Mississippi State uses big second half to rally past Utah, 78-73

Playing outside of Humphrey Coliseum for the first time this season, Mississippi State rallied from a double-digit halftime deficit on Sunday and knocked off Utah 78-73 in Southaven at the Landers Center.

Josh Hubbard had a game-high 23 points, including 20 in the second half, as State improved to 4-0 on the young season. KeShawn Murphy had a season-best 18 points and a career-high 14 rebounds in 27 minutes while Riley Kugel added 12 points.

For Murphy, his defensive play down the stretch also aided State’s win. And his offseason work and improvements are starting to shine on the court early in his junior season.

“I’ve been praising KeShawn as much as I can going into the season and deservingly so,” said head coach Chris Jans. “He’s been Top 2 or Top 3 easily with his consistent approach and mindset to his work. He had an unbelievable offseason.

“For people that don’t remember, he’s just not used to playing big minutes. He hasn’t played big minutes but in a handful of games since he’s arrived in college. So it is new for him. I thought tonight you saw the work he put in during the offseason. He looked like practice.”

In his return near his hometown, Cameron Matthews had 12 points and helped ice the win with five crucial free throws in the closing seconds. Michael Nwoko also added 11 rebounds for the Bulldogs.

Naturally, Matthews was thrilled to put the game away at the stripe, especially growing up in nearby Olive Branch.

“Just that my team needed me and being there for them,” Matthews noted. “Just remembering all the reps I get in to try to mimic those motions and make the free throws.

“And a whole lot of people were here (from Olive Branch). I got a lot of phone calls and texts. It’s a good feeling being back close to home and seeing a lot of familiar faces. I’m just glad we got it done here.”

But Matthews was just as proud of his teammate Murphy and that performance.

“Murph is definitely growing as a player,” added Matthews. “Every night out he is getting more and more experience. I’m excited to see him out there and he’s had a long journey. I’m super proud of him.”

Trailing by 11 at halftime, State exploded out of the second-half gates and turned up intensity on both ends of the court. The Bulldogs went on a 22-4 run, including 11 points by Hubbard, and took a 50-44 lead with 13:20 remaining after a jumper from Murphy.

However, Utah wouldn’t go away and the Utes quickly responded to grab a 55-51 lead. State kept the pressure on and took the lead for good at 65-64 following a Murphy hook shot. Matthews would make 5 of 6 at the foul line in the final minute to ice the game and State improved to 3-0 all-time against Utah.

After scoring just three points in the first half, Hubbard made 4 of 5 from 3 point range in the second half. But it was more than just Hubbard picking up the pace.

“We knew what we had to do,” said Hubbard. “We went through a little adversity and our shots were not falling down, we weren’t getting 50-50 balls and we weren’t rebounding. So we knew what we had to do to make it a game. We stayed positive and kept each other lifted.”

For the game, State shot just 36% and made 6 of 25 behind the 3 point arc. The Bulldogs were 24 of 33 at the foul line and had just seven turnovers. State out-rebounded the Utes 45-41 and had 15 assists.

Utah (3-1) shot 45% from the floor and made 9 of 28 from 3 point range. The Utes were 8 of 14 at the charity stripe and had 13 turnovers. Ezra Ausar led the Utes in scoring with 15 points while Mason Madsen had 14 points. Keanu Dawes had 13 points and a team-high 12 rebound and Miro Little added 10 points.

The lead went back and forth in the opening minutes and remained that way until the midway point of the first half. A Hubbard 3 pointer gave State a 17-15 lead with 10:02 remaining in the half before the Bulldogs went ice cold the rest of the half.

The Utes used a 12-4 run to grab a 31-23 lead and eventually led 39-28 at halftime.

“(Hubbard) got off to a slow start but I wasn’t phased by it and I’m sure he wasn’t either,” Jans mentioned. “He’s put the work in and has been there, done that. He was a big catalyst in why we won the game. He made some shots and got the crowd into the game. It was dead in there in the first half, deservingly so. We didn’t give them much to cheer about. I didn’t know what to expect in the second half but Josh led the way.”

State shot just 23% in the opening half and made only 1 of 13 attempts beyond the 3 point arc. The Bulldogs were 11 of 16 at the foul line and had five first-half turnovers.

Utah shot 45% in the first half and made 5 of 16 from 3 point territory. The Utes were 4 of 8 at the charity stripe, had six turnovers and held a 29-28 rebounding edge in the half.

Up Next
Mississippi State at SMU on Friday with a 7:30 p.m. tipoff on the ACC Network. SMU is currently 3-1 on the season with a loss to Butler and wins over Tarleton State, Florida A&M and UNC Greensboro.