COLUMBIA, Mo. — The Mississippi State men’s basketball team went into Missouri and got a big 67-63 win over the Mizzou Tigers Saturday afternoon inside Mizzou Arena.
With the win, the Bulldogs improve to 19-10 (10-6 SEC), while the Tigers fall to 14-15 (6-10 SEC).
Senior guard Tyson Carter led the Bulldogs with 15 points on 6-of-9 shooting. Junior guard Nick Weatherspoon and sophomore forward Reggie Perry added 12 points apiece. Perry also pulled down six boards, dished out three assists and blocked two shots.
Redshirt junior forward Abdul Ado contributed with six points and a team-high seven rebounds.
As a unit, the Bulldogs shot 25-of-47 (53.2%) from the field, including 4-of-12 (33.3%) from 3-point range.
The Tigers shot 22-of-60 (36.7%) from the field, including 6-of-29 (20.7%) from 3-point range.
The squads traded baskets for much of the first half with neither team able to pull ahead. The Bulldogs led 11-10 at the under-12 media timeout.
MSU managed to pull ahead by eight points at 30-22 with just over five minutes left in the opening half.
A 3-pointer by freshman guard D.J. Stewart Jr. allowed the Bulldogs to take a a 10-point lead at 41-31 at the end of the half, but Mizzou responded with a three of their own. State led 41-34 at the halftime break.
The Bulldogs used an 8-0 run in the second half to go up 51-40 with 12:17 left in the game. The Tigers responded with a 9-0 run to claw back within two at 51-49 before tying it up at 53-53.
MSU stayed poised and grew its lead back to seven at 62-55 with 4:32 to play, but Mizzou wouldn’t go away without a fight, drawing within two at 63-61 with 1:59 left.
A layup and pair of free throws by Carter pushed the Bulldogs lead back to 67-61. The Tigers made a last bucket, but the Bulldogs held on for a 67-63 win.
The Bulldogs will be back in action Tuesday for a game in Columbia, South Carolina against the South Carolina Gamecocks. Tip time is set for 5:30 p.m. CT and will be televised by SEC Network.