Postgame Notes: No. 15 MSU vs. Drake

TEAM NOTES

No. 15 Mississippi State had its undefeated run during the non-conference end as the Bulldogs dropped a 58-52 back-and-forth affair to Drake during the inaugural Battle at the Vault hosted by the University of Nebraska.
State entered the contest as the SEC's only undefeated team, one of two unbeaten Power 5 teams and one of four unblemished programs in the nation.
Down 15-6 at the 10:38 mark of the opening half, the Bulldogs used 10 consecutive points and a 21-6 flurry during the opening half to build a 31-23 halftime advantage.
State went up by as many as 10 points, 35-25, early in the second half. However, Drake outscored the Bulldogs by a 35-21 margin during the second 20 minutes. Drake drained 10 of its 21 field goals from three-point territory.
As a team, the Bulldogs connected on 20-of-52 from the floor (38.5 percent), 7-of-19 from three-point territory (36.8 percent) and 5-of-9 from the free throw line (55.6 percent).
Conversely, Drake was 21-for-58 on its shot attempts (36.2 percent), drained 10-of-32 of its three's (31.3 percent) and were a perfect 6-of-6 at the charity stripe (100 percent).
State has limited its opponents to 52.6 points per game which is the program's lowest average through 12 games dating back to the 1955-56 season, Babe McCarthy's first season with the Bulldogs.
State converted on 10 of its 20 field goals inside the paint to score 20 of the game's 32 points on the interior. The Bulldogs have outscored their opponents in paint points in nine of 12 outings.
State boasted a 9-3 edge in second-chance points.

PLAYER NOTES

Tolu Smith

Scored nine points, coupled with six rebounds and an assist.
Only the second time in his last 19 outings where he was unable to reach double figures.
Started 62 of 63 career outings at MSU.
Sits 26 points shy of eclipsing the 1,000-point mark in his career.

Dashawn Davis

Pumped in all nine of his points during the second half.
Dished out three assists and handed out multiple dimes in seven of 11 contests this year.
Started 28 of 36 career games between Oregon State and MSU.

D.J. Jeffries

Led MSU with eight rebounds, marking eight of 11 games with 5+ rebounds this season.
Has collected 5+ boards 36 times over the course of his career.
Pulled within 101 points away from reaching 1,000 for his career.
Added 2+ assists for the fourth consecutive contest and for the 24th time in his career.

Cameron Matthews

Contributed six points and six rebounds over 19 minutes of action
Marked his seventh outing in 2022-23 and 24th career performance with 5+ rebounds.

Eric Reed Jr.

Started 63 of 69 career outings between MSU and Southeast Missouri.
Led the Bulldogs with 11 points headed by a trio of trifectas.
Marked the 40th time where Reed Jr. has drained multiple three's
Pulled down three rebounds and dished out two assists.

Bench

KeShawn Murphy scored nine points to lead the Dawgs off the bench for the second time over the team's last three games.
The 9 points are Murphy's second-highest career scoring output.
Added two rebounds, an assist and a steal.
Jamel Horton Jr. passed out three assists.
Distributed multiple assists in three of his last four appearances and tallied all 17 of his assists over his last nine games.
Will McNair Jr. collected two points and three rebounds.
Tyler Stevenson secured three points, two boards and an assist.

Postgame Notes: No. 15 MSU vs. Drake

Players Mentioned

Dashawn Davis

Jamel Horton Jr.

D.J. Jeffries

Cameron Matthews

Will McNair Jr.

KeShawn Murphy

Eric Reed Jr.

Tolu Smith III

Tyler Stevenson

Mississippi State University Athletics

Postgame Notes: No. 15 MSU vs. Drake

Players Mentioned

Dashawn Davis

Jamel Horton Jr.

D.J. Jeffries

Cameron Matthews

Will McNair Jr.

KeShawn Murphy

Eric Reed Jr.

Tolu Smith III

Tyler Stevenson

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