Hubbard, Matthews propel Mississippi State to a 64-58 win over No. 8 Auburn
STARKVILLE, Miss. (AP) Josh Hubbard scored 15 of his 17 points in the second half and Cameron Matthews had 14 points and 11 rebounds as Mississippi State beat No. 8 Auburn 64-58 on Saturday.
DJ Jeffries made 3 of 4 free throws in the final 11 seconds and grabbed 12 rebounds to help seal the win for Mississippi State (14-6, 3-4 SEC). Shakeel Moore scored 12 points and Tolu Smith added nine points and eight rebounds.
Johni Broome scored 14 points and Jaylin Williams added 10 to lead Auburn (16-4, 5-2).
“We didn’t hardly practice on Thursday,” Mississippi State head coach Chris Jans said. “We just felt like we were going to try to ease up a little bit and Friday wasn’t quite as long with as much physicality segments to it. We tried to sell them on being fresher for the game. I don’t know if it helped or not, but I felt like we played the way we have to play to win the game.”
It was Hubbard’s first start of the season and the first start of his collegiate career. He was 7 of 16 from the field and added three rebounds. He is currently the leading freshman scorer in the SEC at 14.9 points a game.
“Not really,” said Hubbard about feeling different with his first career start. “Coach Jans always tells us the starting lineups are just the starters for the game. We have great depth and we know a lot of people on our team are going to play. Only difference is, I am getting my name called first. So I still had that same mentality and nothing is going to change as far as my mindset or anything like that.”
Tied at halftime, Auburn trailed for much of the second half until a Tre Donaldson three-point play gave the Tigers a 46-45 advantage with 7:51 remaining. But that would be the last lead of the game for Auburn.
Matthews rebounded his own missed free throw and scored to give State a 53-49 lead with 3:50 left in the second half. Auburn cut the lead to 55-54, only to see a Hubbard 3-pointer stretch the lead to 58-54 with 1:37 left. The Bulldogs then made 5 of 6 free throws in the final 32.6 seconds to secure the victory.
For the game, Auburn was held to 34% shooting and the Tigers made just 6 of 24 shots from 3-point range. Auburn was 14 of 16 at the foul line and had 14 turnovers.
“Mississippi State played great defense the whole game,” Auburn head coach Bruce Pearl said. “We played good defense in the first half, but in the second half, while we were better offensively, we just let them get so many second-chance points. I thought we did a good job of defending Tolu Smith. If you had told me we would come here and we could hold Tolu to just six shots, I would tell you we have a fighting chance. And we did.”
Mississippi State shot 44% for the game and made just 9 of 18 at the foul line. The Bulldogs had 14 turnovers and outrebounded the Tigers 45-30, including 14 offensive boards.
The teams were locked in a defensive struggle in the first half. Mississippi State took a 15-10 lead on a dunk by Matthews with 7:57 left in the half. Neither team scored in the final 2:45 and they entered halftime tied at 21-all.
Auburn shot 28% in the first half and made just 2 of 10 shots from beyond arc. Mississippi State shot 32% in the first half and made just 1 of 12 attempts from long distance. The Bulldogs outrebounded the Tigers 27-14, including 11 offensive boards.
BIG PICTURE
Auburn: After a 5-0 start in the SEC and an appearance in the top 10 rankings, Auburn has dropped two straight in league play. The Tigers lost at rival Alabama on Wednesday.
Mississippi State: With consecutive road trips to Ole Miss and Alabama next week, the win over Auburn was needed to boost the Bulldogs’ NCAA Tournament hopes. Mississippi State has victories against two top-1o teams after beating Tennessee earlier in the season.
UP NEXT
Auburn: Hosts Vanderbilt on Wednesday.
Mississippi State: Travel to rival Ole Miss on Tuesday.
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Time | Team | Play | Score | |
---|---|---|---|---|
20:00 | Johni Broome vs. Tolu Smith III (Chris Moore gains possession) | |||
19:50 | Josh Hubbard shooting foul (Jaylin Williams draws the foul) | |||
19:50 | +1 | Jaylin Williams makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 1-0 | |
19:50 | +1 | Jaylin Williams makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 2-0 | |
19:23 | D.J. Jeffries misses three point jump shot | |||
19:21 | Jaylin Williams defensive rebound | |||
19:14 | Chris Moore misses three point jump shot | |||
19:12 | D.J. Jeffries defensive rebound | |||
19:00 | +2 | Cameron Matthews makes two point layup | 2-2 | |
18:45 | Tre Donaldson misses two point jump shot | |||
18:43 | D.J. Jeffries defensive rebound | |||
18:19 | Chris Moore blocks Cameron Matthews's two point layup | |||
18:18 | Cameron Matthews offensive rebound | |||
18:18 | Chris Moore shooting foul (Cameron Matthews draws the foul) | |||
18:18 | Cameron Matthews misses regular free throw 1 of 2 | |||
18:18 | Cameron Matthews misses regular free throw 2 of 2 | |||
18:18 | Jaylin Williams defensive rebound | |||
18:07 | Jaylin Williams misses three point jump shot | |||
18:05 | Tolu Smith III defensive rebound | |||
17:56 | +2 | Josh Hubbard makes two point jump shot | 2-4 | |
17:22 | Tigers turnover (shot clock violation) | |||
17:00 | Shakeel Moore turnover (lost ball) (K.D. Johnson steals) | |||
16:54 | +2 | Tre Donaldson makes two point layup | 4-4 | |
16:26 | +2 | Tolu Smith III makes two point layup | 4-6 | |
16:04 | Jaylin Williams misses two point jump shot | |||
16:02 | Josh Hubbard defensive rebound | |||
15:57 | Josh Hubbard turnover (bad pass) (K.D. Johnson steals) | |||
15:42 | Shakeel Moore shooting foul (Jaylin Williams draws the foul) | |||
15:42 | TV timeout | |||
15:42 | +1 | Jaylin Williams makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 5-6 | |
15:42 | +1 | Jaylin Williams makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 6-6 | |
15:23 | Dashawn Davis misses three point jump shot | |||
15:21 | Chaney Johnson defensive rebound | |||
14:56 | +2 | Chaney Johnson makes two point jump shot | 8-6 | |
14:32 | D.J. Jeffries misses three point jump shot | |||
14:30 | Cameron Matthews offensive rebound | |||
14:21 | +3 | Shakeel Moore makes three point jump shot (Dashawn Davis assists) | 8-9 | |
13:54 | Aden Holloway misses three point jump shot | |||
13:52 | Dashawn Davis defensive rebound | |||
13:40 | +2 | Cameron Matthews makes two point jump shot | 8-11 | |
13:14 | Chaney Johnson misses three point jump shot | |||
13:12 | Tolu Smith III defensive rebound | |||
13:12 | Dylan Cardwell personal foul | |||
12:55 | Josh Hubbard misses three point jump shot | |||
12:53 | Aden Holloway defensive rebound | |||
12:48 | Aden Holloway turnover (bad pass) | |||
12:31 | Dylan Cardwell blocks Dashawn Davis's two point layup | |||
12:29 | Bulldogs offensive rebound | |||
12:25 | Jimmy Bell Jr. misses two point layup | |||
12:23 | Jimmy Bell Jr. offensive rebound | |||
12:23 | Dylan Cardwell shooting foul (Jimmy Bell Jr. draws the foul) | |||
12:23 | Jimmy Bell Jr. misses regular free throw 1 of 2 | |||
12:23 | Jimmy Bell Jr. misses regular free throw 2 of 2 | |||
12:23 | Johni Broome defensive rebound | |||
12:09 | Chad Baker-Mazara misses two point jump shot | |||
12:07 | Jimmy Bell Jr. defensive rebound | |||
11:58 | Chaney Johnson blocks Cameron Matthews's two point layup | |||
11:58 | Bulldogs offensive rebound | |||
11:58 | TV timeout | |||
11:46 | Johni Broome blocks Shawn Jones Jr.'s two point jump shot | |||
11:44 | K.D. Johnson defensive rebound | |||
11:19 | Johni Broome misses two point jump shot | |||
11:17 | D.J. Jeffries defensive rebound | |||
11:07 | D.J. Jeffries turnover (lost ball) (K.D. Johnson steals) | |||
10:56 | +2 | Jaylin Williams makes two point dunk (Tre Donaldson assists) | 10-11 | |
10:17 | Josh Hubbard misses three point jump shot | |||
10:15 | Lior Berman defensive rebound | |||
9:49 | Cameron Matthews blocks K.D. Johnson's two point layup | |||
9:47 | Cameron Matthews defensive rebound | |||
9:42 | Josh Hubbard misses two point layup | |||
9:40 | Shawn Jones Jr. offensive rebound | |||
9:38 | Cameron Matthews turnover (lost ball) (Johni Broome steals) | |||
9:25 | Johni Broome misses two point jump shot | |||
9:23 | Shakeel Moore defensive rebound | |||
9:15 | +2 | Shakeel Moore makes two point layup | 10-13 | |
8:55 | Jaylin Williams misses three point jump shot | |||
8:53 | Shakeel Moore defensive rebound | |||
8:43 | Shawn Jones Jr. misses three point jump shot | |||
8:41 | Cameron Matthews offensive rebound | |||
8:37 | Shakeel Moore misses three point jump shot | |||
8:35 | Shawn Jones Jr. offensive rebound | |||
8:32 | Shawn Jones Jr. misses two point layup | |||
8:30 | Johni Broome defensive rebound | |||
8:30 | Tolu Smith III personal foul | |||
8:14 | Lior Berman misses two point jump shot | |||
8:12 | Tolu Smith III defensive rebound | |||
8:03 | Tolu Smith III misses two point layup | |||
8:01 | Cameron Matthews offensive rebound | |||
7:58 | +2 | Cameron Matthews makes two point dunk | 10-15 | |
7:27 | Tigers turnover (shot clock violation) | |||
7:27 | TV timeout | |||
7:06 | Denver Jones personal foul | |||
6:51 | Shakeel Moore misses two point jump shot | |||
6:49 | Johni Broome defensive rebound | |||
6:40 | +3 | Chad Baker-Mazara makes three point jump shot (Johni Broome assists) | 13-15 | |
6:22 | Josh Hubbard misses three point jump shot | |||
6:20 | Cameron Matthews offensive rebound | |||
6:08 | +2 | Cameron Matthews makes two point layup | 13-17 | |
5:47 | +2 | Chaney Johnson makes two point layup | 15-17 | |
5:32 | Tolu Smith III turnover (out of bounds) | |||
5:12 | Josh Hubbard personal foul | |||
5:08 | Denver Jones misses three point jump shot | |||
5:06 | Chaney Johnson offensive rebound | |||
5:01 | D.J. Jeffries shooting foul (Aden Holloway draws the foul) | |||
5:01 | Aden Holloway misses regular free throw 1 of 2 | |||
5:01 | +1 | Aden Holloway makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 16-17 | |
4:37 | D.J. Jeffries misses three point jump shot | |||
4:35 | Tolu Smith III offensive rebound | |||
4:34 | Dylan Cardwell personal foul | |||
4:34 | Bulldogs turnover (5-second violation) | |||
4:21 | Aden Holloway misses two point jump shot | |||
4:19 | D.J. Jeffries defensive rebound | |||
3:56 | +2 | Dashawn Davis makes two point layup | 16-19 | |
3:37 | +2 | Chaney Johnson makes two point dunk (Denver Jones assists) | 18-19 | |
3:00 | +2 | Tolu Smith III makes two point jump shot (D.J. Jeffries assists) | 18-21 | |
2:45 | +3 | Aden Holloway makes three point jump shot | 21-21 | |
2:09 | D.J. Jeffries misses two point layup | |||
2:07 | Aden Holloway defensive rebound | |||
1:51 | Denver Jones misses two point jump shot | |||
1:49 | Tolu Smith III defensive rebound | |||
1:21 | Shawn Jones Jr. misses three point jump shot | |||
1:19 | Johni Broome defensive rebound | |||
1:05 | Aden Holloway misses three point jump shot | |||
1:03 | Bulldogs defensive rebound | |||
1:03 | TV timeout | |||
0:47 | Chad Baker-Mazara misses two point jump shot | |||
0:45 | Jimmy Bell Jr. defensive rebound | |||
0:31 | Shakeel Moore misses three point jump shot | |||
0:29 | Tre Donaldson defensive rebound | |||
0:01 | K.D. Johnson misses three point jump shot | |||
0:00 | Bulldogs defensive rebound | |||
0:00 | End of period |