Mississippi State
15-4,3-3SEC
#6 Tennessee
17-2,4-2SEC
The Final Horn: No. 6 Tennessee 68, No. 14 State 56
January 21, 2025 | Men's Basketball
A quick rundown of the action as MSU drops decision to the Volunteers.
THE BOTTOM LINE: A tough first half on the offensive end proved to be too much to overcome on Tuesday night for No. 14 Mississippi State as the Bulldogs dropped a 68-56 road decision to No. 6 Tennessee at Thompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center. State shot at just a 22.2 percent clip as a team over the first 20 minutes of action, was down 34-16 at halftime and, despite an early second half charge, was unable to complete the comeback. Speaking of that second half rally, the Dawgs did give themselves a realistic chance after their slow start to Tuesday's action. State trimmed its 18-point deficit all the way down to seven in a five-minute stretch in which the Maroon and White pulled off a 15-4 run to trail just 38-31. That's as close as MSU would get down the stretch though as the Bulldogs fell to 15-4 overall and 3-3 in Southeastern Conference action.
KEY NUMBERS: MSU making only six of its first 27 field goal attempts proved to be too much of a hurdle to overcome. And while the Dawgs found their footing, Tennessee's Chaz Lanier scored 14 of his game-high 23 points in the first half, including a 4-for-7 showing from deep in the opening period. State was led in scoring by Josh Hubbard's 14 points. Riley Kugel totaled 12 and RJ Melendez added 10.
NEXT UP FOR THE DAWGS: Mississippi State once again faces an SEC road test. MSU travels to South Carolina to battle the Gamecocks on Saturday, Jan. 25. Tip time at Colonial Life Arena is set for noon CT and the game will be televised by SEC Network.
