Bulldogs Rally Past Demons

Monday, November 28

Starkville

6:00 PM

Mississippi State

4-2

Northwestern State

2-4

Northwestern State

Mississippi State

In his first-career start, freshman guard Eli Wright poured in 11 points.

November 28, 2016 | Men's Basketball

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STARKVILLE, Miss. – A 12-5 run to end the game lifted Mississippi State to a 65-59 win against Northwestern State Monday night at Humphrey Coliseum.

The Bulldogs bounced back from a Friday night loss to Lehigh by shooting 46.2 percent from the floor and placing four players in double figures.

I.J. Ready led the Bulldogs (4-2) with 14 points, while Aric Holman added 13 points. Wright had 11 points in his first-career start, while Tyson Carter had 10 points. Holman and Wright each had seven rebounds for the Bulldogs. Holman had five blocks.

The contest was close throughout with nine tied scores and eight lead changes.

"We were thinking about making plays," Ready said. "We just had to settle down and make plays. My job was to make sure guys were in position to make plays. Tyson had an off night, but that happens when you are a shooter. I know I can get my shot when I want it, so I need to be more aggressive when some of the others are not making shots."

An 11-0 run sent Northwestern State to an early 14-4 lead. The Bulldogs scored the next eight points with a basket from Eli Wright capping the run. The Bulldogs pulled even at 18 on a basket by Schnider Herard.

A basket by Holman gave the Bulldogs a2 4-20 advantage. The lead then swapped hands a couple of times before the teams were tied 28-all at halftime.

Back-to-back 3-point baskets from Northwestern State's Zeek Woodley and Sabri Thompson ran the Demons out to a 39-33 advantage with 16:11 left.

The Bulldogs scored the game's next six points and things stayed tight until the end.

"We were happy to get the win," MSU coach Ben Howland said. "We were short-handed, so we started out zone to avoid foul trouble. We weren't very good in the zone. Proud of Eli (Wright) and how he played. He did a great job tonight, scoring, defending and rebounding. Glad to get the win. I hope that we can get healthy."

An old-fashioned 3-point play by Ready gave the Bulldogs a 47-44 lead. Ready would later have the back-breaking 3-pointer for a 60-56 lead with 1:53 left. After Northwestern State followed with a trey, Mario Kegler blew through the lane for a critical dunk and another three-point lead.

For the contest, the Bulldogs hit 24 of 52 shots from the field (46.2 percent), 2 of 15 shots from 3-point range (13.3 percent) and 15 of 20 shots from the foul line (75.0 percent). The Demons hit 21 of 54 shots from the field (38.9 percent), 9 of 21 shots from the 3-point range (42.9 percent) and 8 of 10 shots from the foul line (80.0 percent).

Northwestern State held a 33-31 rebounding advantage. The Bulldogs had nine assists and 13 turnovers, while the Demons had eight assists and 19 turnovers. The Bulldogs scored 26 points off turnovers.

Northwestern State (2-4) 28 points from Woodley. Tra'von Joseph had six rebounds for the Demons.

MSU will play host to Oregon State at 8 p.m. Thursday. That contest will be shown nationally on ESPNU.