Mississippi State put on Defensive Clinic to Reach SEC Tournament Semifinals

From start to finish, it was the Bulldogs' day as they shut down the Tennessee Volunteers to advance in Nashville.

NASHVILLE - The Mississippi State Bulldogs played one of its best defensive games all season to knock out top-seeded 1 Tennessee 73-56 to advance to the semifinals of the SEC tournament for the first time since 2010.

Wire-to-wire, the game was in control of the Bulldogs with a defensive masterclass from D.J. Jeffries and an impressive offensive afternoon from Cameron Matthews. 

Jeffries was tasked with guarding the SEC Player of the Year in Dalton Knecht who finished the game with 14 points while going 4-19 from the field and 2-9 from behind the arch. In the previous outing on Jan. 10, he was lights out from the field scoring 28 points. When he is going Tennessee is hard to stop, but with him out of his game, the Bulldogs took advantage. 

Jeffries played 37 of the 40 regulation minutes and was glued to Knecht from the start. Knecht was not able to get his jumper to fall and the intensity from Jeffries and the other players from the Bulldogs made it hard for him to get it going.

Another one of the advantages for State was paint scoring. Matthews was the focal point in the attack on the basket. he finished the game with 18 points while finishing a perfect 7-7 from the field. Every way possible he was scoring. With an emphatic dunk, a circus shot layup, or just plain bully ball, he was the game wrecker that he can be on any given night.

Josh Hubbard was also effective on the floor by scoring 18 points of his own. The shooting splits are not as pretty as Matthews but 18 points are 18 points. He continued to be a deep ball threat for State with three made 3-pointers as well as shooting perfectly from the free-throw line (5-5). 

The Bulldogs will face the winner between South Carolina and Auburn in the semifinals where the Bulldogs will look to continue their run in pursuit of a SEC Championship.

Here's How It Happened:

Second Half

Mississippi State Final Box Score

Tennessee Final Box Score

Final: Mississippi State 73, Tennessee 56

2:13 - two minutes in basketball is still a long time but the Bulldogs seem to have the game in control to advance to the Semi-finals of the SEC Tournament. Tennessee has started to foul to get some extra possessions. Mississippi State 72, Tennessee 56 

3:21 - Jeffries goes on a 5-0 run by himself and stops the bleeding that was starting to hurt the Bulldogs. His defense on Knecht has been incredible all game and has proven to be the difference-making in this game. Mississippi State 65, Tennessee 48

5:00 - Tennessee is on a 13-2 run and is starting to chip at the lead that State has maintained all game. The three ball is starting to fall for the Volunteers and the Bulldogs have gone cold on offense. They are closing in on a scoring drought of three minutes. Mississippi State 60, Tennessee 48

7:56 - Media timeout on the floor. For some reason, Knecht is not in the game and without him on the floor, it will be hard for the Volunteer to get back into the game. The Bulldogs still have a strong grip on this game with great defense and timely offensive possessions. Mississippi State 58, Tennessee, 38

11:37 - Timeout for Tennessee. It is more of the first half from the Bulldogs in this second period. After the Volunteers started the half on the right foot, they took a misstep and the Dawgs capitalized. They are not able to match the Bulldogs on the physicality end and are still missing their three-point shots. Mississippi State 55, Tennessee 33

14:24 - Matthews is a one-man wrecking crew when he puts his head down and gets to the paint. Also, let's not forget that Hubbard is still a great scorer but he is also a very quick person. Mississippi State 47, Tennessee 28

15:54 - A lot of calls on the Bulldogs in this second half. It has gotten them a bit out of rhythm but there is still time for them to get themselves together and keep this game in their control. Mississippi State 40, Tennessee 26.

18:33 - This is not the way the Bulldogs wanted to start. Smith has gotten two quick fouls and will be out for quite some time. Tennessee is taking advantage by driving to the paint. Mississippi State 38, Tennessee 24

First Half

A defensive masterclass is an understatement of how well the Bulldogs played in the first half. Outside of offensive rebounds, MSU has owned both sides of the court. They have controlled the offense with 28 paint points. That is coming off the back of Matthews.

He has 12 points in the half and leads both teams in scoring. Davis has also been effective and dynamic on the floor. The goal is clear for the Bulldogs and they are going to get to the paint and be more aggressive and physical than Tennessee. 

Mississippi State is holding Tennessee to 2-18 from three and 7-34 from the field. The defense that is being played on Knecht is what is keeping the Bulldogs in control. At the half, he is 2-8 with two turnovers but don't be shocked if he and the team start to hit threes in the second half. 

Mississippi State Halftime Box Score

Tennessee Halftime Box Score

Halftime: Mississippi State 38, Tennessee 19

3:16 - The game has turned into missed threes for the Volunteers who are shooting 2-17 while the Bulldogs dominate in the paint. It is an old-school type of game and those are the games that State thrives on. Mississippi State 34, Tennessee 18

5:13 - Tennessee is dominating on the offensive glass but the defense of Mississippi State is still rock solid. The offense is starting to slow down. They are draining the clock but good shots are not being found at the end of them. Mississippi State 28, Tennessee 18

9:45 - Dashawn Davis is starting to get into his rhythm on offense. He is providing another option on the floor for the offense, allowing the others to get comfortable. The defense is still stout as ever but the Volunteers are starting to find their range. Mississippi State 22, Tennessee 14

12:37 - It is incredible watching the way the Bulldogs are generating offense from their defense. This is some of the best defense that MSU has played all season. They have effort and determination that hasn't been seen in some time. Mississippi State 15, Tennessee 4

14:53 - Media timeout on the floor. The Bulldogs are playing a great game so far. They are keeping the ball out of Knecht's hands and are generating some consistent offense. Mississippi State 9, Tennessee 4

17:37 - Smith and Hubbard must have heard about their slow starts in the first half of the past games. They start the game off strong with all seven of the Bulldog's points. Mississippi State 7, Tennessee 4

Mississippi State Starting Five	Tennessee Starting Five
Dashawn Davis	Dalton Knecht
Josh Hubbard	Zakai Zeigler
D.J. Jeffries	Santiago Vescovi
Tolu Smith III	Josiah-Jordan James
Cameron Matthews	Jonas Aidoo

NASHVILLE, Tenn - The Mississippi State Bulldogs are coming off an impressive comeback victory against the LSU Tigers in the second round of the SEC Tournament 70-60 to advance to the quarterfinals. 

Now that a bid to the NCAA tournament seems to be in favor of the Bulldogs, MSU has a chance to upset No. 5 Tennessee once again.

Earlier in the season, State defeated the Volunteers for one of its quad-one victories at home 77-72, however, the atmosphere for this game will likely resemble a home game for Tennessee. 

In their last meeting, it was a big game for the SEC Player of the Year Dalton Knecht and Zakai Zeigler who each had 25-plus point performances, Josh Hubbard and Tolu Smith also had big performances as well, but coming off of the last game, Smith needs to assert himself into the game quickly and not wait until the second half. These are the types of games that Mississippi State can not start slowly. 

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