Three Things to Know: No. 20 Mizzou Travels to No. 14 Mississippi State

The Tigers have another challenging road test against another top-25 team in the country, a sign of the toughness of playing in the SEC.

Jan 29, 2025; Starkville, Mississippi, USA; Mississippi State Bulldogs guard Josh Hubbard (12) looks to pass the ball against the Alabama Crimson Tide during the second half at Humphrey Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Wesley Hale-Imagn Images / Wesley Hale-Imagn Images

The Southeastern Conference isn't getting any easier for the No. 20 Missouri Tigers, as reflected in its upcoming road test against No. 14 Mississippi State.

Despite a recent loss to the fourth-ranked Alabama Crimson Tide, the Bulldogs are playing great basketball. They hold a 16-5 record, good for No. 10 in the SEC. Though they sit in the middle of the conference leaderboard with a 4-4 conference record, Mississippi State has one of the best teams in the country.

They also have one of the best players in the country. That combined with four impactful transfers, a forward in the midst of a breakout junior season has been the perfect recipe for success for head coach Chris Jans in his third season in Starkville.

Both ranked squads have the opportunity for a coveted quadrant-one victory on Saturday. A top-25 win on the road for the Tigers would help lock up their postseason hopes, as it would for Mississippi State. Regardless, a loss for either squad wouldn't be the end of the world but it would look better on Missouri's resume than the home team's.

Here's three important details about Missouri's upcoming opponent:

Star Guard

The SEC is full of stars and fortunately for the Bulldogs, they have their own. Josh Hubbard, a 5-foot-11, sophomore point guard, has taken an impressive year-two leap for Mississippi State so far this season. He's been nothing but great in conference play, emerging as a microwave scorer for Jans.

Hubbard is averaging 17.3 points and three assists this season on 39.3 percent shooting from the field and 35.3 percent from the outside. From a statistical viewpoint, it appears that Hubbard hasn't improved much. He's averaging only 0.2 points per game more than he did in the 2023-2024 season and his shooting efficiency is nearly identical to what it was last year.

The variety of ways in which he can score, however, has completely evolved. Hubbard's getting his shot off faster and is also making better decisions as a shot-taker and passer. Those improvements have gone a long way for the success of Mississippi State.

Impactful Transfer Class

Like many others across the country, Mississippi State heavily utilized the transfer portal. The Bulldogs added six players through the portal in the offseason and for the most part, all of them are making their presences felt.

The leading scorer of the bunch, averaging 10.6 points per game, is former Boston College guard Claudell Harris Jr. The senior guard is physical and athletic, doing his best work while attacking downhill. Junior guard Riley Kugel, a third-year SEC veteran who spent his first two seasons with the Florida Gators, is scoring 10.2 points per game.

Next on the list is another well-seasoned Power Five player — senior forward RJ Melendez, who has prior stops at Illinois and Georgia, is averaging exactly nine points per game. His impact is felt more on the defensive side of the ball as a bigger and more athletic wing.

Sophomore center Michael Nwoko, who started his college career at Miami, has arguably the most potential of any Bulldog. His five boards and one block per game is a great starting point in the SEC for the athletic, rim-running forward.

Point guard Kanye Clary and center Jeremy Foumena round out the bunch of transfers. Clary, who started with Penn State, was dismissed from the team midway through the 2023-2024 season. He played in only seven games for the Bulldogs before being ruled out for the season with a lower leg injury.

Foumena hasn't earned much opportunity to play this season. The former Rhode Island big man is huge, standing at 6-foot-11, 250-pounds and should he stay in Starkville, the opportunity to play could present itself.

Falling in Love From the Perimeter

The Bulldogs are in the top four teams in the conference when it comes to attempting outside shots. At the same time, they are in the bottom four of the conference in 3-point percent. At some point, the outside shot isn't an efficient one for Mississippi State but they continue to shoot it.

Jans' squad is attempting 26.6 triples per game and making 8.5, good for 32.1 percent. The only two teams below them in 3-point percentage are LSU and Texas A&M, both of which are shooting under 32 percent.

The volume of outside shots that Mississippi State takes compared to the number they make simply isn't very good and the fact that it doesn't deter them from taking those shots is slightly puzzling. There are a few good perimeter shooters sprinkled throughout the roster in Harris, Kugel and Hubbard.

A significant falloff occurs after that. They are the only three above the 30 percent mark (outside of Martavious Russell, who's attempted only six), which makes the reliability of the rest of the team as shooters rocky. Stopping Harris, Kugel and Hubbard from the outside will be important but defending the rim against, as a whole, should be higher on Missouri's priority list.

Read More Missouri Tigers News:

Mizzou Preparing to Face 'One of the Best Scorers' in SEC at Mississippi State
How to Watch: Mizzou Basketball at Mississippi State
Freshman Stepping Up as Unlikely Leader for Mizzou Basketball