Mississippi State basketball was given a major test in its second game of the season, facing No. 16 Iowa State in a pseudo-neutral site game in Sioux Falls, SD. They failed that test miserably.
The Bulldogs were dominated 96-80 by the Cyclones, getting run off the court in what was effectively a road game Monday night. Mississippi State could not stop turning the ball over and looked totally out of sorts on defense. The Bulldogs are now 1-1 on the season.
Mississippi State commits unholy amount of turnovers
This game being a beatdown can be explained by one simple statistic: turnovers. Mississippi State turned the ball over an atrocious 26 times, the program's most in a game since the 2014-2015 season. Those turnovers led to 29 Iowa State points. Some of them were the product of the Cyclone defense creating problems for the Bulldogs, but many happened simply do to carelessness. MSU's shooting numbers were good, though somewhat inflated from when the game was out of reach, but the number of wasted possessions and extra field goal attempts afforded to ISU gave them no shot.
The Bulldog defense frequently looked lost against Iowa State
This roster may have been recruited for strong defense, but they aren't yet delivering that. They're actually delivering the opposite. The Bulldog defense was awful against Iowa State. They weren't shredded from three as has typically been the case. ISU shot 5-22 from beyond the arc (though they missed plenty of open looks). But MSU was helpless defending inside. The Cyclones had 56 points in the paint, and that wasn't a product of physically overwhelming the Bulldogs. State just left the paint wide open, with defenders appearing out of position constantly. ISU was being gifted clean looks at the basket, and took full advantage.
Mississippi State basketball still has plenty of growing to do
It's always tough to accurately gauge how good a team will be when the majority of the roster consists of new players, and it's clear after two games that plenty of growth will be needed from this group if they're going to meet expectations. Who will prove to be a viable scoring option alongside Josh Hubbard consistently is an unknown. Whether or not this team is capable of playing strong defense, as was expected in the offseason, is a major question mark. It's far too early in the season to panic over an ugly showing or lament over falling flat in a resume-building opportunity, but the version of the Bulldogs that took the court in Sioux Falls is not a team that can make the NCAA Tournament. They've got a lot to figure out.