Detroit, MI – The 17th-ranked Mississippi State Bulldogs have conference clash with the Detroit Titans.
Mississippi State is off to a tremendous start, having won 10 of its first 11 games, and nine in a row. The most recent victory during the current streak came on Tuesday, as the squad knocked off Florida Atlantic by a 75-68 final. Members of the SEC, the Bulldogs have beaten the likes of Arizona, Texas A&M and West Virginia thus far, so the non-conference resume' will feature at least three quality victories heading into SEC play.
As for Detroit, a member of the Horizon League, it has lost both conference games it has played thus far and sits at just 5-7 overall. The Titans did manage to string together two wins recently, but that modest streak came to a halt last Sunday with a 62-54 loss to Alabama.
The all-time series between Detroit and Mississippi State is deadlocked at 1-1, and the Bulldogs beat the Titans in last season's matchup by six points.
Mississippi State has two big-time performers in the lineup in guard Dee Bost and forward Arnett Moultrie. Bost is pouring in 18.5 ppg to go along with other team highs of 49 assists and 27 steals, while Moultrie provides 17.1 ppg and 11.3 rpg. Rodney Hood, a 54.6 percent shooter from the field, bring 12.9 ppg to the mix for the Bulldogs, who are generating 76.5 ppg while allowing 62.4 ppg to opponents on 40.4 percent field goal efficiency. Bost poured in 22 points to pace MSU in the seven-point win over FAU last time out. Hood added 19 points and 10 boards in that affair, and Jalen Steele contributed 12 points. Moultrie actually missed that contest with a knee injury and is listed as questionable for today's affair. Clearly, the Bulldogs are far more formidable with the standout frontcourt performer than without him.
There are three active double-digit scorers on the Detroit roster, and it comes as no surprise that Chase Simon leads the way with 16.3 ppg. Eli Holman missed the first 10 games, but he has scored a total of 30 points and grabbed 16 rebounds in the last two outings, so his return clearly bolsters the lineup. As for Ray McCallum, he rounds out the trio with 14.6 ppg and 3.6 apg. The Titans are generating 74.1 ppg while limiting opponents to 70.6 ppg. In the eight-point loss to Alabama last time out, McCallum scored 13 points, while Doug Anderson registered 12 points for Detroit. Simon was limited to 10 points on 2-of-11 shooting from the floor, and his team as a whole connected on just 32.1 percent of its field goal attempts. That poor shooting caused the Titans to lose the game despite considerable advantages in both points from the foul line (20-12) and rebounds (38-31).
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