Mississippi State Men’s Basketball Win in the Battle of The Bulldogs
A much-needed win for Mississippi State as they defeated Georgia 75-62 at home.
Mississippi State (15-8, SEC 4-6) continues to prove that they have one of the best home teams in the SEC. The defense stepped up and held Georgia to 35.1 percent from the field and while Noah Thomasson finished the game with 20, UGA's other explosive guards struggled all night.
After the loss against No 16. Alabama, Head Coach Chris Jans mentioned how the team had a difficult yet important meeting that could turn their season around.
"That was a tough night, a tough Sunday, it was a tough meeting. It wasn't a raise-the-decimal meeting, it was a matter of fact, to the point of why it happened. For the first time in a long time, we had players talking. Some things that were said were serious and I loved how they did it. I loved how they talked about issues that are you know below the surface and everyone handled it really well," Jans said.
Those fixed issues could be seen on the offensive side of the ball and how it was balanced throughout the team. Four players for State finished in double figures. Tolu Smith III led the team in scoring with 19 points and added 12 rebounds in his dominant performance. He showed some explosiveness that has rarely been seen when finishing around the rim.
Josh Hubbard finished the game with 14 points but shot 3-12 from the field. An ankle injury he picked up in the team's loss against The Crimson Tide seems to have hampered him and his explosiveness and it could be seen in the way he played all game.
After Saturday's game against Missouri, the team will have a week off which could serve well for Hubbard and his health.
Keshawn Murphy returned for the first time since the game in South Carolina and proved to be helpful finishing with 10 points off the bench in 15 minutes. Shakeel Moore also finished with 11 points for the game and provided great defense for the team.
Dashawn Davis and Cameron Matthews were also impactful in their time on the floor tonight. looking at the box score Davis finished with eight assists and Matthews finished with a plus-23 with a near double-double with nine points and 11 rebounds. Jans later mentioned how important Matthews is for the team.
"He's our leader, he's our heartbeat, he's our personality. He's just a nightmare to talk about because he's got a unique game. It's bully driving and slicing the court and his vision being about to pass to anyone. He needs to continue to be that leader that he needs to be," Jans said.
Mississippi State will be back on the road searching for its first road win of the season against Missouri (8-15, SEC 0-10) on Saturday, Feb 10 (7:30 p.m. central on SEC Network).
