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Mississippi State basketball rolls West Georgia in season-opening victory

State looked like the team fans were hoping for in the season-opener.

ByAndrew Miller|
Feb 7, 2024; Starkville, Mississippi, USA; Mississippi State Bulldogs mascot Bully dances on the court after defeating the Georgia Bulldogs at Humphrey Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images
Feb 7, 2024; Starkville, Mississippi, USA; Mississippi State Bulldogs mascot Bully dances on the court after defeating the Georgia Bulldogs at Humphrey Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Petre Thomas-Imagn Images | Petre Thomas-Imagn Images

Mississippi State basketball tipped-off the 2024-2025 season precisely how you'd want them to: with a blowout victory. The Bulldogs boat-raced West Georgia 95-60 behind great three-point shooting and suffocating defense.

Here are some takeaways from the season-opening win...

Josh Hubbard is still HIM

Josh Hubbard enters the season as one of the very best players in the country, and he delivered a season-opening performance of that caliber. Hubbard led the Bulldogs with 26 points on 10-13 shooting, going 6-7 from beyond the arc. And he even showed that he's got some hops...

On top of a fantastic shooting night, Hubbard played good defense throughout as well. He's not only picked up right where he left off, but he looks to be an even more complete player as a sophomore.

Hello, Claudell Harris!

The storyline of the offseason was the shooting talent Chris Jans added to his backcourt to compliment Josh Hubbard. Several new faces showed flashes tonight, but no one impressed more than Boston College-transfer Claudell Harris. Harris posted 20 points on 7-11 shooting and was 6-10 from deep. After a first-half run from West Georgia put the Wolves within striking-distance of the Bulldogs, Harris hit three-straight triples in the final two minutes of the half to push the lead back to double-digits.

State desperately needed someone else to emerge as a consistent perimeter scoring threat to take pressure off of Josh Hubbard. Claudell Harris seemed like one of the most likely guys to help there after a productive career at Boston College, and in the season-opener, he showed he's plenty capable of filling it up.

Relentless defense wasn't just going to go away

With the style shift from the Bulldogs this offseason, there were some questions about whether or not they'd still play the level of defense we're accustomed to under Chris Jans. At least for tonight, they did. MSU held UWG to 39% shooting and 21% from deep. They forced 20 Wolves' turnovers for 31 points and racked-up 17 steals.

Obviously, we're talking about a SEC team playing a team that just moved up from Division II. You expect dominance. But UWG was a good offensive team a year ago, so for State in their first game to still play strong defense is a good sign for the year to go.

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