Right off the streets of Broadway, the Mississippi State Bulldogs would start their March Madness journey in the Southeastern Conference with a first-round matchup with the LSU Tigers, with the winner advancing to play Missouri on Thursday.

Mississippi State opened a slight lead over the LSU Tigers in the first half, as the Bulldogs struggled to find their groove early on. However, the Bulldogs would turn the early offensive woes into success as the first half carried on, pulling away at the half with a 44-24 lead over LSU.

It was the Josh Hubbard show at the break, as Hubbard led the Bulldogs in scoring with 16 first-half points.

As the halftime jitters turned the way to the second half, the LSU Tigers would show signs of life, but the Bulldogs would maintain their distance, extending the lead to 30 with the Bulldogs holding a 76-46 lead over LSU at the under-8 media timeout of the second half.

Things might not have looked as pretty as some hoped for in the first half, but as the second half rolled around, the Bulldogs found their groove and now advance to take on Missouri in the first game on Thursday night. If the Bulldogs can assemble forty minutes of basketball, they’ll be a tough out for anyone in the Southeastern Conference Tournament this weekend. The second-half performance against LSU on Wednesday night was one of the best performances of the entire season. In the second half, Mississippi State dominated LSU in all aspects of the game; the Tigers had no answer for the overpowering Bulldogs.

Josh Hubbard led the way in scoring for Mississippi State with 26 points.

Mississippi State will see another day in Nashville as it faces the Missouri Tigers in the second round of the 2025 Southeastern Conference Tournament. Mississippi State lost to Missouri earlier in the year by a score of 88-61. With a win over Missouri, the Bulldogs will face the Florida Gators on Friday in the quarterfinal round of the Southeastern Conference Tournament.

Photo Credits – Mississippi State Basketball on X