STARKVILLE, Miss. - Back in the Top 25 for the second time this season, the 25th-ranked Mississippi State Bulldogs (20-8, 11-3) close out the road portion of their SEC regular-season schedule by heading to Nashville to take on the 16th-ranked Commodores of Vanderbilt University (24-5, 9-5) Wednesday evening. Tip-off time for the non-televised contest is set for 7 p.m. at VU’s 14,316-seat Memorial Gymnasium.
Wednesday’s 113th all-time series renewal between MState and Vandy can be heard on XM Satellite Radio Channel 201 and SIRIUS Channel 153.
Winners of six of their last seven decisions, including a current three-game winning streak, coach Rick Stansbury’s 20-8 Bulldogs most recently clinched their fourth SEC Western Division title in the last six seasons and notched their seventh 20-win campaign of the past decade with Saturday’s 68-59 road triumph over the Florida Gators. Currently ranked 25th in the USA Today/ESPN coaches’ poll for the second time this season, MSU owns a 5-2 mark in SEC road contests on the year. Having established a new single-season school standard for blocks for the second straight season (228 this season after 222 last year) and chasing Kentucky’s current SEC season record of 240 rejects set in 1997-98, MSU enters the final week of the regular season still ranked second nationally in blocks this season behind Connecticut (8.83 to 8.14 bpg). The Bulldogs also remain second among the NCAA team leaders behind Georgetown in field-goal percentage defense (.367 to .362) after having limited 10 of their 14 league opponents to less than 40-percent shooting from the field on the year.
Mississippi State continues to be powered by the veteran all-SEC tandem of junior Jamont Gordon (17.1 ppg, 6.2 rpg & 4.8 apg) and senior Charles Rhodes (16.2 ppg, 7.4 rpg, & 56% FGs), who combine to average better than 33 points and 13 rebounds per game between them on the year. The current SEC Player of the Week, Rhodes is averaging 19.2 points over his last 10 contests, including a career-high 30 points in last Wednesday’s home win over Auburn. Steady sophomore guards Barry Stewart and Ben Hansbrough follow at 12.0 and 10.5 points per game, respectively.
Ranked 16th nationally in both polls this week, Vanderbilt sports a 24-5 overall record and stands third in the SEC East race with a 9-5 conference mark after having its seven-game winning streak snapped this past Saturday in Fayetteville with a 78-73 setback at Arkansas. Guided by ninth-year head coach Kevin Stallings and winners of 31 of their last 32 home games (18-0 at home this season), the Commodores are led by the talented senior/freshman duo of veteran Shan Foster (19.8 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 113 treys & 47% 3FGs) and rookie A.J. Ogilvy (16.8 rpg, 6.7 rpg, 59% FGs & 78% FTs).
The Bulldogs have won six of the last eight meetings with the Commodores, including last year’s 83-70 home win over VU in Starkville. MState has knocked off Vandy at Memorial Gym twice in the team’s last three visits to Nashville (72-69 in 2003-04 and 66-43 in 2001-02).
Mississippi State returns home for its regular-season finale by playing host to the LSU Tigers on Saturday afternoon. Tip-off is slated for 3 p.m. at MSU’s Humphrey Coliseum, and the contest will be regionally televised by Raycom Sports. Prior to Saturday’s MSU-LSU hardwood battle, senior Bulldog players Charles Rhodes and Billy Begley, along with senior manager Lan Ingram, will be honored during pre-game ?Senior Day’ activities.
