Villanova @ Mississippi State preview

Villanova has won its last six in-season tournaments and as it aims for No. 7, the early results have been promising. The 15th-ranked Wildcats disposed of Middle Tennessee on Thursday and now will take on Mississippi State in Friday's second round of the Myrtle Beach Invitational in South Carolina.

The Wildcats set a season high with 98 points against Middle Tennessee, winning by 29 as they led 53-28 at the break and never looked back. Cole Swider scored a career-high 26 points thanks to six 3-pointers and Collin Gillespie nailed four 3s en route to 16 points as the Wildcats led wire-to-wire. "They have elite size with great shooters," Middle Tennessee coach Nick McDevitt said in his postgame scouting report, "and any short close-out or decent close-out results in three points." Mississippi State remained undefeated by rolling over Tulane in the second game of Thursday's early slate, nearly setting a season high in points in an 80-66 triumph.

TV: 2:30 p.m. ET, ESPN2

ABOUT VILLANOVA (3-1): The Wildcats made 18-of-38 3-pointers, good for a 47.4 percent clip, against Middle Tennessee with seven different players connecting from beyond the arc. They shot nearly 57 percent overall with Swider going 10-of-15 and Justin Moore making 6-of-11 shots as part of his 15-point afternoon. Gillespie went 4-of-6 from long range after struggling to the tune of 2-of-12 from deep over the previous two contests, and he set a season high with seven assists.

ABOUT MISSISSIPPI STATE (5-0): The Bulldogs dominated the boards against Tulane, outrebounding the Green Wave 41-16 with Tyson Carter (11 rebounds) leading the way. Iverson Molinar was the team's top scorer with 21 points, thanks in part to 4-of-6 3-point shooting, and Reggie Perry was on fire (7-of-8 shooting, 2-of-2 from the arc) for 18 points. One of the negatives for Mississippi State was 25 turnovers, but its shooting percentages (60.5 percent from the field, 55 percent from the arc and 17-of-21 from the foul line) paved the way for an easy victory.

TIP-INS

1. Since scoring 24 points in the opener, Villanova F Jeremiah Robinson-Earl has totaled 25 points in the last three games.

2. Wildcats F Bryan Antoine, who had missed the first three games following a shoulder injury, produced nine points in 19 minutes Thursday.

3. Mississippi State had 19 assists on 26 buckets Thursday, including a team-high five helps from Molinar.

PREDICTION: Villanova 79, Mississippi State 70