Gameday: Five Things to Know About MSU-Arkansas

Saturday, February 16

Fayetteville, Ark.

7:30 PM

Mississippi State

Arkansas

Gameday: Five Things to Know About MSU-Arkansas

February 15, 2019 | Men's Basketball

Watch on SEC Network Listen Live Press Conference Live Stats Game Notes (PDF)

by Matt Dunaway, Associate Director/Communications

FAYETTEVILLE, Arkansas – Mississippi State will look to build on its momentum from its midweek victory over Alabama when the Bulldogs start a stretch of four of their next six games on the road at Arkansas on Saturday.

Tip time is on-tap for 7:30 p.m. CT televised by SEC Network and available online through the WatchESPN platform. Richard Cross and Daymeon Fishback will serve as the announcing team.

The Razorbacks hold a 33-28 all-time series advantage. However, the Bulldogs have won three of the last four meetings over Arkansas under fourth-year coach Ben Howland. Mississippi State captured a 78-75 victory behind a career-best 22 points courtesy of Nick Weatherspoon last season in Starkville.

Visit www.HailState.com for the latest news and information on the men's basketball program. Fans also can follow the program on its social media outlets by searching 'HailStateMBK' on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

The Matchup: Mississippi State (17-7, 5-6 SEC) at Arkansas (14-10, 5-6 SEC)
Where: Fayetteville, Arkansas – Bud Walton Arena
When: Saturday, Feb. 16, 7:30 p.m. CT
Live Stats: StatBroadcast (https://hailst.at/MBKLiveStats)

TV: SEC Network
Talent: Richard Cross, Daymeon Fishback
Online: https://hailst.at/MSUvsARK0216
Radio: Mississippi State Sports Network – Powered by Learfield/IMG College
Talent: Neil Price, Richard Williams
Affiliates: WKBB-FM 100.9 Starkville/West Point (Full List: https://hailst.at/MBKAffiliates)
Free Online Audio: Hail State Plus (https://hailst.at/MBKListen); Tune-In Radio App (https://hailst.at/MBKTuneIn)
Sirius/XM: NA (Sirius), Ch. 386 (XM), Ch. 977 (Internet)

FIVE THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT MISSISSIPPI STATE
1. Mississippi State enters Saturday's action three wins shy of collecting consecutive 20-win seasons for the 10th time in program history. Six of the previous nine occurrences have come during the 2000's, the last time was the 2008-09 and 2009-10 seasons. The Bulldogs have won a combined 42 games over the previous two seasons, the program record is 49 victories during a two-year span.

2. Quinndary Weatherspoon continues his charge up Mississippi State's all-time scoring list and heads into Saturday's matchup at Arkansas 25 points shy of passing Rickey Brown (1977-78-79-80) for fourth place. His 18.0 points per game are third in the SEC rankings. The Jerry West Award Top 10 Finalist has tucked away double figures in 22 of 24 games this season and 96 times during his career. Weatherspoon has poured in 20 or more points on 10 occasions which includes three of his last four outings. Mississippi State is 23-3 and has won 15 of its last 16 games over the last two seasons when Weatherspoon reaches the 20-point barrier.

3. Reggie Perry has been inserted into Mississippi State's starting five during the last four games. He has responded with a double-double in three of those last four games most recently a 14-point, 10-rebound effort versus Alabama on Feb. 12. Perry has dialed up 14.3 points and 9.2 rebounds per game over his last six games. He has posted his top three scoring performances during the six-game run. Perry has grabbed 7.8 rebounds per game in SEC action which is tops among freshmen and fourth overall on the SEC leaderboard.

4. Lamar Peters and Aric Holman have garnered 12.8 points and 10.2 points per game, respectively. Both players have accounted for 955 career points which is 45 shy of 1,000 for their careers. Peters amassed a SEC season's best 22 points and a career-high four steals against Alabama on Feb. 12. He is one of nine major conference players to pile up 300 points and 125 assists for the season. The Bulldogs are 13-3 this season when Peters hands out five or more assists. Holman will look to return to double digit points for the first time since the LSU game. His 12 double-doubles are third among SEC active players.

5. Robert Woodard II has averaged 7.8 points per game over his last five outings … He has tallied a season-high nine points on three occasions, the last coming against No. 5 Kentucky on Feb. 9 … Nick Weatherspoon has chipped in 9.6 points per game and managed double figures in 11 games on the season … He filled the stats sheet with six points, five rebounds, four steals and three assists during the Alabama game … Tyson Carter has come away with double figures in 13 games this season … Mississippi State has won 22 of 26 games over the last two seasons when Carter scores 10-plus points … Abdul Ado has notched 8.0 points and 2.0 blocks per game in his last two appearances … The 10 points against Alabama was Ado's highest point total since scoring 12 at South Carolina during the SEC opener on Jan. 8 … Ado has registered 104 blocks in 57 games which ranks ninth on MSU's all-time list.

KNOW YOUR OPPONENT
The Razorbacks (14-10, 5-6 SEC) have won three of their last five games highlighted by a 90-89 triumph at LSU on Feb. 2. Arkansas will close the regular season with four consecutive Saturday home games where the Razorbacks have posted a 25-6 record which includes victories in nine of its last 10 decisions under head coach Mike Anderson.
Daniel Gafford (16.9 PPG, 8.7 RPG, 1.9 BPG, 1.0 SPG) is a Sporting News Midseason All-America pick and one of 10 finalists for the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award awarded to the nation's top center. He is one of five players in the nation to shoot 60 percent from the field while averaging over 15 points and eight rebounds per game. Gafford has piled up eight games of 20-plus points this season highlighted by three of his last four appearances.

Isaiah Joe (14.2 PPG, 1.5 SPG) and Mason Jones (13.7 PPG, 3.0 APG, 1.0 SPG) have combined to connect on 137 of 182 three-pointers by Arkansas. Joe has dialed up double figures in 20 games sparked by seven of his last nine outings He leads all NCAA freshmen with a 43.9 three-point percentage. Jones sank the go-ahead field goal in the closing 25 seconds at LSU on Feb. 2.

Jalen Harris (8.8 PPG, 5.6 APG) ranks first in the SEC and inside the nation's top 15 with a 3.4 assist-to-turnover ratio. He has dished out five or more assists in 14 games which includes a 10-assist effort at Missouri on Feb. 12. Harris provided a season's best 17 points at South Carolina on Feb. 9.

UP NEXT
The Bulldogs continue their stretch of four of six games on the road when Mississippi State travels to Georgia. Tip time is slated for 5:30 p.m. CT from Stegeman Coliseum. The game will be televised by SEC Network and available online through the WatchESPN platform.

Visit www.HailState.com for the latest news and information on the men's basketball program. Fans also can follow the program on its social media outlets by searching 'HailStateMBK' on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Mississippi State Men's Basketball Media Session
February 15, 2019 – Humphrey Coliseum

Head Coach Ben Howland
Q: Since the Alabama game, is there any indication that the level of play from that game can be sustained going into Arkansas?
BH: "Well, we had the day after the game off. We practiced yesterday. I thought we had a good practice, especially early when we were working on our defense to prepare to guard a very difficult team to guard in Arkansas. Especially with [Daniel] Gafford inside; [Isaiah] Joe and [Mason] Jones on the perimeter. They've got good players. There was a lot of stuff to go through yesterday because of the schemes that they run. They do a lot of pressing, play some zone and different types of presses. I felt good about our effort yesterday."

Q: With Reggie Perry's relationship with Arkansas prior to coming to Mississippi State, have you talked to him at all about it going into this game?
BH: "I kind of already spoke to him about it already in terms of in front of the team. He knows that there will be a bunch of people probably rooting against him there. He's just got to stay focused on what's important, and that is doing his best to help our team be successful."

Q: Arkansas plays really hard inside. Do you think your last few opponents have helped with defending inside?
BH: "They have a really good post player. [Daniel] Gafford is a first-round pick. I think he's amazing. I watched him against LSU. He was great in that game. Those guys are really good inside players that LSU has. He is really special. Gafford probably could have left last year and been a top 15 pick. He's probably moved himself up higher than that with his play this year. In terms of big guys, this will be one of the biggest challenges if not the biggest we've had [all season]."

Q: Abdul Ado had a good game offensively the other night against Alabama, what do you expect to see from him going forward?
BH: "I thought he had a good practice yesterday. We had some extra shooting for a number of the players for which he was one of. He did a good job there. It was great. It was great to see him aggressive, look to score around the basket and see his teammates getting him the ball. I thought Lamar [Peters] did a good job feeding him a number of times – all of his teammates did.

"That's exciting, just his [Ado's] aggression. You all know how hard he plays. He played really hard and aggressively against a very good post guy as you pointed out in [Donta] Hall. He had a big basket late in that game where he turned and powered right over him [Hall] with the right hand hook. It was a really impressive move."

Q: How much of an addition is Derrick Zimmerman to your staff?
BH: "That's a great question. Derrick [Zimmerman] has been an incredibly positive influence on our program and on our players. He has a great relationship with the kids. He spends a lot of time with them in terms of on the floor, rebounding for them and doing extra with them whenever they want to shoot more."

"He also spends a lot of time with them. They will come up to the office and spend time with him. They have a great respect for him. That respect that they have for him therefore makes his relationship more meaningful and more impactful. They trust him. He's very honest. I think he's been a huge positive for our team and for our program. I'm really excited that he's here, and I'm pleased with the job that he's been doing."