Instant Reaction: Turnovers and Cold Shooting Bury Mississippi State

Mississippi State’s skid continued as Vanderbilt dominated in an 88-56 win, further exposing the Bulldogs’ offensive woes.

Mississippi State Bulldogs guard/forward Amier Ali (14) passes the ball as Vanderbilt Commodores forward Tyler Harris (8) defends during the second half at Humphrey Coliseum. | Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

Winter storm Fern is moving through the nation and headed towards Starkville, but it’s not needed to cool off Mississippi State’s best scorer.

For a third consecutive game, Josh Hubbard had an uncharacteristic shooting performance. Only this time he was held just seven points on 2-of-10 from the field in an 88-56 loss to No. 15 Vanderbilt.

It’s not fair to blame all of the Bulldogs’ struggles on Hubbard because he didn’t get much help. Jayden Epps had 14 points (5-11 FG) to lead the way and two others had eight points. There wasn’t much scoring beyond that.

As a team, Mississippi State shot 34.5% from the field, 19.2% on three-pointers and was 11-of-17 from the charity stripe. Only one Bulldog ended the game with a positive +/- and that was Quincy Ballard (+9) in just 11 minutes of game time.

Put that up against a Vanderbilt team that shot 53.8% from the field, 32% from beyond the arch and 10-0-of-11 on free throws and you can see how the Commodores left Starkville with a 32-point win.

Not intending to pile on, but to further prove the point, the Bulldogs committed 17 turnovers compared to only nine by Vanderbilt. The Commodores scored 28 points off of those turnovers and dominated in the paint, 50-22.

Vanderbilt had four players score 10 or more points, led by Tyler Tanner with 24 in game he was 10-of-17 from the field and 3-of-5 on three-pointers. Duke Miles added 17 points, Tyler Nickel had 13 and Devin McGlockton had 10.

It’s the fifth-straight loss for Mississippi State, too, and second consecutive loss by 20 points or more.

Fixing the major issue plaguing the Bulldogs – an ice cold Hubbard – won’t be easy and it’s nearly impossible to win if no other players replace his scoring output.

If none of that changes, it’ll be a very long month and a half to end the season.

Mississippi State Top Performers

• Points: Jayden Epps, 14
• Rebounds: Jamarion Davis-Fleming/Sergej Macura, 8
• Assists: Jamarion Davis-Fleming/Dellquan Warren, 2
• Steals: Josh Hubbard, 3
• Blocks: Jamarion Davis-Fleming/Quincy Ballard, 2

Vanderbilt Top Performers

• Points: Tyler Tanner, 24
• Rebounds: Jalen Washington, 8
• Assists: Tyler Tanner, 5
• Steals: Duke Miles, 7
• Blocks: Jalen Washington, 4

Next Up

The Bulldogs will have to regroup quickly amidst a winter storm expected in Starkville in the coming days.

Mississippi State is currently scheduled to travel to Baton Rouge, La. on Wednesday to face LSU. Tipoff is set for 6 p.m. on SEC Network.