Bulldog struggles continue as State suffers blowout loss, 88-64, to Missouri

For the second straight outing, Mississippi State was out of the game before many fans got settled into their seats at Humphrey Coliseum. In the end, it was another lopsided loss for the Bulldogs as Missouri routed State, 88-64.

It was State’s third straight loss as the Bulldogs dropped to 13-16 overall and 5-11 in the SEC. Missouri completed the season sweep of State and improved to 20-9 overall and 10-6 in the SEC.

“I didn’t sense it,” head coach Chris Jans remarked afterwards. “We had a great day yesterday at practice. I thought they were really, really good considering where we were at after the last outing (at Alabama) and where we are at in the season. Their energy in practice was really good.

“They were enthusiastic and had a punch to their step. For whatever reason, we got off to a horrible start again. We played uphill all afternoon long.”

Josh Hubbard led State with 16 points while Quincy Ballard had 14. Freshman King Grace finished with 9 points and four rebounds. Mark Mitchell led Missouri with 17 points and Shawn Phillips had 16. Anthony Robinson finished with 13 for the Tigers while T.O. Barrett and Trent Pierce each had 10.

“When we get punched we have to respond quicker,” explained Hubbard. “That is exactly what I think has gone on the past two games. Right at tip-off it’s got to be from the get-go.

“Just continue to play hard regardless of the score. It’s just (About) not settling, not giving up so easily and staying positive as much as we can.”

For the second straight game, State found themselves down by 30 at halftime. Things were not much better in the second half as the closest State got was 24 points, which was the final margin of the game.

For the game, State shot 49% from the field and made 5 of 19 from 3 point territory. The Bulldogs were just 7 of 13 at the foul line and tied a season high in SEC play with 18 turnovers.

Missouri shot 51% from the floor and made 8 of 20 beyond the 3 point arc. The Tigers were 20 of 24 at the charity stripe and had 12 turnovers. Missouri ended up outscoring State, 27-10, in points off turnovers. The Tigers also outrebounded State, 38-26, led by Jayden Stone’s game-high 10 rebounds.

“It is what I told them in the locker room,” Jans added. “One of my job responsibilities, 1A, 1B or 1C and somewhere in there, is on game day to get our guys, our team, to compete at the highest level. Regardless of our record, who we are playing, the time tip is, where the game is played at, that is part of my job and it means a lot to me.

“I told them for whatever reason, I’ve failed to be able to, for the most part and most of the games, to get them to play to the standard that we’ve created and to the expectations our fans have come to know. In the end it is one of my major responsibilities and it is not happening. Obviously, it hurts me to my core and what we believe in. We just haven’t been able to get them to play at the level we needed.”

It didn’t take Missouri long to grab control in the opening minutes. A Stone 3 pointer gave Missouri a 20-6 advantage with 12;05 remaining in the half and it didn’t get any better for State the rest of the half. Missouri ended up taking a 54-23 lead at halftime.

State shot just 33% in the first half and missed all nine attempts beyond the 3 point arc, The Bulldogs had 12 first-half turnovers and made 5 of 8 from the foul line. Missouri sot 61% in the first half and made 3 of 7 from 3 point range. The Tigers had five turnovers, made 13 of 15 at the foul line and controlled the boards, 22-12.

State now enters the final week of the regular season and any postseason hopes have long faced away. The goal now is to just be competitive in the final two games of the season.

“I think it’s going to take a whole-group effort and everybody buying in,” Grace noted. “And wanting to compete and play hard for each other and win together.”

Up Next

Mississippi State returns to action Wednesday with its final road game of the season. It will also be the Bulldogs’ toughest test of the year. Mississippi State travels to Florida on Wednesday for a 7 p.m. tipoff. The game will be televised by the SEC Network. No. 7 Florida is 22-6 overall and 13-2 in the SEC, and the Gators can clinch at least a share of the SEC regular-season title with a win over Arkansas on Saturday evening.