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Game Notes
STARKVILLE — Vanderbilt hits the road following a four-game homestand Saturday when the Commodores travel to Mississippi State for a 6 p.m. CT contest. The game will be televised by Fox Sports Net.
The Commodores (14-9, 4-5 Southeastern Conference) won three of four games at Memorial Gymnasium during the homestand, including a 90-54 defeat of Texas-Pan American on Monday. Every Commodore scored and seven players accounted for 14 3-pointers in the easy win over the Broncs. Dawid Przybyszewski led all scorers, hitting all six of his 3-point attempts to post 18 points. Mario Moore and Corey Smith tallied 12 points each.
Mississippi State (17-6, 5-4 SEC) suffered a 90-76 setback in its last game at Auburn on Feb. 5. Shane Powers led all Bulldogs with 18 points thanks in part to four 3-pointers. Lawrence Roberts added 16 points and a game-high seven
rebounds.
The two teams battled in a pair of hard-fought contests last season. Mississippi State was one of only two teams to win at Memorial Gymnasium last year, edging the Commodores 72-69 on Feb. 28. Roberts posted a team-high 18 points and game-high 14 rebounds in the MSU win in Nashville.
However, the Commodores outlasted the Bulldogs 74-70 in overtime for a quarterfinals win at the SEC Tournament on March 12. Mario Moore led five VU players in double figures with 17 points. Julian Terrell added 16 points and seven rebounds.
Vanderbilt enters the Mississippi State game this season as one of the top 3-point shooting teams in the nation. The Commodores ranked second in the nation entering the week with 9.96 3-pointers a game. Their 40.8 shooting percentage from beyond the arc also ranked 10th nationally.
Meanwhile, the Bulldogs are one of the best rebounding teams in the country. Mississippi State ranks fourth with 41.2 rebounds per game while outrebounding its foes by 8.9 rebounds per game. The margin is tied for fifth-best in the nation.
Vanderbilt leads the all-time series with Mississippi State 69-39 but has dropped the last five meetings in Starkville. The Bulldogs are 27-22 against Vanderbilt at home all-time.
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