Postgame Notes: State at No. 21 Memphis

TEAM NOTES

Mississippi State entered the holiday break with a statement non-conference victory using a 16-1 run during the first half and coasted to a 79-66 triumph over No. 21 Memphis on Saturday at the FedEx Forum.
The Bulldogs snapped a 22-game skid against Associated Press Top 25 opponents in true road games which dated back to an 80-75 victory over No. 14 Ole Miss on Jan. 9, 2010
State picked up their seventh win against an AP Top 25 squad under Coach Jans. The seven wins is the most ranked wins through a coach's first three seasons in program history.
The Bulldogs achieved their largest win over an AP Top 25 foe on the road in school history. The previous mark was held by the 2003-04 SEC Championship team when State defeated No. 17 Florida, 79-68, on 01/21/2004.
State advanced to 5-1 versus NCAA NET Quad 1 and 2 opponents on the season.
The Maroon and White have won both of its true NCAA Quad 1 road games which also includes an 84-79 victory over SMU on 11/22.
The Bulldogs have won a pair of games over AP Top 25 teams before January for the third time in program history. State also has accomplished the feat in 2002-03 and 2011-12.
Today's game marked the Bulldogs first game in FedEx Forum which also is home to the NBA's Memphis Grizzlies.
State and Memphis met for the first time in the regular season for the first time dating back to a home-and-home series during the 1983-84 and 1984-85 seasons. The Tigers will make the return trip to Starkville in 2025-26.
The Bulldogs have won three consecutive games against a ranked Memphis squad in games played in the city of Memphis. State won versus No. 20 Memphis in 1957-58 and No. 4 Memphis in 1983-84 leading into today's game.
Overall, the Bulldogs are 12-14 all-time versus Memphis which includes an 8-7 mark in true road games.
State used the same starting five combination in back-to-back games for the first time this season
The Josh Hubbard-Claudell Harris Jr.-RJ Melendez-Cameron Matthews-Michael Nwoko combo improved to 3-0 this season.
State has secured a 34-5 record in games against non-SEC opponents under Coach Jans.
The Bulldogs drained nine of their 10 triples during the first half, which is the most three's State has hit during a half this season.
State advanced to 7-0 on the season and 41-5 when leading at halftime with Coach Jans at the helm.
The Maroon and White won the rebounding battle for the ninth time in 12 games this season with a 46-32 advantage. The Bulldogs are 9-0 this season and 43-12 during the Coach Jans era when accomplishing the feat.
State notched 15 steals and has registered 10+ steals for the sixth time this season. The Bulldogs have notched double-digit steals on 30 occasions under Coach Jans with a cumulative 24-6 record when accomplishing the feat.
The Bulldogs moved to 7-0 this season and to 45-11 over the last three seasons when holding its opponent to under 70 points during the Coach Jans era.
State advanced to 6-0 on the season and are now 44-7 when shooting a higher field goal percentage than its opponent under Coach Jans.
State advanced to 5-0 this season and 14-3 overall during the month of December under the direction of Coach Jans.
The Bulldogs scored 19 of their 31 field goals on the interior en route to a 38-18 advantage in paint points.
State forced 18 turnovers by Memphis and was able to convert 25 of the game's 48 points off takeaways. The Maroon and White has outscored its opponent in this category during 10 of 12 games on the season.
The Bulldogs converted 18 of the game's 31 fastbreak points and outscored Memphis by a 16-9 margin on second-chance opportunities.
As a team, State connected on 31-of-70 from the field (44.3 percent), notched a 10-for-27 clip from three-point territory (37.0 percent) and sank 7-of-10 at the foul line (70.0 percent).
It marked the sixth time this season and the 12th time overall that the Bulldogs have drained 10+ three-pointers under Coach Jans. State is 11-1 when accomplishing the feat.
Conversely, Memphis recorded a 19-for-53 shooting effort (35.8 percent), hit on 8-for-27 of its three-pointers (29.6 percent) and knocked down 20-26 at the charity stripe (76.9 percent).

PLAYER NOTES

Josh Hubbard

Started his 26th consecutive game over the last two seasons.
Cashed in the first Bulldog points with a triple.
Recorded 13 points to go along with four rebounds and an assist.
Notched double figures in 21 consecutive games dating back to the Ole Miss game on 02/21/2024 and for the 42nd time in 47 career games.
Compiled 809 points in his career, which is third in school history for freshmen and sophomores through 47 career games. He trails only Ray White (834 points) and Rich Knarr (811 points) from the 1970s.
Buried at least one trey in 25 straight games dating back to the Georgia game on 02/07/2024.
The 25-game run is tied for 4th longest in program history with Barry Stewart who accomplished during the 2008-09 and 2009-10 seasons.
Drained multiple triples for the 41st time in his 47-game career at State.

Claudell Harris Jr.

Made his 5th start this season and the 69th of his career.
55 of his 69 starts have come over his last three seasons.
Notched six points, hauled down a season-high eight rebounds, and tied a season's best dishing out three assists.
Swiped a career-high five steals, all coming during the first half. The five takeaways also are the most by any Bulldog this season.
Drained multiple treys in his 9th game this season and his 68th career outing.
Grabbed at least five boards in two of his last three outings and for the 34th time of his career.
Had multiple dimes for the 69th time of his career.

Cameron Matthews

Started in 78 of the team's last 81 games over the last three seasons.
Competed in his school-record 145th game.
Stuffed the stat sheet with 12 points and shared the team lead with nine boards. He also added six dimes and a steal.
Totaled a +15 plus minus rating which gives him a cumulative +635 plus-minus rating over 81 games with Coach Jans at the helm.
His lone steal gives Matthews 221 steals for his career which continues to build on his school record which he set during the McNeese game on 12/14.
The nine rebounds give Matthews 732 for his career, which sits him at13th place in program history.
State is 6-0 this season when Matthews leads the team on the glass.
Collected at least five boards for the 76th time in his career.
Dished out at least five assists for the 16th time in his career where State has posted a cumulative 12-4 record.

RJ Melendez

Made his sixth start in State's last seven games and his 33rd career start over 102 career games.
Added seven points and tied a season-high three steals.
Marked his 23rd career outing with multiple takeaways

Michael Nwoko

Made his ninth straight start and his 11th career start between State and Miami.
Hauled down three boards in the effort.

Bench

State's bench outscored the Tigers bench by a 41-15 margin.
The Bulldogs have outscored their opponent in nine of 12 games this season.
State has racked up 40+ bench points on 14 occasions during the Coach Jans era highlighted by five times this season.
The Bulldogs are 5-0 this season and 13-1 when scoring at least 40 bench points under Coach Jans.
Riley Kugel dialed up team-high 19 points fueled by 15 points on 6-of-6 shooting in the first half and flawless 3-for-3 clip from downtown.
The 19 points are Kugel's second highest scoring output at State and are his fifth best mark versus a non-conference opponents.
His 34th career game with double-digit points.
Also added four boards, two dimes and a steal.
KeShawn Murphy tacked on 13 points followed by team-high tying nine boards. He also tied a season-high with four steals to go along with three assists and two rejections.
10 of his 18 efforts with 5+ rebounds have come this season.
Recorded multiple dimes for the 6th time this season and the 15th occasion of his career.
Five of his eight outings with multiple blocks also have come in 2024-25.
Impacted the game with a team-high +19 plus-minus rating.
Shawn Jones. Jr. contributed nine points coupled with five rebounds, an assist, a steal and a rejection.
The nine points matched his second-highest scoring output against a non-conference opponent and tied his fourth-best scoring performance of his career.
Notched his seventh career game with at least five boards.

Mississippi State University Athletics

Postgame Notes: State at No. 21 Memphis

Players Mentioned

Cameron Matthews

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