Mississippi
Mississippi State basketball vs LSU: SEC tournament prediction, picks, odds and injury updates
STARKVILLE — Mississippi State basketball’s postseason begins this week.
The Bulldogs (20-11) are the No. 10 seed in the SEC tournament and will play No. 15 LSU (14-17) in the first round on Wednesday (6 p.m. CT, SEC Network). All games are played at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville.
MSU has won at least one game in seven straight SEC tournaments, and last season reached the semifinals.
Here’s what to know about the matchup.
Mississippi State beat LSU two weeks ago
LSU and Mississippi State played each other once in the regular season, which MSU won 81-69 in Starkville on March 1. Josh Hubbard, who won the Howell Trophy for the second consecutive season as the best men’s college basketball player in the state of Mississippi, scored 30 points.
LSU is in the midst of a five-game losing streak (to Florida, Tennessee, Kentucky and Texas A&M, along with the Bulldogs). Its three conference wins are against South Carolina, Oklahoma and Arkansas.
Slowing down former Bulldogs player Cam Carter was key last time
LSU senior guard Cam Carter played with a vengeance against Mississippi State. It was his first game back at MSU after he transferred to Kansas State in 2022, then LSU in 2024. He scored 18 points in the first half, with four 3-pointers.
But in the second half, he had just five points as the Bulldogs turned a two-point halftime deficit into a rout.
Carter is LSU’s leading scorer with 16.5 points per game.
Will Mississippi State’s defense travel?
The Bulldogs have not played great defense in their last three games away from Humphrey Coliseum, averaging 99 points allowed in those three games. Oklahoma and Arkansas both scored 93 points and Alabama scored 111 points.
Those three teams combined to shoot 42 of 92 from 3-point range (45.7%).
“At the end of the day, it’s my responsibility,” Jans said. “lt’s my job to figure it out, if you will. And equally important is to get them to play with the type of energy and motor that’s required to play the way we want to play, and to play this particular defense. It hasn’t been good enough.
“We can point fingers and talk about a lot of different factors on why, but at the end of the day, it’s a bottom-line deal. I am trying my best to shore up as much as I can in a short time period before we play in Nashville, and then hopefully when we play in the NCAA tournament, so we can be better on the court.”
LSU went just 9-for-36 from 3 against MSU and shoots the second-lowest percentage in the SEC (30.9%). The Tigers haven’t reached 70 points during their five-game losing streak.
Mississippi State vs LSU odds
BetMGM has not yet posted betting lines for this game.
Mississippi State vs LSU injury updates
Mississippi State guard Kanye Clary is out for the season with a lower-leg injury.
How to watch Mississippi State vs LSU: Time, TV channel, live stream
Mississippi State vs LSU will air on SEC Network. Tipoff is scheduled for 6 p.m. CT. Streaming is available via Fubo, which offers a free trial.
Mississippi State vs LSU predictions, picks
Mississippi State 78, LSU 71: Neither team is playing well entering the postseason, including the Bulldogs, who lost four of their past five games. They still should win as long as the defense holds up and they get some secondary scoring.
Sam Sklar is the Mississippi State beat reporter for the Clarion Ledger. Email him at ssklar@gannett.com and follow him on X @sklarsam_.
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Mississippi
It’s 2,350 miles long, spans 31 US states and is home to a 100kg animal with a tongue that looks like a worm | Discover Wildlife
The Mississippi River flows for around 2,350 miles through the heart of the US. It drains an area of 1.2 million square miles – that’s roughly 40% of the country – and at certain points is 11 miles wide. It is North America’s second longest river, behind the Missouri River.
Rising from Lake Itasca in Minnesota, the Mississippi winds southwards through a range of environments, draining water from 31 US states before reaching its delta at the Gulf of Mexico in Louisiana.
The sheer size of the river and the diversity of habitats it passes through make it a refuge for a huge range of animal species, including more than 260 fish, 326 birds, 50 mammals and at least 145 amphibians and reptiles, according to the National Park Service.
There are many weird and wonderful animals living within the Mississippi’s vast waters, but surely one of the strangest is the alligator snapping turtle.
This prehistoric-looking reptile is massive. It can weigh up to 100kg and males can grow well over half a metre long, making it the largest freshwater turtle in North America.
And as if its size wasn’t enough, the alligator snapper has a host of other characteristics that make it one of the Mississippi’s most striking creatures, including a dark, spiky shell (known as carapace), a brick-like head and a sharp, hooked beak. With such a formidable appearance, it’s easy to see how the turtle got its ‘alligator’ name.
But perhaps the turtle’s most curious feature is a worm-like appendage found on its tongue, which it uses as a lure to catch prey, such as fish, amphibians and invertebrates. Alligator snappers are also quite happy scavenging for food.
More amazing wildlife stories from around the world
NIL money comes with a price. More specifically, a tax bill.
The Mississippi legislature is trying to reduce that burden for college athletes who play there.
Via Bea Anhuci of the Mississippi Clarion Ledger, the Mississippi House of Representatives has passed a bill that would exempt NIL earnings from state income tax.
It’s a recruiting tool for Ole Miss and Mississippi State, one that would put the Mississippi schools on equal footing with other states that host SEC universities. Florida, Tennessee, and Texas have no state income tax, and Arkansas carved out NIL earnings from the state’s income tax burden in 2025.
Mississippi currently charges a four-percent tax on anyone making more than $10,000 per year.
NIL earnings remain subject to federal income tax.
The bill will have to also pass the Mississippi Senate, and the governor would then be required to sign it into law.
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