What once was a 19-5, ranked Mississippi State team atop the SEC is now a nine-loss, reeling group of guys scrounging to stay alive until March. A win over Kentucky would have ended State’s three-game losing streak and just about guaranteed the Bulddogs a spot in the NCAA Tournament, but the tough 73-64 loss brought disappointment to both the team and fans alike.
With only three games remaining to salvage its season, the Bulldogs are desperately searching for hope. Tomorrow’s game at Alabama is a must-win for MSU, who has lost six of its last seven road games.
Fortunately for the Dogs, the Tide’s second leading scorer and rebounder Tony Mitchell is suspended for the rest of the season. However, leading scorer and rebounder JaMychal Green will return from his suspension just in time to welcome the visiting Bulldogs.
But MSU may be missing some fire power of its own if freshman Rodney Hood is unable to play tomorrow. Hood sprained his left knee in the first half of Tuesday night’s game against Kentucky and did not return to the game. The freshman had already scored eight points, including two three-pointers, when he was forced to head to the locker room early.
An already thin rotation for the Dogs suffered from the loss of Hood as they played just six players the entire second half. Stansbury said taking Hood out of the mix was really tough for the Dogs.
“As the game goes on, you’re not going to be as fresh physically when you are battling every possession, and we didn’t have extra rotation in the second half, so we had to suck it up,” Stansbury said. “Losing Rodney was a huge blow for us. When you lose one of your key guys with our lack of depth, it’s huge for us. You never know the total effect of that, the way our team is put together.”
The first half of the game was all Bulldogs as the team dominated the Wildcats, taking a 41-28 lead into the locker room. Senior Dee Bost scored 16 points in the half to go along with six assists.
The Dogs held the Cats to .09 percent shooting to start the game, beginning the game on a 12-2 run. SEC Player of the Year frontrunner Anthony Davis was held to just four points in the half. MSU forward Arnett Moultrie was matched up against Davis numerous times throughout the game but said he was not focused on going against the talented freshman.
“We did a good job taking away their dunks, which is their strength in getting their lobs from the guards,” he said. “It wasn’t about the matchup. I just wanted to help Mississippi State win. That’s what I’m about — winning.”
Kentucky came out ready to play in the second half, quickly cutting the lead to single digits and continuing to chip away throughout the half. The Cats took their first lead of the game with 4:06 left when freshman Michael Kidd-Gilchrist rebounded his own miss and laid it back up. From then on, the Cats controlled the game.
While State began to look rattled, Kentucky stayed under composure and closed out the game, winning 73-64.
On the bright side for the Bulldogs, MSU showed it can play with the best team in the nation for 36 minutes. However, the team once again was unable to finish a close game with a win. Kentucky coach John Calipari was complimentary of his opponent and said State was a terrific basketball team.
“Let me commend the Mississippi State fans and team; that’s a heck of a ball team, and this was as good of an environment as we’ve played in this year,” Calipari said. “Mississippi State should have won its last four games, so they just have to get on track, win a couple games, and they’ll be fine.”
The Bulldogs now face foes Alabama, South Carolina and Arkansas to close out the regular season, which will not be easy games, but Bost said the team will be ready.
“We can play with anybody on any given night. We just have to be consistent and come out there and bring it every night with any team in our conference,” he said. “We can’t keep our heads down and go to Alabama with our heads down.”
Tip-off for Saturday’s game against the Crimson Tide is set for 5 p.m., and the game will be broadcast on ESPN.