Postgame Notes: MSU vs. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi

GENERAL

- Mississippi State overcame a five-point halftime deficit en route to a convincing 63-44 season opening victory over Texas A&M-Corpus Christi.
- The Bulldogs have recorded 20 consecutive wins during home openers since 2003-04.
- Head coach Chris Jans earned his first victory as State's head coach and remained undefeated in his seven season openers as a NCAA Division I head coach.
- Over the last six seasons, Coach Jans' teams are 57-5 on their home floor, a sparkling .919 winning percentage.
- The Islanders led by as many as 12, 20-8 at the 10:14 mark of the opening half, before the Maroon and White trimmed the deficit down to 30-25 at the break.
- A 14-4 run over the opening 6:08 of the second half turned the five-point halftime hole into a 39-34 advantage. The Bulldogs would outscore Texas A&M-Corpus Christi by a 38-14 margin during the second half.
- Defensively, State limited the Islanders to a 6-for-28 shooting clip during the second half.
- Tolu Smith had the honors of scoring the first basket of the Coach Jans era. He converted a layup only 43 seconds into the contest.
- Dashawn Davis, Jamel Horton Jr., Shawn Jones Jr., Will McNair Jr., KeShawn Murphy and Eric Reed Jr. each scored for the first time wearing a State uniform.
- Mississippi State drained 17 of its 25 field goals on the interior to register a 34-22 advantage in paint points.
- The Maroon and White also began the Jans era strong on the glass by outrebounding the Islanders, 42-33.
- As a team, State shot 25-of-59 from the floor (42.4 percent), 6-of-25 from three-point range (24.0 percent) and 7-of-13 from the free throw line (53.8 percent).

PLAYERS

Tolu Smith
- Dominated with a team-leading 19 points and a team-high 11 rebounds on the way to his 2nd consecutive double-double and the 14th double-double of his career.
- Started 51 of his 52 career appearances.
- Registered double figures in eight straight outings and 37 of his 52 career outings at MSU.
- Hit on 8-of-10 from the floor highlighted by all five of his shot attempts in the second half.
- Eclipsed 800 career points mark during the contest to bring his total to 806.
- Contributed three assists and finished with a plus-minus rate of +20.
D.J. Jeffries
- Made 32 of his 56 career starts at MSU
- Pitched in all seven of his points during the second half kickstarted by a three-pointer on the stanza's opening possession.
- Tacked on five rebounds, two assists and a steal.
Cameron Matthews
- Returned to the starting lineup for the first time since the South Carolina game on 02/01/2022.
- Stuffed the stats sheet with four points, a career-best five blocks, six rebounds and three steals.
- The three steals amounted to his 20th multi steal game of his career.
Dashawn Davis
- Splashed in a pair of three's for a total of six points during his Bulldog debut
- Came away with two assists and two steals.
Eric Reed Jr.
- Pitched in five points and four assists in his first night donning the Maroon and White
Bench
- Shakeel Moore was State's most productive bench performer with 11 points and three steals.
- Moore's teams improved to 14-4 when he scores 10-plus points.
- Moore has collected multiple steals in 30 of 60 career games.
- Will McNair Jr. came down with six rebounds in the season opener.

Mississippi State University Athletics

Postgame Notes: MSU vs. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi

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