Bulldogs Hold Off Nicholls State, 74-68

Monday, December 22

Jackson, Miss.

7:00 PM

Mississippi State

(8-4)

Nicholls State

(6-5)

Nicholls State

Mississippi State

Bulldogs Hold Off Nicholls State, 74-68

December 22, 2008 | Men's Basketball

Box Score

By: hailstate.com

? Official Statistics
? Official Statistics (PDF)
? Postgame Notes & Quotes (PDF)

JACKSON, Miss. ? Junior all-star Jarvis Varnado once again dominated for Mississippi State (8-4) Monday evening to lead the Bulldogs to a 74-68 triumph against the Nicholls State Colonels (6-5) at Jackson's Mississippi Coliseum.

Varnado tied his career high with 24 points on 8-of-9 shooting. Currently leading the nation in blocks per outing with 6 per game, Varnado matched that total against the Colonels to go along with his six rebounds. He is also ranked ninth nationally and second in the SEC in rebounding .

Sophomore Ravern Johnson also had a career-best night with eight rebounds to go along with 11 points and two steals. Freshman Dee Bost jumped into the MSU all-time freshman assists Top 10, now currently standing ninth, with six for a total of 55 on the season. Bost also claimed a career-high-tying five rebounds.

Sophomore Phil Turner rounded out State scorers in double digits with 11 on 9-of-12 shooting from the charity stripe coupled with five rebounds.

Nicholls State sophomore Anatoly Bose gave MSU fits from behind the arc, scoring a team-high 20 points on 4-of-6 shooting.

After carrying a comfortable 34-22 lead out of halftime, Mississippi State stretched its lead to 20 (47-27) at the 16:05 mark with a Stewart trey. Refusing to lose intensity, the Colonels responded with a 16-5 run capped by a Chris Iles jumper to close the MSU advantage to 61-51 with 6:28 remaining.

The hard work continued for NSU, as Bose hit back-to-back 3s to thin the Bulldog lead to just 68-62 with 2:54 left in the game. Mississippi State would register its last eight points from the free-throw stripe to secure the victory.

“Nicholls State led LSU for 36 minutes in Baton Rouge, so it shows you what they're capable of doing,” MSU coach Rick Stansbury said. “To our team's credit, we found a way to separate ourselves in this game.”

Mississippi State returns home to the friendly atmosphere of Humphrey Coliseum Tuesday, Dec. 30, at 8 p.m. against San Diego in a game televised by Fox Sports South.