Mississippi State basketball plummets in AP Top 25 rankings

The last week was not kind to Mississippi State basketball. Last Wednesday, the Bulldogs suffered one of the most painful losses the program has experienced in recent years, falling 88-84 at home to a highly-ranked Alabama team despite having a clear look at a potential winning layup in the final minute.

Then on Saturday, State put on a, frankly, embarrassing display at home against a ranked Missouri team. The Tigers blasted the Bulldogs 88-61 behind a barrage of three-pointers, with State looking almost completely disinterested in the contest.

MSU went into last week #14, but after an 0-2 week with a blowout home loss, even though both losses were to ranked opponents, there was little question as to whether or not the Bulldogs would tumble in the rankings. The only question was how far.

Mississippi State basketball falls to #22 in latest AP Top 25 Poll

Sure enough, Mississippi State took a significant drop in the rankings, but they did manage to remain in the poll. The Bulldogs check in at #22 in the latest AP Top 25. Their 8-spot drop in the rankings was the biggest of any team this week, but nonetheless, it's the seventh-straight week the Bulldogs have found themselves in the Top 25.

Mississippi State is one of nine SEC teams ranked this week with three others receiving votes. Five SEC teams occupy the Top 10 of the rankings. Three of those Top 10 teams remain on the Bulldogs' schedule. In a week, they'll host #6 Florida. A week after that, they'll host #10 Texas A&M. And then at the end of February, they'll get a rematch with #3 Alabama in Tuscaloosa.

State will have one other game against a ranked opponent on February 15 when they head to Oxford with a rematch with #25 Ole Miss. Though the back half of State's SEC slate won't be quite as treacherous as the first half, they still have plenty of daunting games to get through as they look to rebound from this rough stretch and build momentum towards the postseason.