STARKVILLE, Miss. (AP) -Jamont Gordon recorded his first career triple-double – and the second in school history – with 15 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists as Mississippi State snapped a 13-game losing streak against ranked opponents Wednesday night with an 83-70 win over No. 17 Vanderbilt.
Charles Rhodes had 23 points, including five crowd-rousing dunks, Dietric Slater added 18 points for the Bulldogs and Reginald Delk had 13.
The last Mississippi State player to record a triple-double was Lawrence Roberts in 2004.
Mississippi State (16-10, 7-6) had runs of 11-2 and 10-2 in the first half and held Vanderbilt without a point for 4:17 late in the first half. The team led by 18 several times, including 45-27 at halftime.
Mississippi State held Derrick Byars, the reigning SEC Player of the Week and the SEC’s No. 2 scorer during conference play with 19.7 points per game, to seven points. Dan Cage led the team with 12.
Vanderbilt (18-9, 8-5) entered the Top 25 for the second time this season after upsetting then-No. 1 Florida 83-70 on Saturday. The Commodores were ranked as high as No. 23 earlier this season, but dropped out of the poll.
Mississippi State hadn’t beat a ranked opponent since the 2004-05 season and needed the win as postseason speculation cranks up. The Bulldogs have won four straight and five of the last six, but their resume was missing a win over a top opponent.
Gordon was dynamic in the first half and helped his team wrap up the game quickly. In the first five minutes, he had six points, two assists, a rebound and a steal.
In the same span, Rhodes had three dunks, including two to open the game and a third that came after Gordon fed him the ball with a behind-the-back pass on a 3-on-1 fastbreak.
That dunk started an 11-2 run that gave Mississippi State a 17-6 lead with 14:58 remaining and featured two 3-pointers from Gordon and a three-point play by Slater.
Gordon, a Nashville, Tenn., native, started a second run with a scooping finger roll. Jarvis Varnado hit two mid-range jumpers during the 10-2 run that gave the Bulldogs a 37-19 lead with 3:51 left.
The Bulldogs had eight steals in the first half and held a 22-10 advantage in the paint.
Mississippi State opened the second half with an 11-3 run that put the Bulldogs up 56-32 with 16:28 remaining and clinched it.
