Missouri and Mississippi State got here to the Southeastern Convention match in Nashville in search of to enhance their standing with the NCAA Event choice committee.
That course of will proceed when the seventh-seeded Tigers (21-10) face the Tenth-seeded Bulldogs (21-11) within the second spherical of the SEC match on Thursday night time.
The No. 21-ranked Tigers had been bidding for a top-four seed within the SEC tourney and a top-four seed within the NCAA subject earlier this season. Then they closed their league schedule by shedding 4 of 5 video games.
“We nonetheless left loads on the desk, the place I assumed we may have turned the nook and completed in a double bye, even competed for a (convention) championship,” Tigers coach Dennis Gates mentioned. “Issues wanted to occur that did not.”
Missouri loved success earlier this season, forcing live-ball turnovers by making use of man-to-man defensive stress and mixing in match-up zones extending previous the 3-point line.
However throughout their previous 4 losses, the Tigers allowed a mean of 94 factors.
“We all know what we will do,” mentioned Missouri ahead Mark Mitchell, who leads the Tigers with a mean of 14.3 factors and provides 4.7 rebounds per recreation. “We all know the kind of staff we’ve got, and we’ll maintain working.”
Gates prolonged his taking part in rotation to 10 and 11 gamers at varied factors this season, so he does not imagine fatigue factored into his staff’s late fade. Solely 4 Tigers common greater than 23 minutes per recreation.
“It has not creeped into our program,” Gates mentioned. “What I do see is that our guys … as an alternative of concentrating on guys, we have been the goal.”
Missouri received the sooner assembly with the Bulldogs 88-61 in Starkville, Miss., on Feb. 1, with Caleb Grill scoring 20 factors off the bench and Tamar Bates including 14. Grill averages 14.2 factors per recreation this season and Bates averages 12.9.
Josh Hubbard scored 24 factors for Mississippi State in that loss to Missouri, and KeShawn Murphy scored 16 factors off the bench.
“We had been on a profitable streak, and we simply underestimated them,” Hubbard informed the SEC Community. “It was an early recreation, and we did not play our greatest basketball — we did not play Bulldog basketball.
“We’ve an excellent alternative to get our ‘get’ again.”
Mississippi State coach Chris Jans got here to Nashville with a easy aim.
“Win video games, win video games,” he mentioned. “That is the mantra, that is the aim. Win as many video games as we will.
“Does that imply we’re taking part in (within the title recreation) Sunday? I hope so,” Jans added.
Whereas the Tigers had a bye Wednesday, the Bulldogs rolled over LSU 91-62 behind Hubbard’s 26 factors.
Mississippi State held LSU to 39.3 p.c taking pictures from the sector, together with 19.2 p.c (5-for-26) from 3-point vary.
“Once we reconvened on Monday to prepare for the SEC match, (protection) was the message,” Jans informed the SEC Community. “If we’ll go down there, we’ll play our model of basketball. We simply have not been nearly as good at it this yr.”
–Area Stage Media
