Mississippi State Men's Basketball Loses in Blowout Against Tennessee, 87-53

Mississippi State men's basketball suffered a blowout 87-53 loss to Tennessee in Knoxville on Tuesday night to start the new year.

From start to finish, it was never a close contest. The Volunteers came roaring out of the gates with a 16-0 run to start the game and never trailed. The first points for the Bulldogs didn't come until a goaltending call on Tennessee guard Josiah-Jordan James put the Bulldogs on the board.

Tennessee shot lights out on the court, shooting a combined 36-of-52 (69.2%) from the field and 12-of-21 (57.1%) from the three. In comparison, Mississippi State went a combined 21-of-53 (39.6%) on field goals and 4-of-18 (22.2%) on three-pointers.

Tennessee's bench put up their best offensive performance of the season, and the Bulldogs just couldn't keep up. The Volunteers had five players score in double digits, with standout guard Santiago Vescovi recording 14 points, three rebounds and two assists.

The only Bulldog player to score in double digits was forward Tyler Stevenson, who finished the night with 15 points and two rebounds while shooting 7-of-10 from the field and 1-of-3 from the three.

The Bulldogs' defense was also helpless against Tennessee's explosive offense. Before Tuesday night's game, the Bulldogs allowed an average of 54.5 points per game, which was the fourth-best scoring defense in Division I basketball. Against Tennessee, they allowed well more than that, with 87 points overall. So far, it's the most points they have allowed all season.

At the end of the day, Tennessee was the better team and the Bulldogs are off to a rocky start to begin both conference play and the new year.

"I have a ton of respect for their program, how they play, their coaching staff and they got it right where they want it," Bulldogs head coach Chris Jans said after the loss. "I don't care where you are going or where you are playing, but on the road against a good team, when you dig yourself that big of a hole, you are going to spend the entire evening trying to get back into the game."

With the loss, Mississippi State falls to a record of 11-3 overall and 0-2 in SEC play. The Bulldogs have lost three straight after starting the season 11-0.

Up next, the Bulldogs return to Starkville to host in-state rival Ole Miss in Humphrey Coliseum on Saturday at 1 p.m. CT. The game will air on CBS.