Josh Hubbard poured in 30 points to lead Mississippi State to a 72-53 win over Oklahoma In a Southeastern Conference tilt on Wednesday in Starkville, Miss.
Quincy Ballard and Ja’Borri McGhee contributed 10 points apiece for Mississippi State (10-5, 2-0 SEC), which has won six straight games.
Xzayvier Brown and Tae Davis each scored 13 points to lead Oklahoma (11-4, 1-1 SEC), which had its five game winning streak snapped. Derrion Reid and Nijel Pack each chipped in 11 points.
In a defensive slugfest, Oklahoma shot 30.9% from the field (17 of 55) and was outrebounded 46-35. Mississippi State connected on 42.4% of its field goal attempts (25 of 59) and shot just 13.3% (2 of 15) from 3-point range.
But the difference was the Bulldogs controlled the game inside. Mississippi State held a 36-18 advantage on points scored in the paint.
The Bulldogs’ interior presence paid off with a 8-0 outburst that featured a Shawn Jones Jr. layup, a Jamarion Davis-Fleming tip-in through heavy traffic and a McGhee scoop layup as Mississippi State took a 43-38 lead with 12:45 remaining.
After a Reid free throw, the Bulldogs ripped off six straight points and took a 49-39 lead on McGhee’s layup. Hubbard hit the Bulldogs’ first three for a 56-45 lead with 6:57 left. A Pack jumper cut the Mississippi State lead to 60-49 with 5:17 to play, it was the closest the Sooners would get the rest of the way.
Both teams got off to slow starts, but the Bulldogs finally got their offense going with a 7-0 run. Hubbard scored the last four points of the rally with a jumper and a layup to put Mississippi State up 15-8 at the 9:19 mark.
However, Oklahoma responded with a 7-2 scoring spree capped by a Reid three to cut the Bulldogs’ lead to 17-15. The Sooners pulled even on a Davis jumper and took a 27-25 lead on his layup moments later. A Hubbard ball fake led to him twisting his way into a layup and the game was tied 27-27 at halftime.
