Postgame Notes: MSU vs. Washington State

TEAM NOTES

Mississippi State won its fourth straight game to improve to 4-0 with a 76-64 victory over Washington State. The Bulldogs have won their opening four outings by an average of 19.5 points per contest.
State will have the opportunity to play for its second straight multi-team tournament on Sunday under Coach Jans.
The Bulldogs will face Northwestern from the Big Ten Conference in Sunday's championship game with tipoff slated for 12 p.m. CT televised by ESPN2. The Maroon and White claimed the Fort Myers Tipoff last year with wins over BIG EAST champion Marquette (58-55) and Utah (52-49).
Overall, State has won 16 of 18 games against non-conference opponents fueled by an 11-0 mark during the month of November during the Jans era.
The Bulldogs improved to 6-1 against fellow non-conference Power 6 schools (ACC, BIG EAST, Big Ten, Big 12 and Pac-12) with Jans at the helm. Three of the six wins have come versus Pac-12 foes with an average margin of victory of 10.0 points per game.
Today marked the third meeting between Mississippi State and Washington State on the hardwood with the Bulldogs securing their first win over the Cougars.
The Bulldogs have registered 10-plus steals in back-to-back games and on 15 occasions in two seasons under Coach Jans.
The Maroon and White scored 33 of the game's 38 points off the bench. Over the last three games, State has outscored its opponents, 117-36, in bench points.
State took advantage of 12 miscues by the Cougars and converted them into a 20-8 advantage in points off turnovers.
The Bulldogs connected on 18 of their 25 field goals on the interior en route to a 36-30 edge in paint points.
State drained 25-of-57 from the floor (43.9 percent), 5-of-19 from three-point territory (26.3 percent) and an efficient 21-of-25 at the charity stripe (84.0 percent).
Thru four games, the Bulldogs have connected on 68-of-88 at the foul line (77.3 percent).
Conversely, Washington State turned in a 24-for-59 shooting effort (40.7 percent), 7-for-23 on three-pointers (30.4 percent) and a 9-for-12 clip the free throw line (75.0 percent)

PLAYER NOTES

Jimmy Bell Jr.

Started his 38th consecutive game over the last two seasons between Mississippi State and West Virginia.
Overall, Bell Jr. has started in 102 of 119 career games.
Tacked on eight of his 11 points and five of his eight rebounds during the second half.
Double figures in three of State's opening four games.
Marked his 10th career outing with double-digit points, and the first time that Bell Jr. has recorded back-to-back outings with 10+ points.
The eight rebounds also gave Bell Jr. his 4th consecutive game with 5+ boards and the 28th time in his career he's reached the feat.
Matched a career best with 3 steals which equaled his 6th career game of 2+ steals.

D.J. Jeffries

Started 69 of 72 career games at State.
Added five points and five rebounds.
The five rebounds gave Jeffries his 56th career game with 5+ boards.

Cameron Matthews

Started 37 of the team's 38 games over the last two seasons.
Shined with another solid all-around effort ignited by 13 points coupled with seven rebounds and three steals.
The 13 points were the 4th highest scoring out of his career and his second performance of 10+ points this season.
Notched 10 of his 13 games with 10+ points, 25 of his 43 games with 5+ rebounds and 20 of his 39 games with 2+ steals over the last two seasons.

Dashawn Davis

Started 54 of his 63 games between Mississippi State and Oregon State over the last three seasons.
Fired in a season's best 12 points, which marked his 28th career game of 10+ points.
Dished out four assists for the third consecutive game.
Snatched a season-high 3 steals, all coming in the first half, which his 32nd career game with 2+ steals.

Trey Fort

Started his fourth consecutive game at State to open 2023-24.
Collected two points and four rebounds.

Bench

Josh Hubbard rattled home 10 of his 13 points during the second 20 minutes to record his third straight game in double figures.
Buried 11 of his 18 field goals from beyond the three-point line and hit multiple treys in all four games this season.
The 53 points is tied for 5th most among MSU freshmen with Erick Dampier (1993-94) through four games.
Shawn Jones Jr. and Shakeel Moore registered eight points apiece on a combined 5-for-8 shooting effort.
For Jones Jr., it was his third game of eight points whereas Moore has tallied eight points in back-to-back games.
Jones Jr. (+16), Hubbard (+13) and Moore (+10) had double-digit plus/minus ratio.

Mississippi State University Athletics

Postgame Notes: MSU vs. Washington State

Players Mentioned

Jimmy Bell Jr.

Dashawn Davis

Trey Fort

Josh Hubbard

D.J. Jeffries

Shawn Jones Jr.

Cameron Matthews

Shakeel Moore

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