Texas A&M @ Mississippi State preview

Last Meeting ( Feb 20, 2018 ) Mississippi State 93, Texas A&M 81

Mississippi State looks to secure a winning record in the SEC and avoid a three-game losing streak to end the regular season when it hosts struggling Texas A&M on Saturday afternoon. The Bulldogs had won five straight games before starting March with a five-point loss at Auburn and following that up with a 71-54 setback at No. 4 Tennessee on Tuesday, in which they turned the ball over 17 times.

“That was obviously a tough loss,” Mississippi State coach Ben Howland told reporters after his team shot 33.3 percent against Tennessee. “We have only had two really tough losses in terms of being beaten soundly - one at Kentucky and one at Tennessee (Tuesday). We did a good job fighting back but had too many turnovers in the first half.” The Bulldogs appear to have done enough to clinch an NCAA Tournament bid, but a victory against Texas A&M in the regular-season finale would give them a winning record in the SEC for the first time since 2010-11. The Aggies had won five of seven contests before allowing 13-of-23 from 3-point range and shooting just 36.5 percent overall in a 71-54 loss to South Carolina on Tuesday. “They were hard for us to guard,” Texas A&M coach Billy Kennedy told reporters after the setback. “Offensively, we got production from basically three or four guys. … It’s hard to beat a team when they play as well as they did and shoot the ball as well as they did.”

TV: 2 p.m. ET, ESPN2

ABOUT TEXAS A&M (13-16, 6-11 SEC): Junior guard Wendell Mitchell is averaging 16.7 points over the last six games to push his team-best mark to 13.5, but is just 4-of-20 from 3-point range across the past three contests. Sophomore guard Savion Flagg boasts two straight double-doubles and averages 12.8 points along with a team-high 7.8 rebounds while senior forward Christian Mekowulu has scored 39 combined in the past three games. Sophomore guard TJ Starks, the third player averaging in double figures scoring (12.3), has been lost for the season with a shoulder injury.

ABOUT MISSISSIPPI STATE (21-9, 9-8): Senior guard Quinndary Weatherspoon leads the team in scoring (18.4) on 50.5 percent shooting, but went just 3-of-12 from the field at Tennessee for a season-low seven points. Junior guard Lamar Peters (11.1 points, team-best 5.2 assists) is only 3-of-19 from the field while averaging just 3.3 points over the last three contests. Junior guard Tyson Carter averaged 19 points, including 12-of-26 from behind the arc, his last three outings and freshman forward Reggie Perry has scored 13.4 per game over the past seven.

TIP-INS

1. Texas A&M junior F Josh Nebo is shooting 69.2 percent from the field, but made just 5-of-12 the past three games.

2. Peters has 408 career assists and needs five to tie Doug Hartsfield for sixth on the club’s all-time list.

3. The Aggies are third in the SEC in field-goal percentage defense (41.7) and Mississippi State is 11th (43.5).

PREDICTION: Mississippi State 78, Texas A&M 68