Mississippi State University traveled north to the University of Mississippi and came back with a huge win, 81-75 according to a press release sent out by the MSU Athletic Department.  
“Obviously, that was a huge win for us today over a very good team,” head coach Ben Howland said. “This is our best win of the year because this is a team that is (ranked) 32 in the NET (rankings) on their floor. This was really important for us. We’re going into this homestand that’s ‘murder’s row’ coming up this week starting on Wednesday.”
Those NET rankings are the NCAA Evaluation Tool, which according to the NCAA website, relies on game results, strength of schedule, game location, scoring margin, net offensive and defensive efficiency, and the quality of wins and losses to rank teams. MSU is currently ranked 26 in the NET Rankings. 
Howland said his team got off to a very good start on defense, as they held Ole Miss to a four-point lead going into half time, trailing 43-39. 
“I thought we got off to a great start defensively,” Howland said. You knew they were going to make runs, which they did. We hung in there and remained strong to only be down four at the half.”
The Bulldogs bounced back coming back from a seven point deficit, and they would finish out the game on a defensive high not forcing Ole Miss to miss their final seven shots in the final three minutes of the game. 
“I thought we came out and did a good job to start the second half,” Howland said. “They were up seven, I think, at 48-41. I was just so proud of our guys for the way we kept our composure. The way we kept our mental toughness.”
The game featured a star being born as Reggie Perry, a freshman forward from Thomasville, Georgia, scored 21 points and had 11 rebounds to earn a double double on the road. Howland said he was very pleased with Perry’s performance.
“I was really excited, obviously, about Reggie Perry’s game today,” Howland said. “Reggie was phenomenal. This is the type of effort I’d like to see every day in terms of productivity. He had a career high in minutes with 34. He was big for us, he’s shooting 22 percent I believe on the season from the three.”
There was a slight change in the lineup as Perry took the starting spot over Aric Holman, a senior forward from Owensboro, Kentucky, as Holman only had nine minutes of playing time in the game.
“With Reggie (Perry) in place of Aric (Holman), I think Aric’s been pressing too much,” Howland said. “I want him to relax and not feel any need to press. I’m sure he will respond when we need him big time.”
Howland said Perry’s ability to rebound and his performance at Ole Miss has elevated his expectations for Perry going forward.
“What I do expect, is if he’s (Perry) playing these kind of minutes, he’s getting 10 rebounds every night,” Howland said. “He has that capability. He’s a glass-clinger. He’s a great rebounder that could average a double-double night in and night out for sure.”