Stewart leads second-half comeback as MSU upsets No. 13 Missouri

Bulldogs overcame a 14-point second-half deficit to win

STARKVILLE, Miss. – It was just this past Saturday when Mississippi State was on the wrong end of a second-half comeback when Kentucky overcame a nine-point deficit to go on and beat MSU. On Tuesday, facing a different kind of cat, it was the Bulldogs breaking the hearts of others.

Mississippi State erased a 14-point hole and eventually roared to a 78-63 upset win over No. 13 Missouri at Humphrey Coliseum. It was a much-needed bounce-back effort for a Bulldog team looking to ease the sting of the double-overtime defeat from the weekend.

"It doesn't erase (the Kentucky loss) but (Tuesday's win) sure feels good after a brutal defeat," MSU head coach Ben Howland said. "You guys remember the old ABC ad for the Wide World of Sports – you know, 'The agony of defeat and the thrill of victory.' There's no question, that's what this feels like."

With the win, MSU improved to 7-4 overall this season and 2-1 in Southeastern Conference play. Missouri fell to 7-2 overall and 1-2 in league action. It was, by any measure, a quality victory for the Bulldogs against a team rated 10th in the NCAA NET rankings – the tool used to determine the NCAA Tournament field.

For much of Tuesday's affair, it looked almost certain it'd be State's record taking the negative hit. The Bulldogs trailed 39-27 at halftime and they arguably could've been behind by more than that. MSU shot under 35 percent as a team in the first half and committed eight turnovers that led to 15 Missouri points. 

The Tigers kept the pressure on right after the intermission, pushing State's deficit to 14 at 43-29 with 18:28 to play. 

From there though, the Bulldogs turned everything around. Much of the rest of the night became the Stewart show, co-starring Iverson Molinar. MSU's backcourt duo seemed unstoppable for a stretch as the Bulldogs got back in the game.

"It's exciting when you see your guards going on a run and just getting hot," State center Abdul Ado said of his teammates. "It's almost like you have to pour water on them to cool them off a little bit."

Stewart and Molinar were indeed on fire. The two scored all 15 points in a 15-0 run that brought Mississippi State all the way back and into the lead at 44-43 with 13:07 left. Stewart was particularly sharp. 

"In the first half, (Missouri) was just clogging the paint," Stewart said. "In the second half, I just thought I had to be more patient and make other plays for my teammates. Trying to make other plays for my teammates, shots came open for me."

In all, Stewart scored 20 of his game-high 24 points in the second half. Molinar finished with 20 total points for State. Tolu Smith had 15 points and just missed out on a double-double as he also had nine rebounds.

In the midst of all the late offense, MSU's defense also shined on the comeback trail. Missouri was limited to only 39 percent shooting in the second half after shooting 50 percent as a team in the game's first 20 minutes. In all, it was an incredible turn of events as the Bulldogs outscored the Tigers 51-24 in the second half to run away with the contest.

"I wish I could take credit for it," Howland said of the win before going on to praise the leadership of his players. "This is a really good team we defeated. They're Top 10 in the NET and 13th in the country. They're definitely an NCAA Tournament team. This is a huge shot in the arm for our guys and our confidence."

Now, the Bulldogs will try to build on their momentum when they travel to Vanderbilt for a noon central tip on Saturday. That game will be televised by SEC Network.

POSTGAME PRESS CONFERENCES

MSU head coach Ben Howland

MSU guard D.J. Stewart

MSU center Abdul Ado

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