Advertisement

Mississippi State basketball score vs. Florida: Live updates from SEC Tournament

stefan krajisnik and nick gray, mississippi clarion ledger
·6 min read

Every game for the last month has felt like do-or-die for Mississippi State basketball. Thursday's matchup against Florida in the second round of the SEC tournament is no different.

MSU, the conference's No. 9 seed, could have its March Madness hopes riding on the matchup. The No. 8-seeded Gators are well aware and have embraced the role of spoiler.

"I have a lot of respect for Coach (Chris) Jans and their program and the way they compete," UF coach Todd Golden told reporters this week. "They’ve done a really good job with their team and getting to the position they are, but on Thursday we’re going to try to make them have a long weekend.”

Florida has already made Mississippi State's path to the NCAA Tournament tougher. The Gators won 61-59 in Starkville on Jan. 21 to keep the Bulldogs from snagging another Quadrant 2 win.

However, Florida is without forward Colin Castleton who was an All-SEC first team selection and USA TODAY Sports Network's SEC defensive player of the year.

'WHOA':How walk-on Shawn Jones Jr. became key in Mississippi State basketball's March Madness push

KEEPING UP:Unpacking Mississippi State basketball's March Madness bubble heading into SEC Tournament

MSU'S STAR:Tolu Smith named winner of Bailey Howell Trophy

Mississippi State basketball score vs. Florida: Live updates

Overtime

FINAL: Mississippi State survives, 69-68 in OT. Jones' last chance 3 is just long.

11.8 seconds left: ANOTHER bad turnover and a Niels Lane layup is good. Florida leads.

Other way, Tolu Smith gets the ball on the low block, patiently waits for the defense to overplay and lays the ball in. Mississippi State leads 69-68 with 4.1 seconds left in OT.

25.5 seconds left: MSU turnover leads to two Florida free throws. Tight again.

Gators make both. MSU 67, Florida 66.

37.1 seconds left: Shakeel Moore makes 1 of 2 free throws. Florida then hits an open 3. Bulldogs lead 67-64.

2:08 left: Tolu Smith again lays it in off a Davis assist. Mississippi State leads 66-59.

2:49 left: Oh wow! Shawn Jones Jr. finishes an alley oop on a dish from Davis. MSU by 5.

4:41 left: Tolu Smith and-one. FT good. Smith has 24 points.

Second half

END OF REGULATION: Dashawn Davis midrange shot no good. Another rainbow 3 from Jones is no good. OT!

Mississippi State 57, Florida 57.

36.3 seconds left: Myreon Jones rainbow 3 is good. Tie game, 57-57.

58.7 seconds left: Tolu Smith is blocked, and MSU turns the ball over via shot clock violation. Big defensive possession upcoming.

1:29 left: Myreon Jones 3 ends a long dry spell for Florida. Mississippi State 57, Florida 54.

1:51 left: Tolu Smith, big time play to grab the ball and lay it in. He has 21 points.

2:18 left: Another missed 3 by Florida, another MSU defensive rebound. Bulldogs by 4.

3:30 left: Huge steal and runout basket for Dashawn Davis. Florida turns the ball over carelessly on the next trip.

Final media timeout, Mississippi State 53, Florida 51.

4:31 left: Both teams trade offensive fouls. It's not been a pretty second half. Still 51-all.

5:34 left: Neither team shooting well from 3 (MSU is 2-11, UF is 5-22). Mississippi State just missed two open looks, then took a foul on the rebound.

51-all. Going to be a very nervy final five minutes.

8:49 left: Tolu Smith starting to find some more room near the basket. He has another layup, and MSU leads again.

Smith has 16 points and 9 rebounds.

10:08 left: Big charge taken by Tolu Smith on what would have been a Florida layup. Florida leads 46-45.

Smith then gets his own layup to give MSU the lead back.

12:05 left: Both teams adding up the turnovers. Mississippi State has 13, Florida 10.

13:03 left: Florida is on a 13-2 run and leads 42-39. Energy is completely different for MSU in the second half. It needs a couple made baskets to restore that energy.

14:27 left: Florida leads. Then Tyler Stevenson finally gets MSU on the board in the second half as the shot clock expires. MSU 39, UF 38.

15:11 left: Mississippi State 37, Florida 33. Bulldogs have not made a field goal in the second half and have missed at least two short floaters. MSU also had four turnovers during that first segment of the second half.

17:01 left: Mississippi State has 13 offensive rebounds but has missed quite a few shots from close range. Bulldogs by 6.

18:03 left: MSU still leaning on Tolu Smith offensively. He's 2-9 from the floor but is about to shoot free throws Nos. 11 and 12.

He misses both and is 6-12 from the line today. MSU leads 37-29.

First half

HALFTIME: Mississippi State 36, Florida 26. Bulldogs not nearly as good offensively in the final five minutes, but strong defense has carried the day to this point. Bulldogs outrebounded the Gators 23-14.

3:21 left: Mississippi State 34, Florida 21. Bulldogs winning inside and out. Strong first half by a team that needed a win today.

4:54 left: Tolu Smith is 2-7 in the first half as Florida plays physical against him. He's still got 7 points and 6 rebounds in 11 minutes. Bulldogs lead 32-20.

6:23 left: MSU on a 7-0 run and leads 31-17.

Elsewhere on the bubble, Rutgers leads Michigan in the second half of their Big Ten Tournament second round matchup.

7:57 left: Florida has missed 8 of its last 10 shots. MSU defense has been good. Defense and rebounding the key.

MSU 27, Florida 17. Gators' Will Richard and Alex Fudge both have two fouls.

10:36 left: Offensive rebound No. 4 turns into two free throws for Tyler Stevenson.

11:11 left: Bulldogs 19, Gators 15. Shakeel Moore is up to 9 points and will have three free throws after the media timeout.

He makes all three. MSU by 7.

13:48 left: Mississippi State 13, Florida 12 at the first media timeout. Without Colin Castleton, Florida appears to be in for a long day on the glass against the tough MSU frontcourt. Bulldogs already have 3 offensive rebounds.

14:35 left: Bulldogs lead 13-9. Shakeel Moore has 7 early points for MSU. Back and forth game so far.

18:32 left: Bulldogs start 0-3. Florida not much better.

Pregame

What a important Thursday lunchtime SEC Tournament game for Mississippi State. A win makes things a lot more palatable, NCAA Tournament wise, this weekend, with a chance to beat Alabama tomorrow. A loss makes things very nervy on the bubble for the Bulldogs.

Tipoff soon.

A Twitter List by skrajisnik3

This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Mississippi State basketball score vs. Florida: Live updates