Southeastern foes will lock horns when the Mississippi State Bulldogs (9-11) challenge the Alabama Crimson Tide (11-9) at Humphrey Coliseum. Action begins at 9:00 pm ET on Tuesday, Feb. 2 and can be seen on SEC and ES3.
The Bulldogs enter this game hoping for similar success after topping Missouri 76-62 on Saturday. Malik Newman was the game’s leading scorer with 19 points on 6-for-11 shooting. The Crimson Tide, meanwhile, are feeling some disappointment after their 78-64 loss against South Carolina on Saturday. Retin Obasohan had a game-high 23 points.
Quinndary Weatherspoon has taken his game to another level over the last five games for the Bulldogs. During that stretch, he has averaged 18.4 points, 7.0 rebounds, 1.0 assist, 1.4 steals, 0.6 blocks, and 1.8 three-pointers. Obasohan has been hot for the Crimson Tide. In the same five-game span, he is averaging 20.4 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.0 assists, 0.8 steals, 0.6 blocks, and 1.6 three-pointers.
Mississippi State is a three-point favorite against Alabama and the Over/Under (O/U) for this game is sitting at 139 points. The Bulldogs have gone 9-11 Straight Up (SU) and 11-6 Against The Spread (ATS). The Bulldogs are one of the best in Division I in terms of free throw percentage, shooting an impressive .739 from the free throw line.
As for their opponent, the Crimson Tide have records of 10-8 ATS and 11-9 SU. Blocking shots is an area where Alabama has excelled. The Crimson Tide average 5.0 blocks per game, making them one of the best in the nation.
These conference foes meet for what will be their first head-to-head battle of the season. Alabama won the last game in the matchup, bumping its SU record over their most recent meetings to 8-2. With a 7-3 record, the Crimson Tide also have the advantage ATS. Alabama held the edge in field goals, rebounds, and three-pointers twice, while Mississippi State was never able to do so in their most recent five games.
Predictions: SU Winner – MissSt, ATS Winner – MissSt, O/U – Over
Notes
Mississippi State is 2-6 SU in its last 8 games.
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Mississippi State’s last 6 games.
Mississippi State is 7-2 SU in its last 9 games at home.
Mississippi State is 0-5 SU in its last 5 games when playing Alabama.
The total has gone UNDER in 5 of Mississippi State’s last 6 games when playing Alabama.
The Mississippi State Bulldogs and Alabama Crimson Tide both hold losing records of 2-6 SU against teams in the Southeastern Conference.
Mississippi State scores just 79.5 points per home game (ranked 124th). Alabama ranks 54th in points allowed on the road, giving up 68.8 points.
The Alabama Crimson Tide average a field goal percentage of 42.5% this season. The Mississippi State Bulldogs have a poor record of 4-10 when opponents have a FG% of 42.5% or greater.
The Mississippi State Bulldogs rank higher based on their field goal percentage (62nd) than their effective field goal percentage (74th). The Alabama Crimson Tide rank higher based on their effective field goal percentage (220th) than their field goal percentage (258th).
Mississippi State ranks 64th in blocks per game with 4.5 and Alabama ranks 39th with 5.0 blocks per game.
Alabama has forced an average turnover percentage of 19.6% this season. Mississippi State has a subpar 1-5 record when its TO% is 19.6% or higher.
