Upset by Mississippi State, No. 1 seed Tennessee makes quick exit from SEC Tournament

It was a short stay for the No. 1 seed at the SEC Men’s Basketball Tournament.

No. 9 seed Mississippi State took down regular-season champion Tennessee 73-56 in the first game of Friday’s quarterfinals at Bridgestone Arena.

Cameron Matthews and Josh Hubbard each scored 18 points as Mississippi State shot 55.3 percent from the floor while holding cold-shooting Tennessee to 30.6 percent.

Less than a week after its 85-81 home loss to Kentucky, Tennessee made just eight of its 33 three-point attempts. SEC Player of the Year Dalton Knecht finished with just 14 points, 10 points below his SEC average. Knecht was 4-of-17 from the floor, including 2-of-9 from three-point range.

Mississippi State-Tennessee box score

Tennessee shot 20.6 percent in the first half. The Vols missed 16 of their 18 three-point shot attempts over the first 20 minutes. Knecht was just 2-of-8 from the field, including 1-of-4 from three-point range. UT point guard Zakai Zeigler missed all six of his three-point attempts in the first half and finished 4-of-12 from beyond the arc.

Mar 15, 2024; Nashville, TN, USA; Mississippi State Bulldogs forward D.J. Jeffries (0) and guard Josh Hubbard (13) celebrate at the end of the half against the Tennessee Volunteers at Bridgestone Arena. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports

Meanwhile, Mississippi State shot 61.5 percent in the first half. Cameron Matthews scored 12 points in the first half for the Bulldogs, who defeated the Vols 77-72 in their lone regular season meeting in Starkville on Jan. 10.

Fresh off a 70-60 victory over No. 8 seed LSU on Thursday, the Bulldogs jumped to a 15-4 lead and led by 19 points (38-19) at the break when Sha Jones followed in a miss just before the buzzer.

Tennessee got no closer than 12 in the second half. A 10-0 run cut the Bulldogs lead to 60-48 with 5:01 left. But State’s D.J. Jeffries drained a three-pointer, then converted a fast break layup to push the Bulldogs’ lead back out to 17.

Chris Jans’ team finished the game outscoring Tennessee 42-14 in the paint.

Now 21-12, Mississippi State plays the winner of No. 4 seed Auburn vs. No. 5 seed South Carolina in Saturday’s 1 p.m. ET semifinal.

Its hopes for a NCAA Tournament No. 1 seed having taken a hit, Tennessee fell to 24-8. The Vols were 14-4 in the SEC this season.

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