Mississippi State
16-8,5-6SEC
Missouri
8-16,0-11SEC
State Blows Out Mizzou Behind Dominant Second Half
February 10, 2024 | Men's Basketball, Joel Coleman
Dawgs earn big road win.
COLUMBIA, Mo. – Mississippi State's impressive NCAA Tournament resume removed perhaps its most noticeable knock on Saturday. Behind a dominant second half, the Bulldogs earned their first true road win of the season and ultimately blew out Missouri 75-51 at Mizzou Arena.
"I was tired of hearing about [not having a road win]," State head coach Chris Jans said postgame. "It was the second to last thing I talked about before we went out to the floor, that I was tired of hearing about it from everybody. National. Regional. Everybody.
"I get it. I understand. It was something we had to take care of. We talked a lot about that and for a bunch of different reasons, we needed to get a road win. I'm glad we don't have to talk about that anymore."
Added State forward Cameron Matthews: "It feels good to put the doubters to rest. [It felt good] just to come out here and play to the best of our ability and do what we can do."
Matthews led the way for State, contributing all over the floor. The senior forward did a little bit of everything, scoring nine points, collecting seven rebounds, getting seven steals and dishing out four assists. He led the way in the plus-minus column for MSU with a plus-26, meaning State outscored Mizzou by 26 points in the time when Matthews was on the court.
"He's our leader on the floor, off the floor and in the locker room," Jans said of Matthews.
Josh Hubbard and Shakeel Moore led the way for State in the scoring column. Hubbard scored a team-high 16 and Moore added 14 behind a perfect 4-for-4 showing from behind the three-point line. Tolu Smith III added yet another double-double in his illustrious career. He scored 13 and had 11 boards.
For Moore, his scoring success was a continuation of his recent impressive workouts.
"I was telling one of the coaches the other day in practice, 'If [Moore] can get this into the game, [it'll be great]," Jans recalled. "He's really shooting in practice. Confidence is an amazing trait. When you've got it, the basket looks real, real big. And when you don't, it's really small. Right now, it's very big for him."
Moore and Hubbard scored six points apiece and Matthews scored all nine of his in a second half that served as one of MSU's most dominant 20 minutes of the season.
State and Mizzou entered halftime with the Dawgs up just four points at 30-26. But that quickly changed after the teams came out of the locker room following the intermission.
An early second-half Moore 3-pointer ignited a 20-4 State run that saw MSU increase its advantage to 50-30. The Dawgs rolled from there.
"We just stayed resilient and kept our foot on the gas," Matthews said of the second half. "We never let up. We got out in transition and did what we do best."
Mississippi State outscored Mizzou 45-25 in the final period and shot an incredibly impressive 54.8 percent from the field in the second half. On the defensive end, the Dawgs held the Tigers to only 30.4 percent shooting over the final 20 minutes of play and didn't allow Mizzou to connect on a 3-pointer in the entirety of the second half.
When all was said and done, State outshot Missouri 47.5 percent to 34 percent for the game, also outrebounding the Tigers 39-31 and enjoying a 10-point advantage in the paint.
It was a dominant showing all around for the Maroon and White and gives Mississippi State back-to-back Southeastern Conference wins for the first time all season.
Now, it appears MSU is gaining momentum. All the better, the Dawgs now have a full week off before returning to action. It gives State seven days to get healthy and prepare for the final stretch of SEC games.
"It's a perfect time for us," Jans said of the off week.
The Bulldogs return to action in seven days against Arkansas as MSU looks to win its third straight game, get back to .500 in league play and further bolster its NCAA Tournament chances. State tips off against the Razorbacks at 1 p.m. Saturday, February 17, at Humphrey Coliseum. The game will be televised by ESPNU.
