Mississippi State's Josh Hubbard shows love to Reed Sheppard: 'lot of respect for you 15'

Kentucky’s Reed Sheppard and Mississippi State’s Josh Hubbard helped put together an instant classic on Tuesday night in Starkville.

The freshmen guards traded blows nearly all game long, especially down the stretch. Sheppard scored 11 points in the final two minutes while Hubbard drained a trio of three-pointers in the final 50 seconds. Hubbard nearly willed Mississippi State back from a six-point deficit with 35 ticks in regulation, even hitting a tough game-tying triple with 10 seconds to go.

But Sheppard got the last laugh, nailing a floater in the lane right before the buzzer to lift Kentucky past the Bulldogs, 91-89. In a game that featured plenty of veterans and physical play in the post, it was the rookie guards who produced the most fireworks.

Sheppard and Hubbard combined for 66 points on Tuesday night — 32 for the Bluegrass native and 34 for Hubbard, both their new career-highs. Afterward, Sheppard gave Hubbard credit for his incredible clutch performance.

“Well first off you got to give Hubbard a big — like he hit some big shots down the stretch,” Sheppard said. “All those 3s he hit are really, really tough shots.”

On Wednesday morning, Hubbard returned the love, posting a picture of himself and Sheppard on X/Twitter with the caption “lot of respect for you 15”.

lot of respect for you 15 🤝🏽 pic.twitter.com/msfsmJbyni

— Josh Hubbard (@jhubb_3) February 28, 2024

Game recognizes game.