Mississippi State men’s basketball team remains unbeaten after hosting Nicholls

Chris Jans and the Mississippi State men’s basketball team did well and remain unbeaten after they hosted the Nicholls Colonels on Friday.

Another Mississippi State basketball game, another win for Chris Jans and the Mississippi State men’s basketball team. Jans and the Bulldogs entered with an unblemished 5-0 record and by the time the final buzzer went off, it was clear how much better MSU was thanks to its depth and talent.

And of course, that resulted in a 74-61 win for the Bulldogs.

Three Bulldogs were able to score in double figures and Cameron Matthews was dangerously efficient as he was a perfect 6-6 shooting, putting up 12 points in the process. Matthews also added seven rebounds and three assists to his solid performance.

Meanwhile, Josh Hubbard put up a really solid 15 points to lead the Bulldogs in scoring in just 21 minutes of playing time off the bench. Jimmy Bell Jr., who has been a huge asset for Jans and the Mississippi State men’s basketball team, put up 11 points and pulled down 10 rebounds for a double-double in 18 minutes of playing time.

Mississippi State men’s basketball beats Nicholls to remain unbeaten

While the Miss. State Bulldogs did control the game throughout, this thing was likely closer than most Mississippi State basketball fans wanted it to be. Nicholls did its best to keep up with the Bulldogs and MSU only led by a score of 36-24 heading into halftime.

And things were much closer in the second half.

While it would’ve been nice if the second half was all Bulldogs and if MSU could have imposed its will en route to a dominant win, the Colonels managed to score 37 second half points.

Jamal West Jr. led all scorers for both teams as he had 17 points and 13 rebounds in an impressive double-double for Nicholls, but it was clear that he didn’t have enough help to really keep this game within reach for the Colonels.

Mississippi State out-rebounded Nicholls 48-29 and simply took advantage of a talent advantage. And that’s great to see.

This Mississippi State basketball team is starting to really show how good it can be and that’s all without Tolu Smith on the court. In KeShawn Murphy’s first game back for the Bulldogs, he scored six points and grabbed a couple rebounds in 11 minutes of play.

MSU could be really good this year. The Bulldogs have shown plenty of promise and potential so far. With Smith back at some point (hopefully sooner rather than later) and hopefully a fully healthy Murphy soon (also hopefully sooner rather than later), Jans and the Bulldogs might just have a lot to celebrate come March.