RECAP: Mississippi State spoils No. 21 Memphis’ return to FedExForum

Memphis basketball fans packed out FedExForum for what figured to be an exciting display of holiday hoops, but their Christmas spirit died shortly after the opening tip.

Mississippi State (11-1) crushed the No. 21 Tigers 79-66 Saturday afternoon. This is Memphis’ second straight loss at home, as it also fell to Arkansas State on Dec. 8. Penny Hardaway’s club (9-3) is now 0-2 against SEC schools this season, but it can rectify that when it hosts No. 17 Ole Miss next Saturday (1 p.m., ESPN2).

Memphis shot 36% from the field and 30% from 3-point range. It also recorded 16 forced turnovers, 11 offensive rebounds, 11 assists, 9 steals and 2 blocks. The Tigers trailed for more than 36 consecutive minutes.

Mississippi State shot 44% on field goals and 37% on 3-pointers. It also outrebounded Memphis 46-32 while compiling 19 offensive boards, 18 forced turnovers, 18 assists, 15 steals and 3 blocks. The Bulldogs’ bench outscored the Tigers’ 41-15. MSU additionally edged the U of M in the paint 38-18.

Here are some takeaways from Memphis’ deflating loss.

First-half turnovers upend Memphis

Memphis’ shaky decision making got it in trouble once again Saturday.

The Tigers committed 12 first-half turnovers, which Mississippi State used to score 17 of its 48 points during the period. Dain Dainja and PJ Haggerty ended the half with 4 and 3 giveaways respectively. Tyrese Hunter and Colby Rogers went to the locker room with 2 apiece.

Riley Kugel led Chris Jans’ team with 15 points while shooting 6-for-6 overall and 3-for-3 from beyond the arc at halftime. Mississippi State shot 48.6% on field goals and 9-for-18 from 3-point range as a team in the opening period.

Haggerty and Hunter score in bunches. Everyone else barely scores at all.

The 6-foot-3 guard was Memphis’ only consistent source for offense against the Bulldogs.

Haggerty scored 16 of the Tigers’ 32 first-half points, but no other Tiger scored more than 6 points before halftime. Hunter and Rogers shot a combined 2-for-9 from the field. Nick Jourdain was also 0-of-3 as Memphis ended the period with an abysmal 30% shooting clip.

Hunter stepped up with 13 second-half points, but nobody besides Haggerty had more than 4 in the period. Haggerty and Hunter led the Tigers with 24 and 19 points respectively for the game. PJ Carter was Memphis’ third-highest scorer with 7 points.

Mississippi State controls the Tigers from start to finish

Memphis scored the contest’s first points with a 3-pointer from Hunter, but that proved to be its only lead.

Mississippi State jumped out to a quick 18-5 advantage with a 13-0 run in three minutes and 32 seconds, and things never got much better from there. The Bulldogs led by as many as 24 points, and Memphis never cut the deficit to less than 13 in the second half.

Kugel (19), KeyShawn Murphy (13), Josh Hubbard (13) and Cameron Matthews (12) all scored in double figures for Jans’ team. Matthews, a Memphis native, also notched 9 rebounds and 6 assists.