Bulldogs Look To Get Back On Track At Alabama
The Bulldogs are looking to sweep the Crimson Tide for the first time since the 2008 campaign. Back in January at Humphrey Coliseum, MSU upended Bama, 56-52.
Tip at Coleman Coliseum is set for 5 p.m., and the game will be televised by ESPN with Brad Nessler and Jimmy Dykes handling the broadcast.
"Alabama is playing some of its best basketball of the season right now," said 14th-year MSU coach Rick Stansbury, who owns a 16-13 ledger against the Tide. "To see what they did at Arkansas (Thursday) is really impressive. It's going to be a challenge, and we'll have to be at our best. It's on the road, and we all know that's never easy."
Mississippi State (19-9, 6-7) has dropped three-straight games at Alabama (18-9, 7-6), and in the last 13 meetings there, nine have been decided by single digits. In addition, four games have gone into overtime, with the Tide posting a 3-1 mark. MSU's overtime win came in 2004, which gave the Bulldogs the overall SEC regular-season crown.
This season, Alabama is 11-3 at home overall and 4-2 in SEC play. Thursday, the Tide ran past Arkansas in Fayetteville, 79-68. Freshman Rodney Cooper came off the bench to score a team-high 17 points, while Andrew Steele added 15.
In their first meeting this year, Arnett Moultrie led the charge with 25 points and 13 rebounds, while Dee Bost added 17 points to go along with his four assists. JaMychal Green paced the Tide with 14 points and was the only Alabama player in double-digits.
Moultrie leads his team with a 16.4 scoring clip, while his 10.8 rebounds and 16 double-doubles are tops in the SEC. Bost is second in scoring at 16.0 and first in the SEC with 5.1 assists an outing. He needs just 8 more assists to become the 10th player in SEC history to reach 600 for a career.
After Saturday, the Bulldogs go on the road for the final time this season when they travel to South Carolina on Wednesday for a 7 p.m. tip on the SEC Network.