Mississippi State tramples Tulane in bounce back win
When Mississippi State went up 10-0 just a few minutes into the first half, the Bulldogs knew they had something brewing. That wound up being an emphatic 106-76 victory over the Tulane Green Wave.
Josh Hubbard led all scorers with 22 points in the outing on 7-10 shooting in the first half alone. DJ Jeffries led the way in assists with seven, and Keshawn Murphy cleaned the glass for 10 boards.
“Get Right” Got Done
Earlier this week, we talked about Mississippi State needing a “Get Right” game after dropping two straight to Georgia Tech and Southern. They got just that in dominating fashion, or at least head coach Chris Jans hopes they did.
“Time will tell,” said Jans. “These games are funny. They unfold the way they do, and every game is different. It’s got its own chapters, etcetera. I hope (we got it). I know our guys are feeling good right now, and we’ll give them tomorrow off and get back on the court Monday and Tuesday.
Shakeel Moore, who drew his first start of the season on Saturday, said that when it comes to righting the ship, it all came down to Mississippi State’s preparation.
“(It started with) just a lot of preparation,” said Moore. “Just getting out there and practicing with a chip on our shoulder, fighting adversity. Our goal was to come into this game and impose our will.”
Top 10
- 1
Big 12 title game scenarios
Updated paths to championship game
- 2
Saban halts Corso
'Not so fast' on Iron Bowl
- 3
Kirk Herbstreit
Quinn Ewers or Arch Manning
- 4Hot
Georgia-GT ref controversy
Outcry over officiating
- 5New
Trolling Michigan
ODOT trolls Wolverines ahead of The Game
There’s that job done, then.
Was Mississippi State that good, or was Tulane that bad?
Tulane came into the game ranked 92nd in KenPom and even higher in the NET. By all current metrics, the win will probably wind up being a dominant quad two game for State. Immediately after play had concluded, Mississippi State was already bumped up plenty spots to 28th on KenPom.
The Green Wave knows how to score it, too. Tulane was averaging around the 90-point mark on the season, and had came out firing on all cylinders on a number of occasions. Mississippi State was able to hand them only their second loss on the young season, and the metrics will like that, too.
The fan base would have much rather had this game at home, no doubt, but neutral court quad two wins will be worth more than a home court one in March. It’s still plenty early in the season, but if Mississippi State figured something out about themselves on Saturday, it should bode well going forward.
Mississippi State will head back to Starkville with a pep in their step before returning home and facing off against the Murray State Racers at 6:30 p.m. on Wednesday night.
