Mississippi State coach Rick Stansbury feels his team got some much-needed time off from a hectic and successful stretch.
Stansbury's potentially short-handed No. 24 Bulldogs will try to use that to their advantage when they seek their best start in seven seasons Friday night against Tennessee-Martin.
Mississippi State hit the road for the first time last week to finish off the 2K Classic and posted wins over ranked Texas A&M and Arizona squads on back-to-back nights at Madison Square Garden to claim the title. After leaving New York on Friday, the Bulldogs (5-1) returned to their home court Monday and knocked off Louisiana-Monroe 78-63.
Mississippi State showed some signs of fatigue as it allowed the Warhawks to take an eight-point lead with 8:20 remaining in the first half before starting its rally.
"We knew our offense would come. The game is all about runs. ... We just had to finish with more runs than they did," said senior guard Brian Bryant, who recorded his first career double-double with 17 points and 10 rebounds.
Freshman Rodney Hood paced Mississippi State's season-best shooting performance (50.8 percent) by connecting on 9-of-13 attempts while scoring a career-high 20 points. Leading scorer Dee Bost scored a team-best 21 while matching a season high with four 3-pointers.
"We've had some time off to get our legs back under us, but it will be good to get back on the court," Stansbury said. "We've been able to work on some things we need to improve, and this is a big game for us."
Those three days off may also help SEC leading rebounder Arnett Moultrie and fellow big man Renardo Sidney return to the court. The 6-foot-11 Moultrie, averaging 11.2 boards and 15.2 points, is dealing with tendinitis in both knees, while the 6-10 Sidney is day-to-day with a hand injury.
"I wish we did not have them both out at once," said Stansbury, whose team is in the midst of a six-game homestand.
The Bulldogs, though, might be fine if both players have to sit against struggling Tennessee-Martin (1-4). The Skyhawks let Lamar shoot 60.9 percent in an 80-69 defeat Tuesday, and their starters scored a combined 21 points.
Leading scorer Mike Liabo (15.6 points per game) had a season-high 20 while coming off the bench for the second straight contest, and junior forward Corderio Maclin added 18 points in his fifth game with the school.
Tennessee-Martin, loser of five straight in this series, will try to deny the Bulldogs their first 6-1 start since 2004-05 and first five-game win streak since a nine-game run Nov. 28, 2009-Jan. 4, 2010.
