STARKVILLE, Miss. — In a game of flurries, Mississippi State had the most sustained of the game and came away Saturday with an 84-75 win over the LSU Tigers at the Humphrey Coliseum.
The Tigers, with the loss and the subsequent win by Ole Miss over Georgia, will be the fourth seed in the Western Division at next week’s Southeastern Conference Tournament that begins Thursday in Atlanta. The Tigers will play the opening game of the tournament against the East five seed, South Carolina, at 1 p.m. EDT at the Georgia Dome.
Charles Rhodes had 27 points and 10 rebounds in his final home game. It was Rhodes’s sixth game in his last eight to score 20 or more points and his 12th straight contest to finish in double digits. The 10 rebounds gave Rhodes his 15th career double-double.
Mississippi State (21-9, 12-4) used its defense to facilitate an 18-3 run early in the second half that separated the game.
Ranked second nationally in team defense, the Bulldogs held the Tigers to 38 percent shooting in the game. Mississippi State also blocked 10 shots in the game, setting a new conference record with 243 blocks for the season.
LSU (13-17, 6-10) threatened late with an 11-3 run in the final six minutes thanks to the six three point field goals of Marcus Thornton, but two clutch free throws by Rhodes and a dunk by Jarvis Varnado preserved the Bulldog win.
Jamont Gordon scored 23 points for Mississippi State while Ben Hansbrough added 12.
Mississippi State held a narrow lead for most of the first half, but a couple of free throws by Marcus Thornton in the final minute gave LSU the edge at halftime. The Tigers led 43-42 at the half and remained competitive with the Bulldogs for most of the game, thanks mostly to 38 points from Thornton, which tied his career high.
Chris Johnson had 17 points in the game and Anthony Randolph chipped in 14 for the Tigers.