Mississippi State basketball beats Georgia, stays on right side of NCAA Tournament bubble

STARKVILLE — Mississippi State basketball has been no stranger to playing must-win games at Humphrey Coliseum this season.

On Jan. 20, coming off back-to-back losses, MSU couldn't afford a loss at home to a woeful Vanderbilt team. The Bulldogs prevailed. A week later, after losing at Florida, Mississippi State needed a résumé-boosting win against a top-10 Auburn team. MSU got it.

So Wednesday's home matchup against Georgia (14-9, 4-6 SEC), after losing two straight games, was familiar territory for Mississippi State (15-8, 4-6). Again, MSU prevailed in a 75-62 win.

The victory came with Mississippi State among the last four teams cracking the NCAA Tournament field in ESPN's latest projection. Behind four players in double figures, coach Chris Jans' team avoided picking up a Quadrant 3 loss.

Forward Tolu Smith led MSU with 19 points and 12 rebounds.

Shawn Jones Jr. starts with D.J. Jeffries injured

With forward D.J. Jeffries sidelined for “a while,” according to Jans, guard Shawn Jones Jr. has been thrust into the starting lineup. The start against Georgia marked the second in the sophomore’s career, with both coming this season.

Jones finished with seven points on 2-for-11 shooting in 33 minutes. When Georgia went on a 10-0 run with six minutes to play to cut MSU's lead to three, Jones connected on a 3-pointer to regain momentum.

Despite being a walk-on, Jones has had a big role through Jans’ two seasons. His minutes per game have jumped from 12 to 18 this season while appearing in all 23 games for MSU.

KeShawn Murphy makes return for Mississippi State

MSU got a needed return to the lineup from forward KeShawn Murphy with Jeffries sidelined, and it didn’t take long for him to deliver. On his second possession, after checking in with 14 minutes to play in the first half, Murphy connected on a 3-pointer for his first points since a Jan. 6 contest at South Carolina – the last game he appeared in.

Murphy finished with 10 in 15 minutes against UGA.

Throughout his absence the past month, Murphy occasionally took part in warm-ups, although he wasn’t with the team for certain contests. Jans has cited personal manners as the reason for Murphy not playing.

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What’s next on Mississippi State’s schedule?

Mississippi State is back on the road for a contest at Missouri on Saturday (7:30 p.m., SEC Network). The Bulldogs are still searching for their first win in a true road game this season.

After facing the Tigers, MSU is off until a Feb. 17 home game against Arkansas.

Stefan Krajisnik is the Mississippi State beat writer for the Clarion Ledger. Contact him at skrajisnik@gannett.com or follow him on the X platform, formerly known as Twitter, @skrajisnik3.

This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: NCAA Tournament bubble: Mississippi State basketball beats Georgia