Saturday was a big day for the Mississippi State Basketball team as they hosted the Texas A&M Aggies with NCAA Tournament implications on the line. Mississippi State came out on Saturday afternoon at the Hump with a fire under their butt that many did not expect to see. Mississippi State came out fighting. Mississippi State was more physical than Texas A&M on Saturday, and the Aggies had no answer.

Coming into the game on Saturday, Mississippi State knew what they had to do to leave the Hump with a win over 25th-ranked Texas A&M. At this point in the season for Mississippi State, every time on the court is another opportunity for the Bulldogs to make a case to earn an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament. With two Southeastern Conference games remaining, Mississippi State is fighting for better seeding in the SEC Tournament in Nashville, Tennessee. Right now, Mississippi State is trying to avoid finishing in the bottom four of the SEC to avoid the difficult task of having to win five games in five days due to playing on Wednesday night of the SEC Tournament. Mississippi State has two games remaining against South Carolina on Tuesday night at the Hump and a road game on Saturday as they travel to Nashville to take on Vanderbilt. A win in both and the Bulldogs could face a favorable matchup on Thursday of the SEC Tournament against a middle-of-the-line SEC team.

As far as Texas A&M goes, Mississippi State did what they do best. Mississippi State played well on the defensive side of the court and got a lot of points out of three Bulldogs.

Mississippi State forced Texas A&M to commit 16 turnovers on Saturday afternoon and held the Aggies to 40% shooting from the field.

On the offensive side of the court today, Mississippi State had three guys score in double figures. Three guys who helped Mississippi State with the offensive production were Tolu Smith at 17, Shakeel Moore at 14, and Cameron Matthews at 11. DJ Jeffries had nine points of his own as well.

Mississippi State crashed the glass well on Saturday with 31 rebounds.

Mississippi State will return to action on Tuesday night at the Hump as they welcome the South Carolina Gamecocks to Starkville, Mississippi.