Chris Jans: Mississippi State won ‘classic rock fight’ vs. Auburn

Mississippi State Bulldogs head coach Chris Jans was happy to get a win over the Auburn Tigers on Saturday.

Points were at a premium in the game, which the Bulldogs won 64-58. After the game, Jans praised Mississippi State’s effort and compared the game itself to a classic rock fight.

“We certainly, like every game win or lose, try to learn from the video,” Chris Jans said. “We didn’t hardly practice on Thursday. We just felt like we’re going to try and ease up a little bit. Even Friday wasn’t quite as long, it didn’t have as much physicality segments to it. We’re just trying to sell them on being fresher for the game and not having anything in their mind that they were tired, etc.”

Mississippi State came into the game having lost three of its last four games. Being able to find a way to win and bounce back was huge for the Bulldogs as they navigate SEC play.

“I don’t know if that helped or not, but I thought they played the way that we feel like, for the most part, is how we need to play to win games,” Jans added. “I know it isn’t always aesthetically pleasing for everybody, but you get into conference games against good teams. You’ve got to slow it down a little bit. It becomes somewhat of a rock fight, and that was a classic rock fight this afternoon.”

Neither team had an easy time scoring. Mississippi State shot 43.9% from the field and 23.8% from three-point range. Meanwhile, Auburn shot just 33.9% from the field and 25% from three-point range. The Bulldogs were also just 50% from the free throw line.

Both teams also suffered from double-digit turnovers, with Mississippi State giving the ball up 14 times while the Tigers coughed it up 11 times.

There are plenty of fans who can get frustrated with the lack of offense in a game like this. However, Chris Jans emphasized that he doesn’t care about outside noise. He cares about finding a way to win.

“Yeah, I’ve got no idea what the outside is saying. I don’t really care, to be honest with you. I just want to win,” Jans said. “Whatever style of play we’ve got to play to win the game is all I care about. I don’t care if the game is in the 90’s or the 60’s. You just got to figure out a way to win games.”

Cameron Matthews praises teammates for win against Auburn

After the game, Cameron Matthews, who had a double-double, praised his teammates for the win over Auburn.

“Just getting their plays down. Just trying to find our identity, getting back to what we’re used to. Just a really hard win. Really gritty rebounding team. That’s what we came and did here today,” Matthews said.

“Just having athletes on our team. Top to bottom, we’re a really great team. I really got a lot of faith in them and we really practice hard every day. We got the most faith in each other.”