Tennessee @ Mississippi State preview

Last Meeting ( Mar 15, 2019 ) Mississippi State 76, Tennessee 83

Mississippi State has fallen into a pattern of trailing early in games, but on Tuesday, the Bulldogs rebounded for a road victory against Florida. Coach Ben Howland hopes his team has learned its lesson when it seeks a faster start and a fifth straight SEC win on Saturday when it hosts Tennessee.

Mississippi State trailed by 16 points in the first half but buried 14-of-23 from the field and 12-of-14 at the free-throw line during the second half to rally for a 78-71 triumph against the Gators - its third win when trailing at the half this season and 18th under Howland. "Tonight and in Oklahoma on Saturday (and the previous Saturday against LSU), we fell behind big in both of those games. We've got to stop making this a habit, but I'm so proud of our guys and the way they fought back from the huge deficit in the first half to get it to 10 (points)." Despite putting four players scoring in double figures, Tennessee, fell to Texas A&M at home 63-58 on Tuesday for a second straight loss. Jordan Bowden tied the game with a 3-pointer with less than a minute left, but the Aggies' Wendell Mitchell countered with a shot beyond the arc that proved to be the game-winner.

TIME: 2 p.m. ET. TV: ESPNU

ABOUT TENNESSEE (12-8, 4-3 SEC): The Volunteers shot 15-of-23 inside the arc and blocked 10 shots but got mauled on the boards 46-21. “It’s pretty simple, when you give up 23 offensive rebounds and you only get (four) yourself, I’m not sure you deserve to win the game and that’s what I told our guys." Bowden leads a balanced attack at 12.7 points per game, 6-9 John Fulkerson adds 11.9 points and a team-high 6.1 rebounds and 6-6 Yves Pons delivers 11.4 points and a SEC-best 2.7 blocks per game.

ABOUT MISSISSIPPI STATE (13-7, 4-3): Sophomore forward Reggie Perry (16.9 points, 10.0 rebounds) erupted for a career-high 27 points on 9-for-14 shooting for his fourth consecutive 20-point effort in league contests and sixth in nine overall (19.9 points, 52 percent shooting, 10.9 rebounds). The 6-10 sophomore was 3-for-3 on 3-pointers and came away with eight rebounds, finishing just shy of his SEC-leading 12th double-double. Robert Woodard II (11.8 points, 7.4 rebounds) amassed 11 of his 16 points during the second half, shooting 6-of-7 from the floor, and Tyson Carter (13.6 points, 3.5 assists) tossed in 12 second-half points highlighted by a 7-0 personal run midway through the second half which turned a two-point deficit into a five-point lead.

BUZZER BEATERS

1. Tennessee has won the last four games of the series - season sweeps in the last two years. Perry had a combined 25 points and 24 rebounds in the two games last March.

2. Rebels G Nick Weatherspoon matched his career best with eight assists against one turnover versus the Gators. The Bulldogs are 7-1 over his career when Weatherspoon distributes five-plus assists.

3. Tennessee ranks seventh in the nation in blocks (6.1). Pons has a block in 20 consecutive games.

PREDICTION: Mississippi State 70, Tennessee 61