For the ninth time in head coach Rick Stansbury’s 11 tries, Mississippi State kicked off its SEC schedule with a win Saturday at Arkansas.
The Bulldogs (11-5, 1-0 SEC) used a hot shooting night from long range and a big second half from freshman point guard Dee Bost to hand the Razorbacks (12-2, 0-1) their first home loss of the season, 70-56.
The game’s biggest difference was the way the teams shot three-pointers. State continued its recent tear from behind the arc, shooting better than 40 percent for the third straight game.
Arkansas, who came in to the game averaging 38 percent from downtown, couldn’t overcome a sickly 3-of-22 performance.
Arkansas head coach John Pelphrey said he was frustrated by his team’s cold shooting night.
“We got good looks but just didn’t make the shots,” Pelphrey said. “Those shots played a big part in the game.”
The Razorbacks’ hardwood home, Bud Walton Arena, has historically mystified the Bulldogs. It took more than 10 years for the Bulldogs to win their first game inside the arena, and this marks State’s third win in 17 tries.
The arena is not just unkind to the Bulldogs, either. Arkansas boasts an impressive 208-45 home record since the arena’s opening in 2003.
That history was not lost on Stansbury, who said he was impressed with his young team’s composure.
“I don’t think I’ve ever brought a team up here that played in this building and kept its composure for 40 minutes like this team did,” he said. “That’s not easy to do, because this crowd right here will make you do a lot of bad things.”
The game was a physical slugfest from the opening tip, with fouls called sparingly. This proved to be a challenge for State, as Stansbury has often challenged his team’s toughness this year.
Arkansas had a decided size advantage over the Bulldogs, who have utilized a four-guard lineup since the injury to forward Brian Johnson. To counteract Arkansas’ size, the Bulldogs sped up the pace, running the floor and scoring points in transition. State built an early 10-2 lead that Arkansas erased with a 9-2 run of its own.
Only two points separated the two teams at halftime. Arkansas took its largest lead, four points, early in the period before back-to-back three-pointers by Barry Stewart and Bost gave the visitors the lead for good.
The Bulldogs’ resurgence can be largely attributed to Bost’s play, as those three were the first of 13 second-half points for Bost.
His performance wasn’t limited to the offensive end. Bost held UA point guard and SEC freshman scoring leader Courtney Fortson to only 5 points.
“[Fortson] is one the best in this league at getting to the basket and we did a good job keeping him out,” Stansbury said.
Bost’s play earned him the SEC’s Freshman of the Week honors.
Stewart, who tied Bost for the team lead with 17 points, called Bost’s defensive performance his best of the year.
Arkansas forward Michael Washington led all players in scoring (18), rebounds (15) and minutes played (38).
The loss snapped a 10-game winning streak for the Razorbacks that included wins over top-10 opponents Oklahoma and Texas. The strong start surprised most, as Arkansas was picked to finish last in the conference by the coaches.
The Bulldogs now turn their attention to nearby Alabama (11-4, 1-0), who visits Starkville Wednesday. The Crimson Tide opened conference play by beating LSU 65-59 in Tuscaloosa.
Alabama is led in scoring by senior guard Alonzo Gee, who averages 14.5 points per game. Gee is closely followed by sophomore Senario Hillman with 14.3 points per game.
The Tide also relies heavily on fifth-year senior point guard Ronald Steele, who sat out last season recovering from surgery on both of his knees and leads Alabama in assists and three pointers made.
Last season, MSU swept Alabama in three meetings. UA holds a 110-70 advantage overall in the series, while State leads 53-34 in Starkville.
MSU is 9-1 in home conference openers under Stansbury and has won five straight.