Mississippi State Basketball vs. Ole Miss: Highlights, final score, and analysis

The Mississippi State basketball team won its first SEC game of the 2022-2023 season.
The Mississippi State basketball team defeated the Ole Miss Rebels, 64-54. This was a back-and-forth game, and luckily, the Bulldogs came out on top.

Here are my early post-game thoughts:

Mississippi State basketball needed this win.

Before this game started, I was not calling this game a must-win game, but after watching the game, it was certainly a must-win game. That was not a good Ole Miss basketball team, and the Bulldogs did not need to lose three straight SEC games. If Chris Jans wants to elevate this program, he needs to win the games he is supposed to win, like today’s game.

The Humphrey Coliseum was rocking for the first time in a while.

I am glad this game was at home because the crowd made a difference in the second half. It was pleasant and exciting to see the Hump fairly full and loud late in the second half. I truly believe if this game had not been at home, the outcome could have been different for the Mississippi State Bulldogs.

McNair is going to be a key player for the Mississippi State basketball team down the stretch.

William McNair finished today’s game vs. the Ole Miss Rebels with 6 rebounds and 13 points. McNair (13) outscored Tolu Smith (12) by one point. Smith had 3 fouls late in the second half which led to McNair receiving more playing time. Besides Tolu Smith, there has not been a player stepping up to the challenge of leading this team offensively. Today, McNair may have claimed his spot as the Bulldogs’ second-leading scorer moving forward.

This is huge for the Mississippi State basketball team because teams will prepare to shut down Tolu Smith, but if McNair plays like he did today, the Bulldogs will not have much to worry about.