While Arnett Moultrie may not be one of college basketball's household names, it's likely only a matter of time until the country takes notice of Mississippi State's impressive big man.
The 17th-ranked Bulldogs look to stay perfect versus visiting Troy as the teams meet Saturday at Humphrey Coliseum.
Mississippi State (8-1), off to its best start since winning its first 13 games in 2003-04, continues to roll thanks in large part to Moultrie. The 6-foot-11 junior, who sat out last season after transferring from UTEP - where he averaged 9.3 points from 2008-10 - has taken his game to another level, compiling 16.7 points and an SEC-best 11.1 rebounds per game.
Moultrie, a 58.7 percent shooter from the free-throw line with the Miners, has missed just five of his 43 attempts this season (88.4 percent) - the second-highest mark among forwards from the six major conferences.
"He works every day after practice for thirty minutes, no matter how hard we go," coach Rick Stansbury said. "... he wasn't even a 50 percent free throw shooter last year, and now he is one of the guys I want on the line."
Moultrie came through with another big game Saturday against West Virginia, recording his fourth double-double with a game-high 21 points on 7-of-8 shooting and 13 boards in a 75-62 win.
"We are just trying to win ballgames. I knew they were going to come out aggressive. I just wanted to match that aggression," Moultrie said.
"It's my quickness, athleticism and length. I thought they were a little stronger than me, but those things helped me out."
"Some guys can do it at 3 o'clock," Stansbury added. "But they can't do it when the popcorn's popping."
While the Bulldogs have won all eight meetings against Troy (4-3), they likely know better than to take the Trojans lightly. Mississippi State trailed by 11 in the second half before rallying and pulling away in overtime of a 92-83 win Nov. 26, 2010.
Guard Dee Bost, who leads the Bulldogs with 17.0 points per game, and fellow starter Renardo Sidney missed the game due to NCAA-imposed suspensions, though.
Mississippi State, limiting opponents to just 29.1 percent shooting from 3-point range, could have its hands full against a Trojans team making a Division I-high 12.0 made 3's per game.
After a 1-3 start, Troy has won three in a row to match its longest winning streak from 2010-11.
The Trojans recorded their largest victory of the season over a Division I opponent Saturday, defeating Miami of Ohio 73-60. Coach Don Maestri's team shot a season-best 14-of-26 (53.8 percent) from long distance and held the RedHawks to 36.7 percent from the field.
Swingman Justin Wright came off the bench and matched a season high with 18 points, guard Alan Jones scored 13 and Emil Jones and R.J. Scott combined for 23.
"We played good team ball, we spread the ball around, and had four double-figure scorers," Maestri told the school's official site.
Troy hasn't faced a ranked team in the regular season since falling 92-65 at then-No. 24 Mississippi on Dec. 18, 2000.
