Mississippi State wins 'surreal' heart-stopper against Florida in SEC Tournament

Mississippi State topped Florida 69-68 in a thrilling overtime contest at Bridgestone Arena in the SEC Tournament on Thursday, surviving and advancing.

For the Bulldogs, the win likely also cemented an NCAA Tournament bid, something just about everyone in the arena seemed to know. That raised the stakes quite a bit against the Gators.

“Man, it’s surreal, man. We needed this win,” big man Tolu Smith said on the SEC Network broadcast following the game. “Everybody know we needed this win for what we’re trying to go to. And we knew they were trying to make it hard for us and they did, they did a great job.”

The Bulldogs built a big early lead in the game, going up by as many as 14 before the Gators bounced back.

Florida had a shot come off the iron that could have won the game at the end of regulation, then had another clang out that would have won it at the end of overtime. It was a heart-stopping finish, one that required coaches and fans alike to check their pulse afterward.

“I’m pretty good. What a finish, right?” Mississippi State coach Chris Jans said on the SEC Network set shortly after the game ended. “Fun for the fans, not so much for the coaches and certainly our bench. But they kept it together. You’ve got to credit Florida. Wow. We were up six I think there, 67-61, and they just didn’t quit. (Myreon) Jones made some bombs and kept them in the game and they showed a lot of toughness there down the stretch.”

Mississippi State still trying to put it all together

For as thrilling a result as Thursday afternoon’s Mississippi State win over Florida was, it could have been a lot smoother.

The Bulldogs still haven’t quite put it all together within a single game, something Jans pointed out after the game.

“We had 20 turnovers. That was disappointing,” he said. “We had 20 turnovers and certainly we didn’t shoot the ball very well. But we’ve won plenty of games this year when we haven’t shot the ball very well. We keep waiting for the lid to come off and make eight or nine and then how good we can be.”

Survive and advance, that’s the key in March. And Mississippi State will play on.

“It’s a surreal feeling, man, a surreal feeling,” Smith said. “It’s hard to grasp right now, just trying to get the rest of the wins (here at the SEC Tournament).”