Saturday night the Mississippi State men’s basketball team hosted the No. 8 Florida Gators. Coming into the game, Florida led the all-time series 58-49, but in games played in Starkville, the Gators were only 20-34.
None of that would be relevant, however, as the Gators had their way with the Bulldogs in an easy 82-47 victory. Florida came into the game ranked third overall in scoring defense and riding a seven-game winning streak.
After the game, MSU head coach Rick Ray gave Florida high praise and said his team was just outmatched. 
“I think Florida is by far the best team in the SEC, and I would venture to say they are probably playing better than any team in the nation right now,” Ray said. “I told my team they had the most talented players in the SEC, but despite that, what makes them so great is how they share the ball, and we need to learn from that.”
When a team loses a game by 35 points, bright spots are a rarity, but State pulled a few positives from the game that the guys can build on as they move forward. Freshmen Fred Thomas and Gavin Ware both played well in the game and  seem to be getting more comfortable playing at the college level. Thomas especially, who currently leads the team in scoring with 11.1 points per game, has come on strong in conference play.
Thomas said he is starting to find his role at this level and credits his early success to the hard work he has put in this season.
“I’ve been staying in the gym and getting extra shots up, and it’s paying off for me,” Thomas said. “I wasn’t going to give up on my team. I just wanted to stay active and do all I can to keep us in it.”
Rebounding was a major problem for MSU in the game as the Gators out-rebounded the Dogs 44-20. The leading rebounders for the Bulldogs were Jalen Steele and Roquez Johnson, both with only four a piece.
Ware acknowledged he did not rebound particularly well (he only had three rebounds in 26 minutes) and said it was just one of those nights.
“I tried to give it my best tonight, but that is just how it goes sometimes,” Ware said. “I will use this as motivation for when I’m at practice doing rebounding drills to work harder so that this does not happen again.” 
The other major issue MSU had in the game was defending the three-point shot. Florida made 14 threes on 45 percent shooting from downtown.
Freshman Craig Sword praised the Florida perimeter players for their shooting ability.
“I really didn’t know they had so many guys that can shoot like that,” Sword said. “We weren’t rotating right, and that allowed them to get so many open looks, but sometimes we got a hand in their face, and they still made it, so there wasn’t really much we could do about it.”
The Bulldogs cannot dwell on this loss with the Aggies of Texas A&M visiting the Hump Wednesday at 8 p.m. MSU comes into the game with an overall record of 7-11, and Texas A&M comes in with an overall record of 12-7. Both teams are 2-4 in SEC play.
Senior guard Elston Turner, Jr., who is the son of former NBA player and Ole Miss stand out guard Elston Turner, leads the Aggies. Turner, Jr., is currently averaging 15.7 points per game. The Dogs must limit his effectiveness offensively and rebound well to stay with A&M.
The Bulldogs are currently rated slightly higher in rebounding than A&M, and Ware, at 270 pounds, has a size advantage over the lighter players on the A&M front line. State will look for Ware in the post the majority of the game after the freshman has come off back-to-back good outings.
Tip-off for the game is set for 8 p.m. Wednesday at the Hump.