Josh Hubbard scored 26 points and No. 10 seed Mississippi State routed No. 15 seed LSU 91-62 in the first round of the SEC tournament Wednesday night in Nashville, Tenn.
Hubbard made more 3-pointers (six) than all of the Tigers combined (five), and Mississippi State finished with a 30-point advantage from beyond the arc.
The Bulldogs (21-11) won their fifth consecutive meeting with the Tigers, all by double digits, including an 81-69 home victory March 1, their only win in their last five regular-season games. Mississippi State will face No. 21 Missouri, the No. 7 seed, in the second round on Thursday night.
Jordan Sears scored 20 points, Robert Miller III had 14 and Cam Carter added 13 to lead short-handed LSU, which played without leading rebounder Corey Chest (foot) and third-leading scorer Vyctorius Miller (ankle).
The Tigers (14-18), who lost their sixth consecutive game, used just eight players until the final moments and their bench got outscored 38-2 by Mississippi State’s.
Five Tigers scored during a 16-7 run to start the second half, which pulled them within 51-40. But Hubbard, RJ Melendez, Shawn Jones Jr. and Riley Kugel each made a 3-pointer during a 17-0 run that extended the lead to 28. LSU went more than four minutes without scoring.
LSU led four times and the score was tied twice in the early going before Mississippi State took control. Carter scored five points and Miller had four to help the Tigers take their final lead at 16-15.
Jones made a 3-pointer to give the Bulldogs the lead for good and start a 15-4 run that produced a 30-20 cushion. Claudell Harris Jr. added 3-pointers during the run.
Sears made two free throws to get LSU within eight, but Hubbard, a second-team All-SEC pick who scored 30 points in the regular-season win over the Tigers, made three 3-pointers and Mississippi State expanded its lead to 21 points.
The Tigers’ Daimion Collins made a free throw, leaving the Bulldogs with a 44-24 halftime lead.
LSU didn’t make a field goal during the final 10 minutes of the half.
–Field Level Media
