SEC TOURNAMENT THREAD: Mississippi State vs. No. 9 Tennessee

Ben_McKee · Mar 11, 2022

Good evening. Hope everyone is well, has had a good week and is ready for some SEC Tournament basketball.

No. 9 Tennessee (23-7, 14-4 SEC) about to tip with Mississippi State (18-4, 8-10 SEC) in Tampa at 6:02 p.m. ET on ESPN. Rob is down there and we'll have plenty of coverage for you throughout the weekend.

Here's some notes on Mississippi State and tonight's game to get you ready:

Mississippi State was also Tennessee's first opponent in the 2018 and 2019 SEC Tournaments
- The Vols won each of those meetings
Tennessee won its only meeting with Mississippi State this season, 72-63, in Starkville on Feb. 9
UT has won nine of its last 10 games and enters the SEC Tournament riding a four-game win streak

Projected Mississippi State (18-14, 8-10 SEC) starting lineup:

G, Iverson Molinar, Jr. — All-SEC Preseason First-Team Pick
- 17.9 points, 3.6 assists, 3.0 rebounds, 1.2 steals
- 1 of 2 SEC and 1 of 7 Power 5 players to rank among his league’s top 12 in PTS, ASST & FG%
- Scored/Assisted on 36.9% of MSU’s PTS
- 17.9 PPG is 3rd in SEC, 86.9 FT% is 2nd, 45.5 FG% is 6th. 1.64 ASST-TO Ratio is 7th, and 3.6 APG is 11th
G, Shakeel Moore, So. — NC State transfer
- 8.6 points, 2.9 rebounds, 2.2 assists, 1.7 steals
G/F, Andersson Garcia, So.
- 4.4 points, 4.3 rebounds, 1.4 assists, 1.1 steals
F, Garrison Brooks, Gr. — North Carolina transfer
- 10.4 points, 6.7 rebounds, 0.8 assists, 0.8 blocks
F, Tolu Smith, R-Jr.
- 14.1 points, 6.5 rebounds, 1.0 steals, 0.9 assists

Key Mississippi State bench players:

G/F, Cameron Matthews, So.
F, D.J. Jeffries, Jr. — Memphis transfer
F, Javian Davis, R-Jr. — Alabama transfer
G, Rocket Watts, Jr. — Michigan State transfer
F, Derek Fountain, So.
G, Cam Carter, Fr.

Mississippi State is No. 43 in KenPom entering the game — KenProm projects a 69-62 Tennessee win
- KenPom gives Tennessee a 72% chance of winning
47th in strength schedule
50th in average height (78.0”)
112th in two-foul participation (26.5%)
167th in bench minutes (31.2%)
218th in experience (1.75 years)
240th in minutes continuity (39.2%)

Mississippi State offensive strengths: — No. 61 in offensive efficiency (109.9)

17th in offensive rebound% (34.5)
17th in FTA/FGA (38.4)
- 21.8% of points come from free throws (18th)
96th in 2P% (51.8)
- 58.9% of points come from two (13th)
130th in A/FGM (52.7)
132nd in block% (8.4)

Mississippi State offensive weaknesses:

162nd in non-steal TO%
163rd in FT% (72.0)
195th in effective FG% (49.6)
245th in turnover% (19.4)
297th in in steal% (10.6)
346th in 3P% (29.3)
350th in 3PA/FGA (27.9)
- 19.3% of points come from three (355th)

Mississippi State defensive strengths: — No. 45 in defensive efficiency (95.5)

25th in steal% (12.1)
72nd in block% (11.0)
80th in 3P% defense (31.9)
- 34.0% of opponent points come off three (81st)
86th in offensive rebound% (26.0)
92nd in turnover% (19.8)
128th in FTA/FGA (28.4)
144th in effective FG% (49.3)

Mississippi State defensive weaknesses:

207th in 2P% defense (50.5)
- 48.7% of opponent points come off three (249th)
249th in FT% defense (72.9)
- 17.4% of opponent points come off free throws (202nd)
310th in non-steal TO% (7.7)
313th in 3PA/FGA (42.4)
319th in A/FGM (56.9)

Refs for today’s game: (Rank per KenPom)

Terry Oglesby (No. 3)
Bart Lenox (No. 42)
Steven Anderson (No. 90)

TV Crew (ESPN):

Tom Hart (pxp)
Dane Bradshaw (analyst)
Alyssa Lang (sideline)

samsmith2233 · Mar 11, 2022