Mississippi State Wins Hall of Fame Basketball Tournament

Freshman Josh Hubbard scored 29 points off the bench as MSU defeated previously-unbeaten Northwestern 66-57.

Mississippi State basketball's holiday tournament ended up being anything but a turkey Sunday as freshman Josh Hubbard came off the bench to score 29 points to help lead a 66-57 victory against Northwestern in the Hall of Fame Tip-Off Tournament championship.

The first-year guard from Madison, Miss., shot 9 of 14 from the field, including 4-for-8 from 3-point range. With four straight double-digit scoring games, including a pair of 20-plus-point efforts in that stretch, Hubbard is averaging 16.4 points per game so far. 

"What about him, man?" Mississippi State head coach Chris Jans said of Hubbard. "He was a big reason why we won the game."

Dashawn Davis was the only other Bulldogs to reach double digits in scoring with 11 points, while D.J. Jeffries had 10 rebounds, and Cameron Matthews grabbed eight. Hubbard was named tournament MVP, and Davis joined him on the all-tournament team. 

Northwestern (4-1) jumped out to an early lead, scoring 11 points before Mississippi State managed to get any, and was up 15-3 just 7:30 into the game. However, the Bulldogs responded quickly to cut the lead to five with five minutes remaining in the half.

"We just wanted to stay positive," Hubbard said per the MSU website. "We didn't hang our heads down because we knew we had a lot of ballgame left. We just kept with the game plan and adjusted a few things to stop their momentum."

The Bulldogs (5-0) took their first lead, 39-38, with Davis jump-shot with 14:10 to go, and pulled away with a late nine-point run. Northwestern had the lead for 32:58 of game time, compared to Mississippi State's 5:43. 

Ty Berry led the way for the Wildcats with 14 points and four steals, while Ryan Langborg and Brooks Barnhizer each had in 13 points. Boo Buie added nine points and a career-high eight rebounds. 

Played in Uncasville, Conn., Mississippi State had advanced to the final with a 76-64 win over Washington State on Saturday.

What Chris Jans Said After Mississippi St. Won Hall of Fame Tipoff Tournament