Mississippi State
19-8,7-7SEC
Oklahoma
17-10,4-10SEC
The Final Horn: Oklahoma 93, No. 21 State 87
February 22, 2025 | Men's Basketball
A quick rundown of the action as MSU falls to the Sooners.
THE BOTTOM LINE: A strong offensive second half for Oklahoma proved to be too much for No. 21 Mississippi State to overcome as the Bulldogs fell 93-87 to the Sooners on Saturday at OU's Lloyd Noble Center. MSU led 37-34 at halftime. However, Oklahoma came out red hot following the intermission and steadily built a lead all the way up to 14 points with under three minutes to play. State was able to fight all the way back to within three with just 28 seconds left, but the Dawgs got no closer as the Sooners escaped with victory. The loss drops MSU to 19-8 overall and 7-7 in Southeastern Conference play this season.
KEY NUMBERS: The story of the game proved to be Oklahoma's ability to put the ball in the basket time and time again over the final 20 minutes. The Sooners shot 68 percent as a team in the period, making 17 of their 25 field goals including a 7-for-13 mark (53.8 percent) from three-point range. OU also knocked down 18 of 23 free-throw attempts in the second half. To its credit, MSU scored 50 second-half points of its own to keep pace and have a chance to win, but it wasn't enough. Oklahoma had three players score at least 17 points, led by Jeremiah Fears' 27. The Dawgs had four in double figures as Josh Hubbard scored 19 and KeShawn Murphy totaled 16. Claudell Harris Jr. and Riley Kugel had 11 each. RJ Melendez scored nine points for State, just missing out on a double-double as he paced MSU with his 10 rebounds.
NEXT UP FOR THE DAWGS: Mississippi State travels on Highway 82 across the state line over to Alabama. MSU battles the Crimson Tide on Tuesday, Feb. 25. Tip time at the Coleman Coliseum is set for 8 p.m. CT and the game will be televised by ESPN2.
