Josh Hubbard scored 22 points to lead a balanced scoring effort as Mississippi State rolled past UT Martin 87-63 on Saturday in Starkville, Miss.
Cameron Matthews added 12 points and Trey Fort and Gai Chol scored 11 each for the Bulldogs (2-0). Hubbard made 5 of 8 3-pointers and Fort made 3 of 4 3-pointers as MSU enjoyed an edge beyond the arc, making 13 of 39 3-pointers while the Skyhawks (1-1) made 3 of 25.
Jimmy Bell Jr. grabbed a game-high 12 rebounds and added seven points for the Bulldogs, who had their second consecutive double-digit victory to start the season after handling Arizona State 71-56 on Wednesday.
Jordan Sears scored 21 points and KK Curry added 13 to lead UT Martin, which shot just 33 percent (21 of 63) from the floor.
MSU’s bench outscored their Skyhawks counterparts 44-17. Both teams took good care of the basketball as the Bulldogs finished with nine turnovers and UT Martin finished with 11.
The Bulldogs took the lead for good less than four minutes into the game and gained control by outscoring UT Martin 17-8 during the final eight minutes of the first half.
Matthews’ layup started the second-half scoring and Dashawn Davis and Fort and each made a 3-pointer to extended MSU’s lead to 49-31.
Curry made two free throws, but the lead grew to 21 points on another 3-pointer by Davis.
The Skyhawks scored the first four points of the game before Fort made two 3-pointers for MSU’s first points, tying the score.
Hubbard converted a four-point play and made two more free throws to help the Bulldogs take a 22-14 lead.
MSU increased the lead to nine points on two occasions before Jalen Myers’ layup pulled UT Martin within seven points.
D.J. Jeffries had four points during a 9-2 run that gave the Bulldogs a 41-27 lead at halftime.
–Field Level Media