Mississippi State Drops Road Contest At No. 24 Alabama – Mississippi State

STARKVILLE – Mississippi State fell short of a road win in a 99-67 loss to No. 24 Alabama on Saturday night at Coleman Coliseum.

The Bulldogs nabbed 19 rebounds in the first half, including six off the offensive glass, and shot 8-of-11 from the free throw line to stay in the game early, but the Crimson Tide ultimately pulled away.

State scored 43 points in the second half on 46.7-percent shooting, but the effort was not enough to overcome an early deficit.

Forward Tolu Smith III finished the game with a team-high 23 points on 8-of-14 shooting while also contributing five total rebounds. The graduate student has now finished with more than 20 points in four conference games.

Shawn Jones Jr. had a season-high 10 points, including two 3-pointers, off the bench for the visiting squad. The sophomore also grabbed six rebounds and had two steals.

Shakeel Moore netted all 13 of his points in the second half and dished out two assists, while Josh Hubbard scored seven points.

Mark Sears led the Crimson Tide with 21 points, and Aaron Estrada was not far behind with 15 points and eight rebounds. Mouha Dioubate added 14 points and nine rebounds, and Jari Stevenson also scored 14.

Up next, Mississippi State will take on Georgia in Humphrey Coliseum. Tip-off is set for 8 p.m. CT on Wednesday, February 7. The game will be televised by SEC Network.