How to watch Mississippi State men's basketball vs. Utah

The Bulldogs may be without their best player in Josh Hubbard, but a week between games should have them better prepared.

Mississippi State Bulldogs guard Josh Hubbard (12) shoots a layup against the Kansas State Wildcats during the second half of the game at T-Mobile Center. | Denny Medley-Imagn Images

Mississippi State’s men and women basketball teams are headed in different directions, both literally and figuratively, this weekend.

The men’s team is headed west to face Utah late Saturday night. It’ll have been almost an entire week since the Bulldogs last played (a 65-62 loss to San Francisco) and they’re hoping to have their best player available.

However, the health status of Josh Hubbard is still unknown.

“Josh is obviously a hardworking kid, fortunately for us, and our trainer, Bryce, is a hardworking guy as well, and I know they're going to be working around the clock to try to get him back, you know, as soon as he can, but I don't have a timetable,” Mississippi State coach Chris Jans said at his Wednesday media availability.

Hubbard played just two minutes last Sunday before leaving and not returning. He’s the Bulldogs’ leading scorer with 21.2 points per game and has the most three-pointers made (25). He also has 35 assists and 11 steals in nine games this season.

If Hubbard is unavailable to play, the Bulldogs will need players like Jayden Epps, Ja’Borrie McGhee, Shawn Jones Jr., and Quincy Ballard to step up their play.

“I always feel like when you have time to prepare for something like that, it's a little bit easier than when it happens, you know, a couple minutes into the game,” Jans said about his confidence level in playing without Hubbard. “We'll be more prepared if that ends up being the case. At halftime we made some major adjustments, especially on the offensive end, that proved to be good ones, and we scored almost twice as many points in the second half as we did in the first half.

“It was a big punch in the gut, you know, with 17:33 in the first half to lose someone that is so valuable to your team, but that happens in sports. You got to be able to move on quickly and figure it out.”

How to Watch: Mississippi State vs. Utah, Salt Lake Showcase

• Who: Mississippi State Bulldogs (4-5) at Utah Utes (7-3)
• When: 9 p.m., Saturday
• Where: Delta Center, Salt Lake City, Utah
• TV: ESPNU
• Radio: Live Radio
• Stats: Live Stats
• Series History: Mississippi State leads the all-time series 3-0
• Last Meeting: Mississippi State 52, Utah 49 (2022)
• Last time out, Bulldogs: lost to San Francisco, 65-62
• Last time out, Utes: def. Cal Baptist, 91-85