Photo by: Mike Mattina/MSU Athletics
Men’s Hoops Claims Third Straight NCAA Tournament Bid, Meets Baylor
March 16, 2025 | Men's Basketball
by Matt Dunaway, Director/Communications
STARKVILLE – Mississippi State men's basketball program tucked away its third consecutive NCAA Tournament trip under Chris Jans and will square off with Baylor during Friday's NCAA Tournament Round of 64, as announced Sunday by the NCAA Selection Committee.
The Bulldogs, the No. 8 seed in the NCAA East Region, were one of 14 SEC schools which is a single season record for a conference chosen the NCAA's Field of 68.
The Maroon and White are joined by SEC regular season champion Auburn, SEC Tournament Champion Florida along with Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Missouri, Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Tennessee, Texas, Texas A&M and Vanderbilt.
Mississippi State (21-12, 8-10 SEC) and Baylor (19-14, 10-10 Big 12) will meet in Friday's NCAA Round of 64 from the Lenovo Center in Raleigh, North Carolina.
Opposite State-Baylor are No. 1 seed Duke from the Atlantic Coast Conference along with No. 16 seeds American from the Patriot League and Mount St. Mary's from the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference who will meet Wednesday in Dayton, Ohio in the NCAA First Four. Sunday's NCAA Round of 32 will tip at a time to be determined.
The winner from the Raleigh pod will advance to the NCAA Sweet 16 and the regional semifinals at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey on Thursday, March 27 and will face the winner of the Seattle, Washington pod which features No. 4 Arizona, No. 5 Oregon, No. 12 Liberty and No. 13 Akron.
The 2025 NCAA Final Four will be played at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas on April 5 and April 7.
All NCAA Tournament games are televised by CBS, TBS, TNT and truTV in addition to be streamed online courtesy of the NCAA March Madness (all games), MAX (TBS, TNT, truTV) and Paramount Plus (CBS) apps.
Coach Jans along with John Calipari (Kentucky – 2009-10, 2010-11, 2011-12), Bruce Pearl (Tennessee – 2005-06, 2006-07, 2007-08) and Tubby Smith (Kentucky – 1997-98, 1998-99, 1999-2000) are the only SEC coaches in league history to take their squads to back-to-back-to-back NCAA Tournaments with at least 21 victories during each of their first three seasons.
Coach Jans has amassed 63 victories at State which is second among the SEC third-year coaches who have coached all three of their seasons inside the league trailing only Florida's Todd Golden. He is the only active coach at their respective SEC school to post a trio of 20-win seasons during his first three seasons.
Nationally, Jans is joined by Jon Scheyer (Duke) and Rodney Terry (Texas) as the only three, third-year coaches to take their squads to the 2023, 2024 and 20025 NCAA Tournaments.
In total, Mississippi State has secured 10 of its 14 NCAA Tournament selections dating back to the 2001-02 season. The Bulldogs advanced to the 1996 NCAA Final Four under Richard Williams when Mississippi State defeated VCU, Princeton, Connecticut and Cincinnati.
The MSU men's and women's programs will be making its sixth joint NCAA Tournament trip. The previous appearances were in 2002, 2003, 2009, 2019 and 2023. Sam Purcell's squad also captured a NCAA Tournament at-large bid on Sunday.
2025 NCAA Tournament – All times Central
Friday, March 21 – Raleigh, North Carolina (Lenovo Center)
Game 1: (8) Mississippi State vs. (9) Baylor – 11:15 a.m. CT (CBS)
Game 2: (1) Duke vs. (16) American/Mount St. Mary's – ~ 1:50 p.m. CT (CBS)
Sunday, March 23 – Raleigh, North Carolina (Lenovo Center)
Game 3: Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner – TBA (TBA)
State sold out eight games at Humphrey Coliseum this season and boasted an average home attendance of 8,871 fans which is the fourth-highest mark in program history. Two of the program's top six average attendance marks have come under Coach Jans during the last two seasons.
Visit www.HailState.com for the latest news and information on the men's basketball program. Fans also can follow the program on its official social media accounts by searching 'HailStateMBK' on Facebook, X and Instagram.
STARKVILLE – Mississippi State men's basketball program tucked away its third consecutive NCAA Tournament trip under Chris Jans and will square off with Baylor during Friday's NCAA Tournament Round of 64, as announced Sunday by the NCAA Selection Committee.
The Bulldogs, the No. 8 seed in the NCAA East Region, were one of 14 SEC schools which is a single season record for a conference chosen the NCAA's Field of 68.
The Maroon and White are joined by SEC regular season champion Auburn, SEC Tournament Champion Florida along with Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Kentucky, Missouri, Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Tennessee, Texas, Texas A&M and Vanderbilt.
Mississippi State (21-12, 8-10 SEC) and Baylor (19-14, 10-10 Big 12) will meet in Friday's NCAA Round of 64 from the Lenovo Center in Raleigh, North Carolina.
Opposite State-Baylor are No. 1 seed Duke from the Atlantic Coast Conference along with No. 16 seeds American from the Patriot League and Mount St. Mary's from the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference who will meet Wednesday in Dayton, Ohio in the NCAA First Four. Sunday's NCAA Round of 32 will tip at a time to be determined.
The winner from the Raleigh pod will advance to the NCAA Sweet 16 and the regional semifinals at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey on Thursday, March 27 and will face the winner of the Seattle, Washington pod which features No. 4 Arizona, No. 5 Oregon, No. 12 Liberty and No. 13 Akron.
The 2025 NCAA Final Four will be played at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas on April 5 and April 7.
All NCAA Tournament games are televised by CBS, TBS, TNT and truTV in addition to be streamed online courtesy of the NCAA March Madness (all games), MAX (TBS, TNT, truTV) and Paramount Plus (CBS) apps.
Coach Jans along with John Calipari (Kentucky – 2009-10, 2010-11, 2011-12), Bruce Pearl (Tennessee – 2005-06, 2006-07, 2007-08) and Tubby Smith (Kentucky – 1997-98, 1998-99, 1999-2000) are the only SEC coaches in league history to take their squads to back-to-back-to-back NCAA Tournaments with at least 21 victories during each of their first three seasons.
Coach Jans has amassed 63 victories at State which is second among the SEC third-year coaches who have coached all three of their seasons inside the league trailing only Florida's Todd Golden. He is the only active coach at their respective SEC school to post a trio of 20-win seasons during his first three seasons.
Nationally, Jans is joined by Jon Scheyer (Duke) and Rodney Terry (Texas) as the only three, third-year coaches to take their squads to the 2023, 2024 and 20025 NCAA Tournaments.
In total, Mississippi State has secured 10 of its 14 NCAA Tournament selections dating back to the 2001-02 season. The Bulldogs advanced to the 1996 NCAA Final Four under Richard Williams when Mississippi State defeated VCU, Princeton, Connecticut and Cincinnati.
The MSU men's and women's programs will be making its sixth joint NCAA Tournament trip. The previous appearances were in 2002, 2003, 2009, 2019 and 2023. Sam Purcell's squad also captured a NCAA Tournament at-large bid on Sunday.
2025 NCAA Tournament – All times Central
Friday, March 21 – Raleigh, North Carolina (Lenovo Center)
Game 1: (8) Mississippi State vs. (9) Baylor – 11:15 a.m. CT (CBS)
Game 2: (1) Duke vs. (16) American/Mount St. Mary's – ~ 1:50 p.m. CT (CBS)
Sunday, March 23 – Raleigh, North Carolina (Lenovo Center)
Game 3: Game 1 winner vs. Game 2 winner – TBA (TBA)
State sold out eight games at Humphrey Coliseum this season and boasted an average home attendance of 8,871 fans which is the fourth-highest mark in program history. Two of the program's top six average attendance marks have come under Coach Jans during the last two seasons.
Visit www.HailState.com for the latest news and information on the men's basketball program. Fans also can follow the program on its official social media accounts by searching 'HailStateMBK' on Facebook, X and Instagram.
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