MSU One Win Away From New York

STARKVILLE, Miss. – Only one victory stands between Mississippi State and trip to New York City for the NIT semifinals. Tuesday, the Bulldogs aim for that win when they travel to Louisville.

This quarterfinal round tips at the KFC Yum! Center at 8 p.m. CT, with the game televised on ESPN. Bob Wischusen and Fran Fraschilla will handle the broadcast, while Neil Price and Richard Williams will have the call on the MSU radio network.

This is the first meeting between the two programs since 1987 when the Cardinals claimed an 86-62 win in Honolulu in the Rainbow Classic

LAST TIME OUT
Mississippi State beat Baylor, 78-77, on a last-second 3-pointer by Quinndary Weatherspoon. Tyson Carter led the Bulldogs with 19 points while Lamar Peters had 10 rebounds.

Louisville beat Middle Tennessee, 84-68. Ray Spalding had a team-high 18 points.

RECORDS
Mississippi State, 24-11; Louisville, 22-13.

THE SERIES
Louisville leads, 3-1.

COACHES
Ben Howland enters his third year at MSU and 22^nd overall. As head coach in four different stops, he is 455-250 with a 54-44 mark with the Bulldogs.

David Padgett is in his first year at Louisville and is 22-13.

QUOTABLE
"It was an unbelievable win, a jubilant locker room as you can imagine. I was very excited for our team and our players. I'm excited about the opportunity to play another really good opponent." — MSU coach Ben Howland.

BULLDOG BITES

Mississippi State has now won two-straight postseason games for the first time since 2007 when it advanced to New York for the semifinals of the NIT.
In its ninth NIT appearance, the Bulldogs are now 9-8 in this event. In all postseason play, they are now 19-18 (11-11 in NCAAs).
MSU is 30-51 against the current teams that comprise the ACC. MSU has faced 13 of the 15 teams (haven't face Notre Dame or Boston College). The ACC team MSU has faced the most is Georgia Tech (13-16). The last time MSU played an ACC team was at Florida State in 2016 (lost, 90-66).
In the postseason, Ben Howland is 22-12 with a 3-2 NIT record.
Against Baylor, the Bulldogs drained 13 3-pointers, a school postseason record.
They also set a mark by dishing out 24 assists.
The win at Baylor was MSU's first at a Power 5 school since winning at Miami in December of 2006.
In his last two games, Lamar Peters has been credited with 24 assists, including an MSU postseason record 14 against Nebraska.
Tuesday's game marks the 36th of year, which ties for the most in school history (2009, 2010).
2018 has been one of MSU's best in terms of offense. The Bulldogs' 948 made field goals are the second most in school history, while the 2,033 attempts are fourth. In addition, the 245 made 3-pointers are sixth, while the 2,577 points are fifth.
In MSU's two NIT games, Xavian Stapleton and Tyson Carter are 5-8 and 6-10 beyond the arc, respectively.
The Bulldogs are seeking 25 wins for the first time since winning 26 in 2004.
Nick Weatherspoon's 20 charges are second only to Alabama's Herbert Jones (23) in the SEC.
Quinndary Weatherspoon has 1,358 points for his career, now the 18th most in school history.
Aric Holman has 139-career blocked shots, four shy of tying Charles Rhodes for sixth most at MSU. In the last four games, he has 14.
Abdul Ado has a team-high 64 blocked shots, the third most by a freshman in school history.
The Bulldogs have shot 50 percent or better from the floor 14 times this year (eight a year ago).

MSU One Win Away From New York

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Players Mentioned

Abdul Ado

Tyson Carter

Aric Holman

Lamar Peters

Xavian Stapleton

Nick Weatherspoon

Quinndary Weatherspoon

Mississippi State University Athletics