Mississippi State
17-12,8-8SEC
Vanderbilt
14-14,6-10SEC
Dawgs Close Out the ‘Dores
February 26, 2022 | Men's Basketball, Joel Coleman
MSU holds on late for satisfying win.
STARKVILLE – The score was close. It was late. Mississippi State had been here before.
The Bulldogs were in a battle against Vanderbilt on Saturday at Humphrey Coliseum and State led the Commodores by just two points with under two minutes to play. MSU has experienced its fair share of heartbreak in similar scenarios throughout the year, but not on this day.
Mississippi State held on for a 74-69 victory over Vanderbilt. For a team that has focused on trying to finish strong and build some momentum down the stretch, this was certainly a satisfying win for the Bulldogs.
"It felt good," Iverson Molinar said. "We've had a couple of games this year where we weren't able to finish it out. Just having this win at the end of the game, controlling the pace – even though we had some mistakes, we were still able to finish out the game and hit a couple of free throws and make the right decisions down the stretch. I'm just happy for the guys and this of course fills us with confidence."
The triumph was like a big breath of fresh air. There'd be no almosts or nearly-did-its on this day.
Molinar's jumper with 55 seconds to play gave State a four-point lead. After a Vanderbilt miss on the other end, D.J. Jeffries grabbed a rebound for MSU, was fouled, then drained both free throws to put the Bulldogs in front 69-63.
The Commodores were able to get back within two at 71-69 with 13 seconds remaining, but a pair of Molinar makes from the charity stripe essentially sealed the deal and wrapped it in Maroon and White.
"It feels great to be on the other end of these close games and tight situations," Tolu Smith said. "We've been in these predicaments a lot. So, to be able to come out on top and overcome the adversity, it's an amazing feeling."
Smith was a humongous piece of MSU's Saturday success. The redshirt junior forward had his second-straight game scoring 20 or more points. He poured in a team-high 22 to go along with eight rebounds. Smith has now tallied 43 total points in his last two outings.
With the Bulldogs looking for some late-season magic, Smith's resurgence could be key. He's battled injuries and frustrations throughout the season and been in and out of the lineup, but suddenly, he's perhaps playing his best basketball of the year.
"I feel like I'm getting back in a groove," Smith said. "I feel like I'm getting back to being that summer Tolu that was ready to come into the season. Just being able to contribute to my team and be more effective and more efficient, it just feels good to help my team."
Adds Molinar on his teammate: "I'm happy for him. He's been through a lot of ups and downs during the season. I feel like he deserves it more than anyone because he works his butt off. He works so much."
Molinar had a big day as well against the Commodores. He scored 20 points of his own. Shakeel Moore scored nine and yet again this season, Andersson Garcia provided a tremendous boost of the bench.
Garcia scored eight points and hauled down seven boards. His back-to-back buckets midway through the second half set off a 16-2 Bulldog run and was what put Mississippi State in front for good. That's not to even mention a highlight-reel-worthy steal, fastbreak and dunk in the first half when Garcia completed the play despite getting fouled from behind.
It was a fantastic day for Garcia, sure. But an even better day for Mississippi State as a whole. There's no doubt the Bulldogs needed this.
"Every win is huge," Bulldogs head coach Ben Howland said. "It's so big. This league is so good. I think it's the best league in the country."
State has certainly experienced the conference's brutality throughout the year. There've been good times and struggles since the season tipped off. Saturday fell into the former category, and it provides the Bulldogs a tremendous lift.
The next task is to build on it, keep the foot on the gas and see what can happen as the calendar starts flipping over to March.
"The mindset is still the same," Molinar said. "I'm trying to tell the guys we have to stay positive. We've got to just keep going and working hard and playing aggressive down the stretch."
