Mississippi State
Oklahoma City (Exh.)
Bulldog Hoops Squad Edges Oklahoma City Late, 67-65, In Exhibition Finale
November 08, 2008 | Men's Basketball
? Official Statistics
? Official Statistics (PDF)
? Postgame Quotes (PDF)
STARKVILLE, Miss. ? Mississippi State utilized an 18-5 rally in the final minutes of the game to overcome two-time defending NAIA national champion and No. 1-ranked Oklahoma City by a score of 67-65 in front of a Humphrey Coliseum crowd of 2,592 Saturday afternoon in the season's final exhibition outing.
Junior Jarvis Varnado, returning National Defensive Player of the Year, once again flirted with triple-double status in the contest by scoring 12 points, claiming a game-high 13 rebounds, and swatting eight shots after leading the nation a year ago in that category.
Varnado has amassed 29 points, 25 rebounds and 16 blocks in State's two exhibition contests.
Senior Brian Johnson fell just a rebound shy of a double-double performance for the Bulldogs with 10 points on 5-of-7 shooting, while standout freshman Dee Bost tallied 11 points and six assists to just three turnovers. Junior Barry Stewart and sophomore Ravern Johnson rounded out State scorers in double digits with 11 and 10 points, respectively.
Senior forward Jamarcus Ellis led the Stars with a game-high 26 points on 10-of-24 shooting to go along with his five rebounds.
Saturday's win puts MSU at 19-2 in exhibition play under head coach Rick Stansbury,
Ranking second in the nation in field goal percentage defense last season, the Bulldogs held their two exhibition foes to a combined 50-of-134 performance for 37.3% shooting, while holding a 115-75 rebounding advantage.
