State's late push falls just short as the Friars beat the Bulldogs, 73-63

State finished strongly this afternoon against Providence, but it wasn't enough to overcome a poor first half as the Friars defeated MSU 73-63 this afternoon in the SEC/Big East Challenge game in Providence, Rhode Island.

Providence improved to 6-2 on the young season, while State fell to 2-5 on the year.

The first half was not State's best of the season as the Bulldogs shot just 19% from the floor (5-26) and 0% from 3-point range (0-13). That poor shooting led to State being down 39-21 at the half, with a big deficit to make up heading into the second half of play.

In the second half, State made a great push to regain the lead, but in the end, wasn't able to do enough to get back on top of the Friars.

State was led in scoring by Wendell Lewis who came off the bench and chipped in 16 points and 11 rebounds. Flat Top Fred Thomas added 12 points of his own, and Roquez Johnson added 10 points as well. You can check out the full stats for the game right here.

Despite the loss, there are some positives to take away going forward from this game. State again played tough, despite errors and poor shooting, and the Dogs showed that they will not quit, giving the Friars a strong push in the second half. This is still a young and thin team, but they will play hard no matter who they face this season; it just may not always equate to wins. Still, proud of them for their hustle and effort no matter the outcome or deficit they faced; I know Stansbury teams would have long thrown the towel in on a game like the one today and just quit trying.

MSU will return to action on Tuesday as they host Texas - San Antonio at The Hump

Hail State