Josh Hubbard, hot-shooting Mississippi State outlast Ole Miss
Junior guard Josh Hubbard scored 32 points on 12-for-16 shooting and dished out a game-high six assists to lead the most accurate Mississippi State shooting performance of the season in a 90-78 win over host Ole Miss on Saturday night in Oxford.
Mississippi State (12-13, 4-8 Southeastern Conference) had shot better than 50% only four times all season but finished a season-best 57.9% (33-for-57) from the field. The Bulldogs also shot 11-for-24 (45.8%) from 3-point range, which tied the team's season high for long-range makes and was the second-best accuracy from distance.
Hubbard scored 16 of his points in the first half when the Bulldogs built a 19-point lead, 47-28, after 20 minutes and helped them end a run of eight losses in their previous nine games. It was the fifth 30-plus scoring performance of the season for Hubbard, who had 31 points in a home loss to Tennessee on Wednesday.
State jumped out to a 13-3 lead in the first five minutes of the game, with Achor Achor scoring the team's first 11 points and Hubbard dropping a jumper to end the run.
Ole Miss pulled within 24-21 on AJ Storr's layup with 7:43 left in the half, but State responded with the next seven points, including a Hubbard 3-pointer. The Rebels closed within five, but the Bulldogs finished the half on a 16-2 run with seven more points coming from Hubbard. Ole Miss never pulled closer than 12 points in the second half.
Hubbard was joined in double figure scoring by Achor, who tallied 18 points on 6-for-8 shooting and also grabbed five rebounds. Jayden Epps added 12 points and seven rebounds.
Ole Miss (11-14, 3-9) has lost its last seven games and struggled to find offense aside from Malik Dia and reserve Storr.
Dia tallied 32 points on 11-for-20 shooting and pulled down seven boards. Storr scored 21 points on 8-for-16 shooting while grabbing six rebounds and dishing five assists. No other Rebel topped six points.