Conference play continued for both Ole Miss and Mississippi State on Saturday with one program continuing a hot streak as the other suffered a close loss against one of the sport’s most storied programs.

Here’s what went down in the Magnolia State:

No. 23 Ole Miss 77, LSU 65

In Oxford, a dominant second half propelled the Rebels to a third straight SEC win as Chris Beard’s team defeated LSU 77-65 in the SJB Pavilion, despite a lackadaisical showing early.

Ole Miss (14-2, 3-0 SEC) went up 7-0, stamped by a three-pointer by Jaylen Murray. LSU (11-5, 0-3 SEC) countered with a 15-0 run as five Tigers found buckets to take the lead. Malik Dia, coming off his best performance of the season, helped the Rebels get back into a rhythm following a near-six-minute scoring drought.

LSU’s Cam Carter hit a triple not far from the midcourt logo ahead of the shot clock expiring to extend LSU’s lead. Matthew Murrell nailed consecutive triples to give the Rebels a boost and knot it up 23-23 with 3:40 left in the half.

Both teams exchanged triples and Jaemyn Brakefield took his defender to the basket to put Ole Miss up 28-26 at the midway intermission. Ole Miss had an uncharacteristic nine turnovers through 20 minutes.

Dia had a dunk off of a fastbreak and a layup in the first two minutes of the second half, then hit a dagger of a three-pointer to give Ole Miss a 48-32 advantage with 12:54 on the clock. From that point, the Tigers were unable to get back into the contest.

Eight minutes later, Murray connected on a triple and Brakefield had a dunk before draining a pair of free throws to give the Rebels a 21-point lead — their largest of the night — with just over two minutes left of action. After Beard called off the dogs, Mike Williams III and Robert Miller III led LSU on an 11-2 run to make the final score look more respectable.

The Rebels were diverse in scoring, with five players putting 10 or more points on the board. Dia led the way with 19. He also secured a team-best seven rebounds. Brakefield scored 16 points, Pedulla amassed 11, and Murray and Dre Davis had 10 apiece. Overall, Ole Miss shot 49% from the floor, including a 36% night from behind the arc.

LSU was limited by Ole Miss’ defense and was forced to heave up a multitude of shots late in the shot clock. This yielded a 22.6% performance from three-point range. Matt McMahon’s group was headlined by Cam Carter, who had 16 points, and Daimion Collins, with 14 on the scoreboard.

Ole Miss won the turnover battle, coughing the ball up four fewer times than its conference counterpart. LSU secured one more rebound than the Rebels on Saturday. The Rebels shined in transition, earning 20 points — 11 more than LSU.

Next up for Ole Miss is a midweek matchup at No. 5 Alabama on Tuesday. The game will tip off from Tuscaloosa at 6 p.m. CT and will be aired on ESPNU as well as participating SuperTalk Mississippi stations.

No. 14 Mississippi State 90, No. 6 Kentucky 95

A clash between heavyweights was on display in front of a sold-out crowd in Humphrey Coliseum and the high-scoring battle went down to the wire. Unfortunately for Mississippi State, the Bulldogs were unable to break a 16-year curse of losing to Kentucky at home and an eight-game winning streak was snapped.

Mississippi State (14-2, 2-1 SEC), playing off of the energy of the electric crowd, opened things up on an 11-5 run with standout veterans Josh Hubbard and Cam Matthews serving as the catalysts. Kentucky (13-3, 2-1 SEC) battled back, jumping ahead 12-11 with 14:04 left in the first half.

After both teams traded blows, Jaxson Robinson aided the Wildcats in separating on the scoreboard over the next four minutes. Matthews’ efforts helped the Bulldogs knot it up 24-24 with just under 10 minutes on the clock. From there, Mississippi State forced multiple turnovers and flipped the scoreboard, but the pendulum went on to swing in Kentucky’s favor in the waning minutes before the midway intermission.

Trailing 46-40 with 28 seconds remaining in the half, Hubbard connected on a three-pointer and was fouled. The sophomore completed the four-point swing to give the Bulldogs a burst of momentum. But Lamont Butler, who committed the foul against Hubbard, made up for his error with a triple at the buzzer, deflating the home crowd and giving the Wildcats a five-point advantage at halftime.

A whirlwind of a second half was launched by Robinson leading the charge on a major Wildcat run to put Kentucky ahead 68-54 in just five minutes. Matthews and Hubbard hit triples on consecutive possessions to kickstart a comeback by the Bulldogs.

Sparring ensued, yet Kentucky held its edge until RJ Melendez scored from deep to tie things up at the 10:46 mark, capping a 17-3 run in Mississippi State’s favor. The three-ball fell for both teams over the next three minutes. Shawn Jones, Jr. and Claudell Harris, Jr. heated up at the right time to give the Bulldogs its first lead of the half as crunch time loomed.

Ansley Almonor hit a trio of clutch triples and Kentucky expanded its lead as the Wildcats worked to escape the hostile road environment. Those efforts were thwarted by a relentless Bulldog squad who stormed back to cut its deficit to one point with two minutes of clock to work with.

In the final moments of the game, Mark Pope’s bunch was able to withstand the pressure of a hostile crowd and a home team with a chip on its shoulder. Robinson and Lamont hit jumpers in the two-minute window and Hubbard went cold from behind the arc, sealing a Kentucky win in a contest that featured seven ties and 13 lead changes.

Matthews was Chris Jans’ top performer with a double-double consisting of 19 points and 10 rebounds. Hubbard had 15 points, Melendez scored 14, Harris amassed 13, and Michael Nwoko had 10 for the Bulldogs.

Kentucky, which made 56% of its shots, had six players with more than 10 points on the scoreboard. Robinson had a season-high 27. Amari Williams scored 10 and grabbed 12 rebounds in the matchup.

As a team, the Wildcats hauled in a whopping eight more boards than the Bulldogs. In a game where Kentucky shot phenominally, Mississippi State was able to keep up by forcing 13 turnovers and scoring 20 off of the giveaways.

The Bulldogs’ road ahead gets tougher. Next up on the docket is a midweek matchup at No. 2 Auburn on Tuesday at 6 p.m. CT. The game will be aired on the SEC Network as well as participating SuperTalk Mississippi stations.

The Kentucky Wildcats are on the road to face the surging Mississippi State Bulldogs in Starkville. Game time is set for 8:30 PM ET on the SEC Network. You can watch the game with an online stream using ESPN+ or a radio stream via the UK Sports Network.

After Tuesday’s setback to Georgia, Kentucky has yet to win a true road game this season. Changing that tonight will prove to be a very tall task, as the Bulldogs are one of the hottest teams in college basketball and are unbeaten at home this season.

Will the Cats be able to get the job done and avoid the first losing streak of the Mark Pope era?

Pregame Reading

Let’s Go CATS!

Momentum can come and go in the SEC this year. We’ve seen that first-hand with the Kentucky Wildcats through two games in SEC play.

Last Saturday, the Wildcats beat the No. 6 Florida Gators, who entered that game undefeated, 106-100. Three days later, Kentucky fell to the Georgia Bulldogs, 82-69. Whatever was there from the Wildcats against Florida wasn’t there from Kentucky against Georgia.

But don’t worry, a game at No. 14 Mississippi State awaits the Wildcats on Saturday night. Yup, these big games just keep coming in the SEC this year. And this Bulldogs team is GOOD. They’re 14-1 for a reason, with a roster filled with young talent and veteran experience recruited through the transfer portal.

The Bulldogs can score, shoot, rebound and defend. Kentucky needs to be ready to go from the opening tip Saturday night.

Let’s look at the Players to Watch on the No. 14 Mississippi State Bulldogs Saturday night.

Players to Watch

1. #12 Josh Hubbard 5’11” 190 lbs. So. Guard Madison, Miss.
17.1 pts, 2.1 rebs, 42.9 FG%, 38.2 3-PT FG%, 83.3 FT%, 30.6 mpg
A cousin of Dwayne Wade, Hubbard has quickly immersed himself as one of the best players and scorers in the SEC. Hubbard led the Bulldogs in scoring last year at 17.1 points per game, which also led all SEC Freshmen. His 13 games of 20+ points led all true Freshmen in the country, while two 30-point games were second in the country. In addition, nine of his 13 20-point games came in SEC play.

Hubbard has six games with 20+ points this season. He’s a really good 3-point shooter, with three games of five+ 3-pointers. In every game but two this season, Hubbard has made multiple 3-point shots. He’s become a player that you can limit and contain, but it will be difficult to shut him down. Hubbard has also played 30+ minutes 11 times this season.

2. #0 Claudell Harris Jr. 6’4” 200 lbs. Sr. Guard Hahnville, La. Boston College
Transfer
11.1 pts, 3.3 rebs, 42.2 FG%, 38.9 3-PT FG%, 15-21 FT, 23.9 mpg
Playing for his third team in four seasons, Harris entered Starkville with over 1,300 points in his first three seasons. He’s coming off a season at Boston College, where he helped the Eagles to the Sweet 16 of the NIT and averaged 13,7 points per game. Harris averaged 2.5 3-pointers per game and shot 37 percent from 3-point range, both sixth in the ACC.

This season, Harris has nine double-digit scoring games, including three straight games coming into Saturday night. Harris has six games with three or made 3-point shots, including six in the Bulldogs season opener. After coming off the bench for four straight games, Harris has started the last five games for the Bulldogs.

3. #3 KeShawn Murphy 6’10” 230 lbs. R-Jr. Forward Birmingham, Ala.
9.9 pts, 7.7 rebs, 19 blk, 52.6 FG%, 4-17 3-PT FG, 73.5 FT%, 23 mpg
Murphy has seven games with double-digit points, including a season-high 20 points against Pittsburgh in the SEC-ACC Challenge back in December. He also has three games with 12+ rebounds. Mississippi State’s leading shot blocker, Murphy has two games with four blocks this season.

4. #2 Riley Kukel 6’5” 210 lbs. Jr. Guard Orlando, Fla. Florida Transfer
9.7 pts, 3.1 rebs, 46.3 FG%, 30.4 3-PT FG%, 17-23 FT, 21 mpg
Kugel is in his first season with the Bulldogs, after playing his first two seasons at Florida. He has seven double-digit scoring games this season, including a season-high 22 points in a three-game stretch where he reached double figures. Kugel has started five games this season, and he has played 20+ minutes 10 times this season.

5. #22 RJ Melendez 6’7” 210 lbs. Sr. Forward Arecibo, Puerto Rico Georgia Transfer
8.7 pts, 3.7 rebs, 49% FG, 33.3 3-PT FG%, 82.1 FT%, 20.1 mpg
Melendez has actually played for two teams prior to his arrival in Starkville, as he helped Illinois to the NCAA Tournament in 2022 and 2023. Last year, he helped Georgia to the NIT Semifinals, where he averaged 9.6 points and 18 double-digit scoring games on the season.

This season, Melendez is coming off a season-high 19 points at Vanderbilt on Tuesday night. Melendez has started eight straight games leading into Saturday night for the Bulldogs, and he has seven double-digit scoring games.

6. #4 Cameron Matthews 6’7” 235 lbs. Gr. Forward Olive Branch, Miss.
8 pts/gm., 6.9 rebs, 61 ast.-32 TO, 38 stl, 61.8 FG%, 1-3 3-PT FG, 52.1 FT%, 25.3 mpg
Ranking in the top five in Mississippi State history in steals and starting 68 of 69 games the last two years, Matthews has become a valuable member of the Bulldogs in helping them to the last two NCAA Tournaments. Matthews has 26 assists in his last five games and 12 games this season with multiple steals. In addition, Matthews has just one game where he didn’t shoot 50 percent or better from the floor. This is Matthews’s fifth season with the Bulldogs.

7. #23 Michael Nwoko 6’10” 245 lbs. So. Center Juba, South Sudan Miami (FL)
Transfer
7.1 pts, 4.9 rebs, 55.4 FG%, 1-3 3-PT FG, 61.5 FT%, 14.9 mpg
A nominee for the McDonald’s All-American Game when he was in high school, Nwoko is in his first season with the Bulldogs and has four games with double-digit points, including two games with 18 points. Nwoko also has two double-doubles and three games with double-digit rebounds. He’s also started 12 straight games heading into Saturday night.

8. #5 Shawn Jones Jr. 6’5” 205 lbs. Jr. Guard Houston, Texas
5.1 pts, 2.4 rebs, 50% FG, 5-18 3-PT FG, 15-19 FT, 17.9 mpg
Jones has started four games this season, and he has played 20+ minutes five times this season.

Head Coach: Chris Jans (3rd season)
Jans has taken the Bulldogs to the NCAA Tournament in each of his first two seasons in Starkville. It’s Mississippi State’s first time in consecutive NCAA Tournaments in 15 years. Prior to Mississippi State, where the Bulldogs have also won 21 games in each of the last two seasons, Jans spent five seasons at New Mexico State where he led the Aggies to three NCAA Tournaments and a First Round win over UConn in 2022. The Aggies also won four WAC Regular-Season championships in Jans’s five years. Jans also coached Bowling Green for one season, taking the Falcons from 20 losses the year prior to 21-12 in his lone season with the Falcons. Prior to Bowling Green, Jans was an assistant at Wichita State for seven seasons. In 2013, the Shockers went to the Final Four. They followed that with an undefeated regular season and No. 1 seed in 2014, before losing to Kentucky 78-76 in the Third Round of the NCAA Tournament in St. Louis.

Keys to the Game

1. Offensive efficiency: Against a Bulldogs team averaging 83.5 points per game, being able to score and be efficient on offense will go a long way for Kentucky on Saturday night. If the Wildcats exhibit the same offensive performance they had against Florida on Saturday night, this is a game the Wildcats win.

2. Take care of the ball: When playing a team that can score, shoot, and rebound, limiting extra possessions is paramount. The Bulldogs average just over 13 offensive rebounds per game. Kentucky can’t let the Bulldogs get to that number on Saturday night.

3. Activity on defense: The Bulldogs average 17.3 assists per game. That’s one component that makes their offense so good is the Bulldogs’ ability to distribute the basketball to its best shooters. The Wildcats need to disrupt the Bulldogs’ offensive rhythm on Saturday night and make ball movement hard to come by.

4. Get off to a good start: The measure of a great team is how they respond to adversity. Kentucky is facing adversity after Tuesday night’s setback at Georgia. How the Wildcats come out in the first four minutes on Saturday night will tell us a lot about the Wildcats’ state of mind and mentality in this top-15 showdown.

Score Prediction: Kentucky 86 – Mississippi State 83
A lot of points will be scored in this game. Kentucky is a really good offensive team and really good team overall. I believe, because of that, Kentucky will bounce back and beat a top 15 team on the road Saturday night, giving Mark Pope four wins over top-15 teams in his first season as the Wildcats head coach.