The Halftime Report: Tennessee vs. Mississippi State

Sloppy play has defined Tennessee's first half against the Mississippi State Bulldogs, similar to their outing against Kentucky.

Tennessee has come out slowly after a close loss against Kentucky. Mental mistakes have defined both games, and the Volunteers must correct this heading into the second half.

Guards Santiago Vescovi and Tyreke Key are out of action tonight, leaving the orange and white without 22 points in their lineup. The ESPN broadcast shared that Tennessee struggled to move the ball against a shell of Mississippi State's zone defense in the shootaround.

The Bulldogs aren't necessarily out-executing the Volunteers. Instead, Tennessee is beating itself. Guard Zakai Zeigler has a lot on his plate, and it has shown in his play with several costly turnovers.

It looks like a different team than a week ago. The ball is stagnant, and sometimes only two players touch the ball on offensive possessions. Meanwhile, Mississippi State looks crisp and ready for revenge after Tennessee embarrassed them earlier this month.

Fortunately, the game is tied. The mistakes are fixable if head coach Rick Barnes can communicate with the team, and it seems they did toward the end of the first half.

The Volunteers found something and came back to even the score at 23. They must continue that moving forward, and the second half is integral.

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