Mississippi State Bulldogs at Texas A&M Aggies

Hot-shooting Texas A&M beats Mississippi State 87-75

Wendell Mitchell scored all 20 of his points in the second half for Texas A&M (14-12, 8-6 in Southeastern Conference), which collected its second NET top 50 win of the week. Quenton Jackson added 18 points and Emanuel Miller had 10.

“It’s kind of nice to see us finding our rhythm offensively in a year where we’ve kind of struggled to score and shoot the ball,” Nebo said. “It’s nice to see all the guys find their shot and to see it go through the hoop again.”

The Aggies shot 59.6% (31 of 52) from the field, besting their previous high mark of 56% in the season opener against Northwestern State. It was the best shooting performance for the Aggies since a 61% performance against Penn State on Nov. 21, 2017.

The Aggies entered Saturday’s contest ranked 342nd out of 350 Division I teams in field goal percentage, shooting 39%.

Tyson Carter made five 3-pointers and scored 19 points to lead Mississippi State (17-10, 8-6). Robert Woodard II added 18 points, Reggie Perry had 14 and Nick Weatherspoon finished with 11.

The Aggies closed the first half on a 14-8 surge and led 36-30 at halftime. Mississippi State pulled to 46-44 with about 15 minutes remaining, but a 19-6 run pushed the Aggies to a game-high 14-point lead with 8:08 to play.

Four consecutive 3-pointers by Carter pulled the Bulldogs to 68-62 with five minutes left but they didn't get closer.

“Look at the offense that shoots 60%,” Bulldog coach Ben Howland said. “For a team that is struggling to score, that is really disappointing defensively for us.”

BIG PICTURE

Texas A&M: The sliver of NIT hope stays intact with an important win over a NET Quadrant 2 opponent.

Mississippi State: Already listed by many bracketologists as one of the first four teams out of the NCAA Tournament, a loss to a Texas A&M squad ranked 124 in the NET adds a blemish to the Bulldogs’ tournament resume.

STAT OF THE NIGHT

Along with the high mark for field goal percentage, Texas A&M recorded season highs in points (87), field goals made (31), 3-point percentage (52.9%), free throw percentage (88.9%) and assists (18).

HIGHLIGHT REEL

With 3:35 on the clock, Mitchell made a deep 3-pointer and drew a foul on the play to bring the Reed Arena crowd to its feet and give the Aggies a 10-point lead after the made free throw.

UP NEXT

Texas A&M hosts No. 10 Kentucky on Tuesday.

Mississippi State plays at home against Alabama on Tuesday.

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How can I watch Mississippi State vs. Texas A&M?

• TV Channel: Mississippi State at Texas A&M 2021 College Basketball, week 16, is broadcasted on SEC Network.
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