Five Things To Know: MSU vs. North Alabama

by Matt Dunaway, Director/Communications

STARKVILLE – Mississippi State men's basketball wraps up its opening week with its third game over a seven-day span as the Bulldogs welcome North Alabama to Humphrey Coliseum for a Tuesday night matchup.

The Maroon and White (2-0) are receiving votes in both polls heading into this week's action.

State won its 14th consecutive home opener, an 87-63 victory over UT Martin, on Saturday. The Bulldogs closed the opening half scoring 13 of the last 17 points over the last 4:53 and stretched their lead out to 21 points during the opening four minutes of the second half.

The 87 points are the most point scored for the Bulldogs under Chris Jans, and the most scored during a home opener since a 95-67 win over Austin Peay in 2018-19.

The Bulldogs have drained 23 three-pointers which is a program-best through two games. Trey Fort and Josh Hubbard have done the heavy lifting and combined to sink 15 of the team's 23 treys.

North Alabama has dialed up wins over Blue Mountain (93-60) and Alabama A&M (83-67) to start the season. KJ Johnson is one of four players to average double figures with 15.5 points per game for the Lions.

SERIES HISTORY
Mississippi State has won all four of the previous meetings between the two programs in a series which dates back to the 1981-82 season. The Bulldogs have won the four meetings by an average margin of victory of 26.0 points per contest.

Last time, Mississippi State emerged with a 75-49 victory over the Lions to open the 2021-22 campaign. Garrison Brooks led three players in double figures with 18 points, while Cameron Matthews turned in a solid all-around effort with seven points, 14 rebounds, four assists, two steals and two blocks.

The Matchup: Mississippi State (2-0, 0-0 SEC) vs. North Alabama (2-0, 0-0 A-Sun)
Where: Starkville, Mississippi – Humphrey Coliseum
When: Tuesday, November 14, 6:30 p.m. CT
Live Stats: StatBroadcast (https://hailst.at/3Q7Bjkq)

Stream: SEC Network+ (Cable Subscription Required); ESPN+ (Subscription Required)
App: ESPN App, www.ESPN.com/watch
Talent: Bart Gregory, Charlie Winfield
(https://hailst.at/3tMMpUr)

Radio: Mississippi State Sports Network – Powered by Learfield
Talent: Neil Price, Richard Williams
Affiliates: WLZA-FM 96.1 Starkville/West Point
Free Online Audio: Hail State App (https://hailst.at/MBKListen); The Varsity Network App

5 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. The Iowa native is one of 10 SEC coaches to amass at least 21 victories and secure a NCAA Tournament berth during their first season in league history.

Jans, a three-time WAC Coach of the Year during his tenure at New Mexico State, owns an impressive .744 winning percentage (166-57) in his eighth season as a NCAA Division I head coach. He is fifth among NCAA active coaches with a .744 winning percentage behind only Mark Few (Gonzaga), Bill Self (Kansas), Brian Dutcher (San Diego State) and John Calipari (Kentucky).

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. The Maroon and White are among the nation's leaders returning 80.9 percent of its points, 72.4 percent of its rebounds, 83.8 percent of its assists, 83.6 percent of its steals and 75.2 percent of its blocks from last season.

However, State has showcased its depth with its newcomers, who have amassed 62.0 percent of the team's points during the first two games.

3. Tolu Smith, Shakeel Moore, D.J. Jeffries, Dashawn Davis and Cameron Matthews combined for 85.3 percent of the team's starts (145-of-170) from last season.

Smith has been showered with numerous preseason accolades headed by the Karl Malone and Naismith Trophy Watch Lists. He also was a consensus 2022-23 All-SEC First-Team pick and a consensus 2023-24 All-SEC Preseason First-Team selection joined by Texas A&M's Wade Taylor IV. Smith has racked up 1,210 points and 679 rebounds and has started 84 of 85 games at State. He is joined by Purdue's Zach Edey as the only players to average at least 15.5 points, 8.5 rebounds and shoot 55-plus percent from the floor. Smith is slated to return during SEC action.

Moore provided 12.0 points per contest over the team's last 17 games and earned the starting nod on 15 occasions down the stretch last season. He has registered 27 of his 32 career games with 10-plus points while at Mississippi State. Defensively, Moore has accounted for multiple steals in 44 of 91 career games and his 1.7 steals per game were 10th on the SEC leaderboard in 2022-23.

Jeffries has found his way into State's starting five in 67 of 70 career games. He started the 2022-23 campaign on a strong note with double figures in eight of his first 10 outings. Last time out, Jeffries eclipsed 600 career rebounds against UT Martin (11/11). He enters Tuesday's game versus North Alabama 11 points away from reaching 1,100 for his career.

Davis rated among the SEC's top 10 in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.95 – 6th), steals (1.68 – 9th) and assists (3.52 – 10th) last season. Three of his top four scoring performances came away from Humphrey Coliseum headed by 18 points against Utah in the Fort Myers Tipoff Championship Game and a SEC season-high 17 points during a signature road win at Arkansas. He began the 2023-24 with 10 points versus Arizona State (11/08) and handed out four assists against UT Martin (11/11).

Matthews was joined by Davis and Moore in 2022-23 as the first trio in program history to accumulate 50-plus steals during the same season. He showcased his versality as one of eight Power 5 players to dial up at least 6.9 points, 5.5 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.5 steals per game last season. Matthews (10.0 PPG, 6.5 RPG, 2.0 APG, 1.5 SPG) is coming off a 12-point performance, the fourth best scoring effort of his career, versus UT Martin (11/11).

4. The Bulldogs have brought in an impressive group of newcomers which include Jimmy Bell Jr. (West Virginia), Trey Fort (Howard College), Jaquan Scott (Salt Lake Community College) and Andrew Taylor (Marshall) from the transition portal and junior college ranks.

Bell Jr. (10.0 PPG, 10.5 RPG, 1.5 BPG) has started 36 straight games over the last two seasons and was a key member of West Virginia's 2022-23 NCAA Tournament squad. He notched two of his top three scoring performances against top 15 competition in TCU and Auburn, and his 15.8 offensive rebounding percentage was third among Power 5 players a season ago. Bell Jr. tallied 13 points against Arizona State (11/08) on 5-of-6 shooting and equaled his career-best 12 rebounds during the UT Martin game (11/11).

Fort, one of the nation's top junior college recruits, was a NJCAA All-America Second-Team honoree last season. His 24.9 points per game was fourth among junior college players. Fort (16.0 PPG) has notched double figures in both games highlighted by a 21-point explosion versus Arizona State (11/08) on opening night. The 21 points are the most scored by a MSU player during a season opener since Tyson Carter secured 23 points against Florida International in 2019-20.

Scott posted 16.8 points and 10.0 rebounds per game. His team was the 2021-22 NJCAA Runner-Up. He secured nine points and nine rebounds versus Southern Miss in the charity exhibition game.

Taylor was dubbed a SEC Impact transfer by CBS' Jon Rothstein. His 1,612 career points are second among SEC active players. Last season, Taylor joined by St. John's Shamorie Ponds in 2017-18 as the only college players over the last decade to average at least 20.5 points, 4.5 rebounds, 4.5 assists and 2.0 steals per game.

5. Mississippi State's talented freshmen class features Harrison Alexander, Gai Chol, Josh Hubbard and Adrian Myers. The Bulldogs also bring back Shawn Jones Jr., KeShawn Murphy and Martavious Russell who will look to build on their freshmen campaigns.

Hubbard (14.0 PPG, 2.5 RPG, 1.5 APG), an ESPN top 100 recruit, capped his high school career as the state of Mississippi's all-time leading scorer with 4,367 career points which broke a record that stood for 37 years previously held by Mississippi State's Robert Woodard.

With 22 points versus UT Martin (11/11), Hubbard became the seventh State freshmen during the 2000s to produce a 20-plus point effort off the bench. The list is highlighted by 1,000-point scorers Tyson Carter, Lamar Peters, Barry Stewart and Quinndary Weatherspoon.

Jones Jr. (8.0 PPG, 2.0 RPG, 1.5 SPG, 1.5 BPG) wrapped up the 2022-23 campaign on a strong note with seven of his top 10 scoring efforts coming against SEC opponents. He has carried that momentum into the start of the 2023-24 campaign with pair of 8-point efforts versus Arizona State (11/08) and UT Martin (11/11). Jones Jr. also set a new career-mark with three steals and tied a career-best with two blocks in the UT Martin game.

Chol (6.5 PPG, 4.0 RPG), a native of South Sudan, took advantage of extended minutes with 11 points and six rebounds against UT Martin (11/11). He was 3-of-4 from the floor and a flawless 5-for-5 at the foul line.

Mississippi State is selling season tickets, $96 mini plans and non-conference single game tickets for the upcoming 2023-24 campaign. Visit www.HailState.com/Tickets for more information.

Humphrey Coliseum will become one of the nation's premier arenas as major renovations continue ahead of the upcoming season. If interested in making contributions to Humphrey Coliseum, please contact the Bulldog Club at (662) 325-3074.

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

Five Things To Know: MSU vs. North Alabama

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Harrison Alexander

Jimmy Bell Jr.

Gai Chol

Dashawn Davis

Trey Fort

Josh Hubbard

D.J. Jeffries

Shawn Jones Jr.

Cameron Matthews

Shakeel Moore

KeShawn Murphy

Adrian Myers

Martavious Russell

Jaquan Scott

Tolu Smith III

Mississippi State University Athletics