Mississippi State
14-1,2-0SEC
Vanderbilt
13-2,1-1SEC
The Final Horn: No. 14 State 76, Vanderbilt 64
January 07, 2025 | Men's Basketball, Joel Coleman
A quick rundown of MSU’s win over the Commodores.
THE BOTTOM LINE: In a season where Mississippi State has proven itself to be able to rise to any challenge, the Bulldogs have done it again. The latest obstacle cleared by MSU? Its first Southeastern Conference road test of the season. The No. 14 Bulldogs topped Vanderbilt 76-64 at Memorial Coliseum in Nashville, Tennessee on Tuesday night to improve to 14-1 overall and 2-0 in SEC action. And it wasn't just a win for State. It was another showing where the Dawgs controlled the contest for most of the night. It's become a common theme this year for the Bulldogs against premier competition. They blew out Pittsburgh, had a comfortable win on the road at Memphis and dominated South Carolina in the SEC opener. Now it's the Commodores finding out firsthand that the Dawgs are for real. A Cameron Matthews layup gave MSU a 14-12 edge less than seven minutes into Tuesday's game. State never trailed the rest of the way, leading by as many as 22 points in the second half on the way to the triumph. To Vandy's credit, the Commodores staged a second-half rally to pull back within five points late. However, State hung tough and held on, wrapping the game in Maroon and White for the Dawgs' eighth straight win.
KEY NUMBERS: RJ Melendez's season-high 19 points were crucial for MSU. He also came up just a few boards shy of a double-double as he collected seven rebounds. Matthews scored 16 points for State and Claudell Harris Jr. added 13. As good as all that was, defense was the driving force behind this win as it has been for so many in the head coach Chris Jans era at State. Vanderbilt shot just 35.5 percent as a team and connected on just five of 26 three-point attempts. The Commodores' offensive numbers might not have even been that if not for their mid-second-half surge that saw them whittle a 54-32 State advantage down to 65-60. From there, State once again locked in defensively, allowing only one field goal and four points over the final 4:19 to lock down victory.
NEXT UP FOR THE DAWGS: Mississippi State returns home for a big matchup in Starkville. MSU hosts Kentucky on Saturday, Jan. 11. Tip time at Humphrey Coliseum is set for 7:30 p.m. and the game will be televised by SEC Network.
HIGHLIGHTS:
RJ from the corner 👌#HailState🐶 | 📺 ESPNU pic.twitter.com/A7pKa2g9FF
— Mississippi State Men's Basketball (@HailStateMBK) January 8, 2025
CLAUDELL 🎯
— Mississippi State Men's Basketball (@HailStateMBK) January 8, 2025
9-0 run for the Dawgs! #HailState🐶 | 📺 ESPNU pic.twitter.com/izduAlu2HI
Steal. Score. #HailState🐶 | 📺 ESPNU pic.twitter.com/QAh93uiGjD
— Mississippi State Men's Basketball (@HailStateMBK) January 8, 2025
Cam → RJ. Dawgs lead by 11!#HailState🐶 | 📺 ESPNU pic.twitter.com/PyGcYR6ZGV
— Mississippi State Men's Basketball (@HailStateMBK) January 8, 2025
Starting out hot in the second 🔥#HailState🐶 | 📺 ESPNU pic.twitter.com/oWz6WKBAq2
— Mississippi State Men's Basketball (@HailStateMBK) January 8, 2025
DENIED. #HailState🐶 | 📺 ESPNU pic.twitter.com/TFTgaJRu90
— Mississippi State Men's Basketball (@HailStateMBK) January 8, 2025
CLAUDELL OUT OF THE TIMEOUT! #HailState🐶 | 📺 ESPNU pic.twitter.com/9kF6kmVFo1
— Mississippi State Men's Basketball (@HailStateMBK) January 8, 2025
CAMERON MATTHEWS 😤
— Mississippi State Men's Basketball (@HailStateMBK) January 8, 2025
DAWGS LEAD BY 10. #HailState🐶 | 📺 ESPNU pic.twitter.com/lB5dYkiAZN
ROAD DAWG DUB 😤#HailState🐶 pic.twitter.com/uLsqc3InWj
— Mississippi State Men's Basketball (@HailStateMBK) January 8, 2025
