Volunteers' Late Surge Falls Short Against Bulldogs at Humphrey Coliseum
The Tennessee Volunteers, ranked 5th, faced a challenging contest against the Mississippi State Bulldogs, concluding with a score of 72-77. The Volunteers now hold a record of 15-4 while the Bulldogs improved to 12-7.
The game was held at Humphrey Coliseum in Starkville, where an audience of 8,160 witnessed an intense battle that included four ties and five lead changes. The Volunteers showcased their defensive skills with an impressive count of 15 steals and three blocks. However, despite their efforts on defense and scoring 22 fast break points, they were unable to secure victory.
Tennessee's offense was fueled by converting two-point attempts with a high success rate of 63 percent but struggled from beyond the arc hitting only 28 percent from three-point range. They managed to accumulate a total of 33 rebounds equally split between offensive and defensive plays but were hindered by committing a significant number of personal fouls totaling to twenty.
The Bulldogs matched Tennessee's intensity on the court with both teams recording twelve assists each. Mississippi State capitalized on their free throw opportunities making good on seventy percent compared to Tennessee's sixty-two percent conversion rate. Additionally, they had fewer personal fouls which played into their favor as the game progressed.
A critical aspect for the Volunteers was points off turnovers; they scored twenty-four points following turnovers by Mississippi State who managed twenty points from similar situations. However, ball handling proved problematic for both sides as each team turned over possession sixteen times throughout the match.
Looking ahead for Tennessee fans, the next challenge will be against Georgia Bulldogs at Stegeman Coliseum in Athens on January 13th at noon Eastern Time (11:00 AM Central). This upcoming encounter can be viewed nationally on ESPN2 channel two hundred nine ensuring fans won't miss any action as their team takes to court once again.