Postgame Notes: No. 25 State vs. McNeese

TEAM NOTES

No. 25 Mississippi State advanced to 9-1 as the Bulldogs surged past McNeese with a 66-63 comeback win during the T Town Tipoff at BancorpSouth Arena in Tupelo, Mississippi.
The Bulldogs have won all six of their games played in Tupelo most recently in back-to-back seasons under Coach Jans.
State improved to 8-2 versus the Cowboys in the all-time series which includes a 3-0 mark at neutral sites.
State erased an 8-point deficit over the last 3:42 of the opening half to draw even at 29-29 heading into the locker room.
The Cowboys would regain a 50-43 advantage at the 11:46 mark of the second half before State ripped 21 of the next 29 points to turn the tables.
Up 64-61, the Bulldogs salted the game away behind an RJ Melendez offensive rebound in the final 10 seconds. He added a pair of free throws to give State a two-possession lead before McNeese scored at the buzzer for the final margin of 66-63.
The Maroon and White have won all three of its games decided by five points or less on the young season. All three victories have come on the road or at a neutral site: 78-73 (vs. Utah – 11/18), 84-79 (at SMU – 11/22) and 66-63 (McNeese – 12/14).
State used the same starting lineup for only the first time this season. The Bulldogs used the starting five combination it used against No. 18 Pitt on 12/04.
The Bulldogs are now 32-5 in games against non-SEC opponents during the Coach Jans era.
The Maroon and White is now 3-1 on the season and moved to 16-6 in games at neutral sites with Coach Jans.
State registered 10+ steals for the fourth time this season and have notched double-digit steals on 28 occasions under Coach Jans where the Bulldogs have posted a 22-6 record.
The Bulldogs moved to 3-0 this season and 18-9 under Coach Jans when holding its opponent to under 70 points.
State advanced to 3-0 this season and 12-3 overall during the month of December under Coach Jans.
The Bulldogs scored 14 of its 19 field goals on the interior en route to a 28-24 advantage in paint points.
State forced 15 turnovers by McNeese and was able to convert 20 of the game's 25 points off takeaways. The Maroon and White has outscored its opponent this category during eight of 10 games on the season.
The Bulldogs converted 9 of the game's 14 fastbreak points.
As a team, State connected on 19-52 from the field (36.5 percent), notched a 5-for-18 clip from three-point territory (27.8 percent) and sank 23-of-33 at the foul line (69.7 percent).
The Bulldogs have won all five games in 2024-25 and are 10-1 under Coach Jans when sinking at least 20 foul shots.
Conversely, McNeese recorded a 22-53 shooting effort (41.5 percent), hit on 9-of-22 of its three-pointers (40.9 percent) and knocked down 10-17 at the charity stripe (58.8 percent).

PLAYER NOTES

Josh Hubbard

Started his 24th consecutive game over the last two seasons.
Recorded 16 points to go along with five dimes, two steals and a rebound.
Notched double figures in 19 consecutive games dating back to the Ole Miss game on 02/21/2024 and for the 40th time in 45 career games.
Compiled 785 points which is second in school history for freshmen and sophomores through 45 career games. He trails only Ray White (799 points) from the 1970s.
Impacted the game with a team-high +14 plus-minus rating.
Buried at least one trey in 23 straight games dating back to the Georgia game on 02/07/2024.
Drained multiple triples for the 39th time in his 45-game career at State.
Shot a season's best 8-for-9 clip from the charity stripe.
Recorded at least five dimes in his fourth game this season and his fifth career outing.
The Bulldogs are 4-1 when Hubbard hands out 5+ assists.
Dished out multiple assists in nine of 10 games this season.

Riley Kugel

Appeared in State's starting five for the 4th consecutive game, for the 5th time this season and for the 33rd time of his career.
Collected four points coupled with two boards, an assist and a steal.

Cameron Matthews

Started in 76 of the team's last 79 games over the last three seasons.
Competed in his school-record 143rd game.
Stuffed the stat sheet with nine points, seven boards, two steals and a dime.
The 2 takeaways give Matthews 218 steals for his career which passes Ray White from the 1970s for the most steals in program history.
Totaled a +12 plus minus rating which gives him a cumulative +601 plus-minus rating over 79 games with Coach Jans at the helm.
The seven rebounds give Matthews 713 for his career, which ties him with Jerry Graves (1959-60-61) for 13th place in program history.
Led State in rebounding for the fourth time this season and the 30th time of his career.
Hauled in at least five boards in his 74th career outing.
Notched his 63rd game with multiple steals.
Made 5-of-6 at the foul line, which marked his 10th career game with at least five free throws made.

RJ Melendez

Made his fourth start in State's last five games and his 31st career start.
Played in his 100th career game.
Scored the team's first five points of the game starting it off with a post and-one.
Achieved a season-high and team-leading 18 points while snagging three rebounds and grabbing two steals.
The 18 points also matched a career-best for a non-conference game and tied his 2nd most points scored in a game for his career.
Led State in scoring for the first time this season.
Reached double figures in three straight games, for the fourth time in State's last six games and for the 33rd outing of his career.
State is 5-0 this season and teams that RJ Melendez has played on have posted a 22-11 record when he scores 10+ points.
Made 5-of-7 of his foul shots which marks his 10th career game with at least five made free throws.

Michael Nwoko

Made his seventh straight start and his 9th career start between State and Miami.
Recorded four points to go along with two boards and two steals.
His 2nd career game with multiple steals.

Bench

Claudell Harris Jr. recorded 9 points along with six rebounds, three dimes and a takeaway.
Buried multiple trifectas for the seventh game this season and the 66th outing of his career.
Hauled down at least five boards for the 33rd time in his career.
KeShawn Murphy added four points to go with six boards, an assist, a steal and a rejection.
His 8th game this season with at least five rebounds and his 16th career outing accomplishing the feat.
Shawn Jones Jr. added two points as well as six rebounds.
Marked his 6th career game hauling down at least five boards.

Mississippi State University Athletics

Postgame Notes: No. 25 State vs. McNeese

Players Mentioned

Cameron Matthews

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