Mississippi State blows late lead, falls to SMU in overtime, 87-81

Mississippi State did show better overall play on the court Friday night against undefeated SMU. But down the stretch, the Bulldogs did not finish the job and suffered another frustrating loss.

SMU erased a nine-point deficit in the second half and went on to defeat Mississippi State, 87-81, in overtime at Humphrey Coliseum. With the setback, the Bulldogs fell to 3-4 while SMU moved to 8-0.

After leading for much of the second half, it was yet another head-scratching setback for head coach Chris Jans and his squad.

“We gave up seven points on those two possessions (in the second half),” recalled Jans. “As the game unfolded, we obviously had time to reset a little bit and we got the lead back to six, maybe once or twice. But at the end, it just seemed like they made the key plays. They made key baskets and we didn’t.”

Jayden Epps paced State with 21 points while Ja’Borri McGhee had 17. Josh Hubbard added 16 points but was only 5 of 19 from the field and had two crucial turnovers in overtime. Quincy Ballard had his first double-double as a Bulldog with 12 points and 10 boards while Achor Achor had a team-high 12 boards.

For SMU, Boopie Miller had a game-high 28 points and Jaron Pierre added 24. Corey Washington had 12 points and 10 rebounds for the Mustangs, as well.

“They have good players but we made a lot of mistakes on our end,” Epps explained. “Not executing at times, not running our offense the way we run it. I would say down the stretch we made a lot of mistakes and we got to go back to the drawing board and try to get that right.”

In the second half, SMU used a 7-0 run to get within 61-59 following a Miller 3 pointer with 6:41 remaining. After the Bulldogs stretched the lead back out to 68-63, SMU continued to fight back and tied the game at 74-74 after a Miller jumper.

State had a chance to end the game in regulation but an Epps turnover in the closing seconds wiped away that opportunity.

SMU quickly jumped out to an 82-76 lead in overtime and State never got any closer than three points the rest of the way.

For the game, State shot 39% from the field and made 8 of 28 from 3 point range. The Bulldogs were 19 of 25 at the foul line and had seven turnovers, six of which came in the second half. SMU shot 44% from the floor, made 8 of 27 from 3 point territory and made 15 of 23 at the foul line. The Mustangs had 11 turnovers and out-rebounded State, 50-40.

“I’ve seen this team all summer and I know what we are capable of,” added Epps. “I’ve seen us way better and I know we are capable of playing way better.”

SMU jumped out to an early 11-5 lead in the opening half but the Bulldogs steadily chipped away at the deficit. Then following a Hubbard jumper, the Bulldogs took their first lead at 29-27 with 5:19 remaining in the half. State would lead by as many as six down the stretch before settling for a 43-39 halftime advantage.

State shot an even 50% from the floor in the first half and made 4 of 14 beyond the 3 point arc. The Bulldogs were 5 of 6 at the foul line and had only two turnovers in the half. SMU shot 43% from the field in the first half, made 5 of 14 from 3 point range and made 4 of 6 at the charity stripe. The Mustangs had six first-half turnovers and out-rebounded State, 23-16, including eight offensive boards.

The Bulldogs now get a few days off from the schedule. That will provide more practice opportunities and Jans is hoping to see better results the rest of non-conference play.

“We got some time now and we don’t play until Wednesday,” noted Jans. “It was our first loss at home. I know we haven’t had stellar performances at home but we were finding a way to win, which is the main goal. This one got away from us.

“It is what I told them after the game. We did this to ourselves. We had this game in the balance and we played well enough to win. But the game changed down the stretch. You got to figure out a way to make the plays. I love coaching this team and I love being around them. But we got to work on our playing personalities and be more edgier and do what we got to do to get it done.”

Up Next

Mississippi State returns to the road for its next outing as the Bulldogs travel to Georgia Tech on Wednesday for the SEC/ACC Challenge. Tipoff is set for 8:15 p.m. and the game will be televised by the ACC Network. Georgia Tech was 5-1 overall heading into Friday’s game against DePaul with the lone loss coming to Georgia.