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Mississippi State falls to 9-seed Baylor, extends NCAAT drought
By Ethan Stone
Published:
Mississippi State has not won an NCAA Tournament game since 2008 (9-seed Oregon, 76-69) and Friday ensured that streak will extend at least one more season. The Bulldogs saw their season come to an end Friday at the hands of 9-seed Baylor, 75-72.
The Bulldogs and Bears started and finished the game very tight. Mississippi State struck first and the teams went back-and-forth all the way until the halftime break, with the Bears leading 37-32. Baylor then took off to start the second half, but just when it looked as if the Bears were going to put Chris Jans’ squad away, the Bulldogs began to fight back.
Riley Kugel, Josh Hubbard and Claudell Harris fueled this flurry, but the reason it wasn’t successful had to do with the defensive end. Baylor, led by Rob Wright and future lottery pick VJ Edgecombe, made shot after shot in key moments to keep the Bulldogs at bay. The shotmaking in the 2nd half by both teams was very impressive, but Baylor played defense when it mattered while Mississippi State did not. Ultimately, Harris’ final attempt at a game-tying 3 missed the rim entirely.
Finally, it’s time to talk about Hubbard, who was on fire all afternoon. The sophomore flamethrower scored 26 points and was the ringleader for Mississippi State’s second half push. In the end though, it just wasn’t quite enough.
Year 3 of the Chris Jans era at Mississippi State ends with a 21-13 record. Baylor, on the other hand, will face off against the winner of Duke and Mount St. Mary’s.
Ethan Stone is a Tennessee graduate and loves all things college football and college basketball. Firm believer in fouling while up 3.
