Photo by: Mike Mattina/MSU Athletics
Postgame Notes: State vs. Auburn
March 11, 2026 | Men's Basketball
TEAM NOTES
- Mississippi State fell 79-61 to Auburn during Wedneday's opening round of the SEC Tournament at Bridgestone Arena.
- The Bulldogs dropped to 13-19 and had their streak of eight consecutive wins come to a close in SEC Tournament openers.
- The opening half featured five ties and five lead changes before State ripped off a 12-1 spurt over a 5:27 span to turn a 22-21 deficit into a 33-23 advantage. Josh Hubbard and Jayden Epps did the heavy lifting with five points apiece for the Bulldogs.
- Auburn fired back with seven straight points of its own over the last 2:34 to pull back to within 33-30 at halftime.
- State is 10-4 this season and 59-11 over the last four seasons under Coach Jans when leading at the half.
- After five quick points by the Bulldogs to start the 2nd half, Auburn seized the momentum with 21 of the next 23 points over the next 6:12 off the clock.
- State put together one final charge. A traditional Hubbard three-point play brought the Maroon and White back to within 56-53 at the 9:25 mark.
- The Tigers forced a turnover off a Tahaad Pettiford steal, transition layup and free throw.
- Auburn closed out the 18-point wins and limited State's offense to 3 field goals inside the last 10 minutes.
- State sank 25-of-64 from the floor (39.1 percent), hit on 6-of-23 from three-point territory (26.1 percent) and connected on a 5-of-15 clip at the free throw line (33.3 percent).
- The Bulldogs sank 16 of their 25 baskets on the interior which enabled the Bulldogs to garner a 32-22 edge in paint points.
- Conversely, Auburn recorded a 27-of-65 shooting effort (41.5 percent), made 11-of-30 of its three-pointers (36.7 percent) and tallied a 14-for-22 mark at the charity stripe (63.6 percent).
PLAYER NOTES
Josh Hubbard
- Started his 82nd consecutive game over the past three seasons (01/27/2024-03/11/2026) where he has led the team in scoring in 55 of those 82 outings.
- His team-leading 22 points came on 8-of-25 from the field and 2-of-8 from three-point territory and 4-of-5 from the charity stripe.
- The junior guard now has 1947 career points which allowed him to stay in 4th place on State's all-time scoring list. He sits 66 points shy of passing Quinndary Weatherspoon (2016-17-18-19) for 3rd place.
- Hubbard ends the 2025-26 season at 53 points away from becoming the 29th player in SEC history to reach 2,000 career points. During today's game, he passed five players headed by LSU's Shaquille O'Neal (1990-91-92) and checks in at 34th place on the SEC's scoring list.
- The 1947 points allows Hubbard to sit in for 4th place on the SEC scoring list for players after their junior season. He also passed LSU's O'Neal on that list.
- Hubbard's 707 points in 2025-26 allowed him to pass Bailey Howell's 1958-59 and 1957-58 seasons for the 3rd most in program history for a single season at State. The 707 points also are the most points scored by a State player during the 2000s.
- Hubbard and Howell are 2 of 4 SEC players who have three of their program's top 10 scoring seasons at their schools.
- Secured 20+ points for the 19th time this season and collected 29 of his 46 career outings against SEC opponents.
- Hubbard's 5 career 20+ point games in the SEC Tournament mark a program high.
- Notched double figures for a team-leading 30th time this season and for the 93rd time over his 101 career games.
- The 93 games of 10+ points helped him pass Barry Stewart (2007-08-09-10) for 4th place in program history.
- The 2 treys enabled Hubbard to extend his program record. He now has 311 career three's which helped him tie Alabama's John Petty (2018-19-20-21) to claim a share of 9th place on the SEC list.
- Drained multiple three's for the 9th straight game (02/11-03/11), the 24th time this season and the 83rd time in his career.
- Dished out multiple assists for the 30th time this season and for the 83rd time in his career.
- Made his 9th consecutive start, his 23rd start this season and his 84th career start between Illinois, Georgetown and State.
- Tallied 14 points where he sank 6-of-16 from the field and 2-of-9 from three-point territory.
- Secured double-figures for the 22nd time this season and the 84th time in his career.
- Notched 10+ points in 13 of 19 outings versus SEC opponents (01/03-03/11).
- Finished his 4-year collegiate career with 1,587 points fueled by 213 three-pointers. He also came away with 300 assists and 105 steals.
- Appeared in State's starting lineup for the 28th time in 31 games this season and for the 41st time in his career.
- Provided 4 points, 3 rebounds, 3 blocks and 2 assists.
- Passed former teammate Dashawn Davis (2023-24) and ended his career tied Doug Hartsfield for the 27th most steals in program history with 109.
- Dished out multiple assists for the 14th time this season and for the 32nd time in his career.
- The 3 blocks tied a career-high which he also set against Auburn earlier this season.
- Swatted multiple shots for the 5th time this season and the 14th time in his career.
- Wrapped his 4-year career at State with 563 points, 319 rebounds, 121 assists, 109 steals and 61 blocks.
- Started for the 26th time this season and the 60th time in his career between Samford, Kansas State and Mississippi State.
- Opened up scoring on a layup which was assisted by Quincy Ballard.
- Provided 7 points and a team-high tying 8 rebounds.
- Grabbed 5+ boards for the 21st time this season and the 54th time in his career.
- Led the Bulldogs in rebounding for the 10th time this season.
- Wrapped his collegiate career with 1213 points over his 144 career games which started at Chipola College.
- Started for the 12th consecutive game, the 28th time this season and for the 95th time in his last 98 games over the last three seasons between Mississippi State and Wichita State.
- Came away with 6 points and a team-high tying 8 rebounds.
- Grabbed 5+ rebounds for the 19th time this season and the 73rd time of his career.
- Led State in rebounds for the 8th time this season.
- Finished his 5-year collegiate career with 847 points, 752 rebounds and 205 blocks.
- State and Auburn split the game's 16 points off the bench.
- Ja'Borri McGhee (4 points), Jamarion Davis-Fleming (2 points) and Sergej Macura (2 points) combined for State's bench points.
- Davis-Fleming was involved in State's first substitution for the 10th time in the last 11 games and for a team-leading 20th time this season.
- Grabbed 5+ rebounds for the 12th time in SEC action and for the 18th time this season.
- Macura notched 5+ rebounds for the 9th time in SEC play and for the 15th time this season.
Players Mentioned
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/ Men's BasketballMEN'S BASKETBALL | Chris Jans Media Session - 3/9/26
Monday, March 09
MEN'S BASKETBALL | Josh Hubbard & Ja'Borri McGhee Postgame Press Conference vs. Georgia - 3/7/26
Sunday, March 08
MEN'S BASKETBALL | Chris Jans Postgame Press Conference vs. Georgia - 3/7/26
Saturday, March 07
MEN'S BASKETBALL | Chris Jans Postgame Press Conference at Florida - 3/3/26
Wednesday, March 04