Mississippi State
1-0,0-0SEC
North Alabama
0-1,0-0ASUN
The Final Horn: State 86, North Alabama 62
November 05, 2025 | Men's Basketball
A quick rundown of MSU's season-opening win.
THE BOTTOM LINE: Mississippi State opened year four of the Chris Jans era with a Wednesday night victory over North Alabama on Wednesday night at Humphrey Coliseum. The Lions hung around for a while and even led by as many as nine points in the second half before State was able to bounce back and pull away. The Bulldogs ignited a 15-0 run beginning with a Shawn Jones Jr. trey at the 15:48 mark in the second half. The MSU surge erased the Bulldogs' sizable deficit and allowed MSU to regain a 57-51 lead with 11:39 to play in regulation. From then on, State allowed only 11 points for the rest of the contest and kept a suffocating defense to allow itself to build some extra breathing room.
KEY NUMBERS: Individually for State, Josh Hubbard shined with 27 points to lead all scorers, reaching 20 points for the 28th time in his career. Ja'Borri McGhee also turned in 14 points in his Bulldog debut off the bench. As a unit, the Bulldogs out-rebounded the Lions by a 52-36 margin, led by Sergej Macura's 12. MSU also pounded the ball inside for 40 paint points to North Alabama's 24. On the defensive side of the ball, Hubbard, McGhee, Macura and Shawn Jones Jr. all notched two steals a piece.
NEXT UP FOR THE DAWGS: Mississippi State will head up north to Sioux Falls, S.D., to take on No. 16 Iowa State in a neutral site showdown on Monday, Nov. 10. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. CT and the game will be televised on ESPNU.
