game better than their previous two. Hubbard is taking the ball to the paint and finding teammates to finish. South Carolina 7, Mississippi State 4

Mississippi State Starting Five	South Carolina Starting Five
Dashawn Davis	Meechie Johnson
Josh Hubbard	Zachary Davis
D.J. Jefferies	Ta'lon Cooper
Tolu Smith III	B.J. Mack
Cameron Matthews	Collin Murray-Boyles

STARKVILLE, Miss - It is the final game of the regular season for the Mississippi State Bulldogs and a familiar foe stands in the way. No 17. South Carolina played the Bulldogs in both team's first SEC play where the Gamecocks took the victory at home 68-62.

This was before star freshman Josh Hubbard started to grow into the scorer he is now. He has scored 20-plus points in his last four games and looks to close the season out with a possible SEC Freshman Of The Year on his mind. 

This game has major implications for seeding in the SEC Tournament as well as a possible bid into the NCAA tournament for the Bulldogs. They have lost their last three games, and a fourth could have them on the outside looking in. 

How To Watch: Mississippi State vs. No. 17 South Carolina