TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The Mississippi State University men’s basketball team dropped a tough battle to the University of Alabama 66-63 at Coleman Coliseum on a bitterly cold Wednesday night in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.
In the first five minutes, the Bulldogs came out hot with a commanding 10-2 run before the Crimson Tide started to chop at the lead.
Mississippi State’s shooting in the first half looked the best it has all season, shooting 15-26 (57.7%) from the field compared to Alabama’s 7-22 (31.8%).
Alabama, however, wouldn’t go down without a fight. The Tide’s standout player Brandon Miller made some nasty dunks, and guard Dominick Welch hit a buzzer-beater three-pointer to make it 36-29 at halftime.
In the second half, the Bulldogs got into foul trouble, allowing Alabama to close the gap through free throws. The Tide’s offense started to get hot, as Miller hit the ten-point mark in the second half.
Alabama took the lead at around the 7:30 mark of the second half when Crimson Tide guard Jahvon Quinerly made a shot from three to make it 53-51.
The Bulldogs made it a close game again, trailing 66-63 with 49.3 seconds left in the second half, but the Bulldogs couldn’t close things out in crunch time when Dashawn Davis missed the three at the buzzer.
After the loss, Bulldogs head coach Chris Jans spoke to the media about his team’s performance.
“We’re not here to have a good showing; we’re not here to be close,” Jans said. “We came here to win. Our kids are disappointed, and our staff is disappointed. We knew we’d have to play well, and we did for a long time. But we also knew (Alabama) weren’t going to go away. They’re ranked No. 2 in the country for a reason.”
Bulldog forward Tolu Smith led MSU with 15 points (6-9 from the field) along with seven rebounds and three assists.
With the loss, Mississippi State fell to a record of 12-8 overall (1-7 in SEC play). The Bulldogs are also stuck on a five-game losing streak, their longest of the season.
Despite the losing skid, there is still hope that the team will be able to turn it around come tournament time in March.
“Our record doesn’t indicate how good we are,” forward Smith said. “I know that might sound real cliché, but it’s true. This was the No. 2 team in the nation, and we lost by three in a game that we should’ve won. If we play for 40 minutes like this, the outcome would be different in most games and in most cases.”
The Bulldogs return to Humphrey Coliseum Saturday to host another ranked opponent, TCU, as part of the SEC/Big 12 Challenge. Tip-off is set for 3 p.m. and the game will be aired on ESPN2.