Gameday: Five Things To Know MSU-Marquette

Monday, November 21

Fort Myers, Fla.

7:30 PM

Mississippi State

Marquette

Photo by: Mississippi State Athletics

Gameday: Five Things To Know MSU-Marquette

November 20, 2022 | Men's Basketball

WATCH: MSU vs. Marquette [FS1 - 7:30 PM CT]LISTEN: Hail State On-Demand Game Notes (PDF)Live Stats

by Matt Dunaway, Director/Communications

FORT Myers, Florida – After four convincing victories to start the season, the Mississippi State men's basketball program takes a step up in class as the Bulldogs face their third 2022 NCAA Tournament foe in Marquette from the BIG EAST Conference during Monday's semifinal action of the Fort Myers Tipoff.

Tip time between the Bulldogs (4-0) and Golden Eagles (3-1) is set for approximately 7:30 p.m. CT. The game will be nationally televised by FS1 with Georgia Tech and Utah beginning the two-game event at 5 p.m. CT.

The two winners will square off during Wednesday's championship game slated for approximately 7:30 p.m. CT. The consolation game will be held at 5 p.m. CT with both games carried by FS1.

One of the staples of a Chris Jans coached team is all-out effort and a suffocating defense. Through four games, the Bulldogs are among the nation's best surrendering 46.75 points per game (1st SEC • 3rd nationally) on a paltry 30.9 opponent percent field percentage (2nd SEC • 8th nationally).

Historically at State, the 46.75 PPG allowed is the program's lowest four-game average in the modern era dating back to the 1955-56 season, which was Babe McCarthy's first season with the Bulldogs.

The Maroon and White also is among the SEC and NCAA leaders with 12.50 steals per game (2nd SEC • 6th nationally), a +13.50 rebounding margin (2nd SEC • 13th nationally), 44.50 rebounds per game (3rd SEC • 13th nationally) and opponent three-point percentage defense (2nd SEC • 18th nationally).

In eight halves of hoops on the young season, State has allowed 20 points or fewer on 3 occasions and limited the opposition to under a 30 percent shooting clip 4 times.

Marquette is coached by Shaka Smart who is coming off an NCAA Tournament appearance during his first season. Smart's teams have averaged 22.4 wins per season and made nine NCAA Tournament trips over his 13 seasons as a head coach. His 2010-11 Virginia Commonwealth team won 28 games en route to the NCAA Final Four in Houston, Texas.

The Golden Eagles are led by Olivier-Maxence Prosper (15.3 PPG, 4.3 RPG, 1.5 SPG), David Joplin (15.0 PPG, 5.5 RPG), Oso Ighodaro (12.5 PPG, 5.8 RPG, 3.8 APG, 1.5 SPG, 1.3 BPG) and Kam Jones (11.3 PPG, 2.5 APG, 1.5 SPG) who all average in double figures.

Prosper is coming off a 31-point performance against LIU on Thursday, while Joplin has done his damage with a pair of 20-plus point efforts coming off the bench. Tyler Kolek (7.0 PPG, 9.8 APG, 5.8 RPG) has been solid from the point guard position.

SERIES HISTORY VS. FORT MYERS TIPOFF FIELD
Mississippi State and Marquette have only one prior meeting, an 89-62 decision in favor of the Golden Eagles, at the 2012-13 Maui Classic.

The Bulldogs knocked off Utah, 78-64, to punch their ticket to the 1995 NCAA Tournament Sweet 16 in their only meeting. Darryl Wilson (32 points, 7 rebounds, 3 steals) and Erick Dampier (21 points, 10 rebounds, 8 blocks) led the way for State.

A majority of the 29 meetings between Mississippi State and Georgia Tech came when the Yellow Jackets were SEC members through the 1963-64 season. The last time the two programs met on the hardwood was in 1974-75.

The Matchup: Mississippi State (4-0, 0-0 SEC) vs. Marquette (3-1, 0-0 BIG EAST)
Where: Fort Myers, Florida – Suncoast Credit Union Arena
When: Monday, November 21, 7:30 p.m. CT
Live Stats: StatBroadcast (https://hailst.at/MBKLiveStats)

TV: FS1
Talent: Brandon Gaudin and Bill Raftery
Channel Lineup: Ch. 219 (DirecTV); Ch. 1652 (AT&T U-Verse); Ch. 150 (Dish); Ch. 274 (C-Spire);
Ch. 1027 (MaxxSouth)
Online: FOX Sports App (Cable Subscription Required)
(https://hailst.at/FOXSportsApp)

Radio: Mississippi State Sports Network – Powered by Learfield
Talent: Jim Ellis, Richard Williams
Affiliates: WKBB-FM 100.9 Starkville/West Point (Full List: https://hailst.at/MBKAffiliates)
Free Online Audio: Hail State On-Demand (https://hailst.at/MBKListen); The Varsity Network App

FROM THE LOCKER ROOM – COACH JANS
"We have drawn a high-quality opponent in Marquette led by a highly respected coach in Shaka Smart. Coach Smart's teams are always prepared and play extremely hard. The Fort Myers TipOff will help prepare us for the rigors of our season and our SEC schedule."

"It's going to be fun. We're going to see where we're at one way or another. It's time in the season for us to play a team like them. I have no idea what the result is going to be, but we need to be challenged. We're definitely going to be exposed in some areas of the game, and who knows what that's going to be, but we're going to find out after Monday and Wednesday with the quality teams we're playing about where we're at and what we need to work on. Our team needs to play that quality of competition. We've watched some film on them, and they're really good. They're in mid-season form and just went over to Purdue. They had every chance to win that game in a really tough environment. So, it's going to be a heck of a challenge for us."

"They've [the players] been really good about the mental part of staying focused, locking into the report and the things we do on the court to understand the tweaks we make to our schemes on offense and defense. We're still in the infant stages of a marathon season, but I like where we're at – how they pick up the information we're giving them. This won't be the first time, and the difference is last time we had to travel back home. This will be a good week for us. I'm anxious, and I'm looking forward to playing in these types of tournaments because they just feel different."

FIVE THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT MISSISSIPPI STATE
1. Chris Jans, one of the nation's premier bench bosses, leads State's program. He is assisted by James Miller, David Anwar and George Brooks. His New Mexico State program which Miller and Anwar were apart of became the Western Athletic Conference's (WAC) standard bearer after racking up four regular season championships, three NCAA Tournament appearances and three WAC Tournament titles.

Jans, a three-time WAC Coach of the Year, owns an impressive .770 winning percentage (147-44) in his seventh season as a NCAA Division I head coach. The .770 clip ranks tied for second nationally with Kansas' Bill Self (.770) and only trailing Gonzaga's Mark Few (.835).

As a junior college head coach, Jans won the 1997-98 NJCAA Division II National Championship at Kirkwood Community College in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. He also played a vital role as an assistant coach at Wichita State which was headed by a 2013 NCAA Final Four run, five NCAA Tournament trips and four Missouri Valley Conference regular season crowns.

2. Tolu Smith (17.8 PPG, 8.5 RPG, 2.0 APG, 0.8 BPG) is one of nine players to capture All-SEC Preseason First-Team and secured the first 2022-23 SEC Player of the Week accolades on 11/14.

The Bulldogs have had a player secure preseason first-team honors during four of the last five seasons. Smith is joined by Quinndary Weatherspoon (2018-19), Reggie Perry (2019-20) and Iverson Molinar (2021-22), who each garnered All-SEC Preseason First-Team selections by the conference coaches.

Smith has started 54 of his 55 career appearances in the Maroon and White where he has amassed 746 points, 424 rebounds and connected on 58.4 percent of his field goal attempts. The 58.4 shooting clip is fifth all-time in program history for player who have made at least 200 field goals.

Smith has piled up 40 career outings in double figures, 14 double-doubles and registered seven of his 10 outings of 20-plus points versus SEC competition. For his career, the Bay St. Louis is 142 points shy of reaching the 1,000-point barrier.

Smith picked up this season where he finished the 2022-23 campaign. He has racked up 11 consecutive games in double figures dating back to last season and is the only SEC player to rank inside the league's top 6 in points (17.75 – Tied for 4th), rebounds (8.50 – Tied for 6th) and field goal percentage (71.4 – 1st) in 2022-23. Smith dialed up a non-conference career-best 26 points on an 11-for-13 shooting clip versus Akron.

3. In addition to Smith, State's returning group is highlighted by D.J. Jeffries, Cameron Matthews and Shakeel Moore. The quartet combined to average 49.3 percent of the team's points, 48.4 percent of the team's rebounds, 43.9 percent of the team's assists, 52.9 percent of the team's steals and 46.9 percent of the team's blocks over 90 starts last season.

Jeffries (11.0 PPG, 5.5 RPG, 1.8 APG, 1.0 SPG) heads into the Marquette 172 points shy of 1,000 for his career. He has provided double figures in three consecutive games and 45 career games where Mississippi State and Memphis has garnered a 35-10 record.

Jeffries continues to showcase his versatility with 31 career games of 5+ rebounds, 20 career outings with 3+ assists, 17 career games with multiple steals and 15 career outings with multiple blocks. Jeffries fired in 10 of his season-high 15 points during the first half of the Akron game.
Matthews (8.3 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 2.5 APG, 1.8 BPG, 1.5 SPG) has already secured three of his top 11 career scoring performances in 2022-23. He is coming off a season's best 14 points coupled with 6 rebounds and 3 assists against South Dakota. Matthews racked up a career-best five blocks versus Texas A&M Corpus-Christi in the 2022-23 opening act and his 1.6 blocks are tied for sixth on the SEC leaderboard.

Like Jeffries, his high school teammate from Olive Brach where the duo won a state championship in 2017-18, Matthews is a stat sheet stuffer. For his career, Matthews has piled up 21 games with 2+ steals, 21 outings with 2+ assists and 20 performances of 5+ rebounds.

Moore (7.8 PPG, 3.8 RPG, 3.3 SPG, 1.5 APG) has collected 13 of his 18 career games with 10-plus points in Maroon and White. Mississippi State and NC State are 14-4 when Moore secures double figures.

Moore has tallied multiple steals in 32 of 63 career games and his 54 steals last season were the most by a MSU player since Lamar Peters in 2018-19. His 3.3 steals per contest are tied for 2nd among SEC players this season. The North Carolina natives 1.6 SPG were 12th in the SEC (2021-22), while his 1.4 SPG were 9th in the ACC (2020-21).

Moore turned in 11 points, four rebounds and three steals off the bench versus Texas A&M-Corpus Christi in the season opener. For his career, he has drained 2+ three-pointers in 21 games and handed out 3+ assists in 13 outings.

4. The Bulldogs have brought in five talented transfers which include Dashawn Davis (Oregon State), Jamel Horton Jr. (UAlbany), Will McNair Jr. (New Mexico State), Eric Reed Jr. (Southeast Missouri) and Tyler Stevenson (Southern Miss).

Davis was the Pac-12's leader in assists with 5.5 dimes per game and a solid 2.2 assist-to-turnover ratio with Oregon State. The last Oregon State player to lead the Pac-12 was Gary Payton, a Naismith Hall of Famer and NBA 75th Anniversary Team member.

Davis has been grinding his way through injury over the last week and has accounted for plus-minus ratio of +49 when on the floor. His best MSU performance came off the bench with 8 points, 4 assists and 1 steal versus Akron.

For his career, Davis has turned in 15 games of 10+ points and 2 games of 20+ points to go along with 19 games of 5+ assists and 14 games of 2+ steals.

Horton Jr., the 2022 America East Defensive Player of the Year, has started 44 of his 50 career games between MSU and UAlbany. He has distributed 5 assists over his last two outings and secured 3 points and 4 rebounds against Akron.

For his career, Horton Jr. has turned in 32 outings in double figures, 16 outings with 5+ assists and 12 outings with multiple steals. He was one of two America East players to rank among the league's top 11 in points (12.8 – 11th), assists (3.9 – 2nd) and steals (1.1 – 10th).

McNair Jr. improved his stat averages over his first three seasons under Coach Jans at New Mexico State. He has connected on 55.0 percent of his field goal attempts and started 27 games headlined by both NCAA Tournament games last season.

McNair Jr. tallied a season-high 6 points against South Dakota and hauled down a season's best 7 rebounds versus Arkansas – Pine Bluff. For his career, he has amassed 11 games of 10+ points coupled with 29 games of 5+ rebounds, 11 games of 2+ blocks and 9 games of 2+ assists.

Reed Jr., a 2022 All-Ohio Valley First-Team and NABC All-District 18 Second-Team pick, has started 55 of his 61 career games between MSU and Southeast Missouri. He comes into the Marquette game 209 points away from 1,000 for his career.

Reed Jr. was the only OVC player in 2021-22 to rank among the league's top 10 in points (16.1 – 6th), free throw percentage (81.5 – 3rd) and three-point percentage (36.2 – 10th). He has drained multiple triples in 37 career games, has 36 career games in double figures, has 22 career games of 2+ assists and 10 career games of 2+ steals.

Stevenson registered 74 starts over four seasons where he notched 2021-22 All-Conference USA Honorable Mention and was a Bailey Howell Trophy finalist at Southern Miss. He was one of three USM players to pile up over 1,200 career points and 600-plus rebounds during the 2000s.

Stevenson finished 2021-22 a fixture among the C-USA leaders in points (14.5 – 13th), rebounds (7.5 – 5th) and blocks (1.1 – 10th). His MSU bests are eight points against South Dakota and Arkansas-Pine Bluff followed by six rebounds versus Akron.

For his career, Stevenson has 67 games of 10+ points, 20 games of 10+ rebounds, 18 double-doubles, 8 games of 20+ points and 10+ rebounds and 13 games of 2+ blocks.

5. Mississippi State freshmen class includes redshirt freshman KeShawn Murphy coupled with true freshmen Kimani Hamilton, Martavious Russell and Shawn Jones Jr.

Hamilton and Murphy are ESPN top 100 prospects for their respective classes. Hamilton's father, Tang (1998-99-2000-01), sits among MSU's top 20 in points (1,307 – 20th) and rebounds (677 – Tied for 16th).

The Hamilton-Jones Jr.-Russell trio accounted for 21 points on 7-of-15 shooting in addition to five rebounds, five steals and blocks during the Pine Bluff game. Russell's one-handed flush inside the contest's final minute earned the No. 5 on SportsCenter's Top 10 on 11/14.

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