Bulldog stars go cold in loss to rival Rebels
In a year where Mississippi State has struggled to find multiple offensive options, Saturday night’s rivalry game against Ole Miss showed why off nights from its two stars are a nightmare.
Josh Hubbard and Jayden Epps had arguably their worst nights of their careers against the Rebels but the Bulldogs still had a chance in the final seconds. As the Rebels had the front end of a one-and-one go off the rim, Hubbard raced out and drove the ball the length of the court and had a chance to win the game on a layup, but it fell off the rim.
The 68-67 loss to Ole Miss leaves a bitter taste in the mouths of a Bulldog team that continues to scuffle in year four under Chris Jans. It was only the second time in Jans’ career that he had loss to the Rebels, but this one really left a mark.
“As far as Epps and Hubbard, they just didn’t have a efficient night,” Jans said. “They didn’t shoot the ball the way they’re capable of and everyone that’s been following us knows they’re a big part of us scoring the basketball.”
The Bulldogs shot a miserable 5-of-27 from 3-point range in the game and missed another nine free throws. Two of those misses came in the final seconds when Hubbard missed both of his after having a chance to give the Bulldogs a lead in the final 15 seconds.
Hubbard finished with 13 points in 36 minutes but was 3-of-16 from the field, 2-of-8 from three and was an uncharacteristic 5-of-10 from the free throw line. It wasn’t until the 8 minute mark of the game that Hubbard even hit a shot from long range as he broke up an 0-for-6 start from three. He hit his last two shots from long range, but those missed buckets added up.
Despite all of that, State had a chance in the final seconds. Hubbard hit a three and got two free throws in the last minute that would give the Bulldogs a lead. Trailing by one, Hubbard got fouled and had a chance to get the lead with under 20 seconds left but missed two free throws. He also had the bucket on the final possession that rimmed out.
“We got the stops that we needed, we just couldn’t find a way to put the ball through the goal the last couple possessions,” Jans said. “I wouldn’t change any of what we did (at the end of the game). I’ll take that scenario 100 out of 100. For whatever reason, they didn’t decide to let the ball go through the net.”
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Epps was equally cold on this night. He had a team high 14 points, but he did it on 4-of-18 shooting and 1-of-12 from three.
The Rebels overcame their misses in the game as they shot 2-of-20 from three but made 27-of-51 inside the arc. Ole Miss also had just five turnovers.
“You can name a bunch of plays throughout the game,” Epps said of the loss. “Sometimes things just don’t go your way. One shot, one turnover or anything can make things swing your way. (Saturday) just wasn’t our night.”
It was the third-straight loss for the Bulldogs and all three have come after State had a double-digit lead in the first half. Following a 22-11 lead in the first half, the Bulldogs were outscored 16-8 to close the half and it was game on from there.
State is now 10-8 and 2-3 in the SEC as the team continues to search for answers.
“Coach has been stressing to put together 40 minutes,” Epps said. “We’ve got to put together a whole game where we can fight and sustain leads. That’s something we’ve got to go back to the drawing board and figure it out.
