Top 30 Games in Mississippi State Basketball History

Dec 2, 2015; Starkville, MS, USA; Mississippi State Bulldogs dance team members entertain the crowd during the game against the Texas Southern Tigers at Humphrey Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Spruce Derden-USA TODAY Sports

Welcome to the 30 greatest games in Mississippi State basketball history!

This is a list that encompasses the entire history of MSU men’s basketball. There are many ways to do a list like this, and for mine I valued significance greatly. It may not have been the greatest game in a vacuum, but it held significance.

But I also valued games that were great because of the actual game. For that, there will be some losses mentioned. And, of course, you know the “Game of Change” has to be in here, and since that was a loss it pretty much opened things up to including losses in this list.

These 30 games are all about nostalgia and memories of MSU basketball.

Without further adieu, let’s get started with #30….

#30: 1978 – Mississippi State 80 vs. Louisville 73

During Christmas break 1978-79, the Bulldogs went to Freedom Hall in Louisville, Kentucky and defeated the #10 Cardinals. It was part of a really good start that year for MSU who went 7-0 prior to the beginning of SEC play.

The win propelled MSU to #18 in the AP poll. It was the first time the program had been ranked in 12 seasons, and stood as the only time to be ranked for another 12 years. It was short-lived, however, because back-to-back losses at the beginning of conference play quickly took the Bulldogs out of the rankings.

MSU ended the year with a NIT bid where they lost to Alcorn State. Louisville advanced to the second round of the NCAA Tournament.

Next: 1995 vs. Santa Clara