D.J. Jeffries scored 15 points to lead four Bulldogs in double figures as No. 17 Mississippi State rallied for a 69-59 victory over Jackson State on Wednesday in Jackson, Miss.
Jeffries shot 5 of 13 from the field, including just 1 of 7 from distance, to go along with five rebounds, while Tolu Smith added 13 points on 4-for-5 shooting and grabbed five rebounds.
Eric Reed Jr. had 13 points that included him going 3 of 7 from 3-point range, while KeShawn Murphy had 10 points by going 3 of 4 from the field and adding three rebounds.
The Bulldogs (10-0) are off to their best start since opening the 2003-04 season 13-0 en route to winning the SEC West Division’s regular-season title.
Mississippi State, which allowed a season-high 59 points, trailed by five with 13:51 remaining before closing the game on a 31-16 run.
The Bulldogs shot 23 of 49 (46.9 percent) from the field, including just 8 of 26 (30.8 percent) from 3-point range.
Jackson State (1-9) was led by Coltie Young, who scored a career-high 23 points by going 8 of 13 from the field, including a red-hot 7 of 11 from 3-point range, and grabbing five rebounds. Romelle Mansel finished with 11 points on 5-for-7 shooting and had four rebounds for the Tigers, who dropped their third straight game.
The Tigers shot 23 of 50 (46 percent) from the field, including 7 of 18 (38.9 percent) from beyond the arc, as Young made all of Jackson State’s 3-pointers.
After trailing 31-26 at halftime, Jackson State opened the second half on a 20-10 run to take a 46-41 lead on Young’s 3-pointer with 12:44 remaining.
But Mississippi State countered by delivering a decisive, 13-7 run to take a 54-53 lead it wouldn’t relinquish following Jeffries’ two free throws with 7:32 to go.
The Bulldogs scored the next six points to stretch their lead to 60-53 with 5:21 remaining.
Mississippi State pushed its lead to 67-56 on Jeffries’ dunk with 1:53 to go.
After the Tigers took a 19-11 lead on Keiveon Hunt’s jumper with 8:46 left in the first half, the Bulldogs closed the half on a 20-7 run to take a 31-26 halftime lead.
–Field Level Media
