Mississippi State basketball beats Ole Miss to split series, hurt Rebels' March Madness hopes

STARKVILLE — Chris Beard finally reached his breaking point in Wednesday's matchup between Ole Miss and Mississippi State basketball. After a stretch of possessions where he was unhappy with the officiating, he had enough.

So with 12:17 remaining in the game, the first-year Rebels' coach unleashed on the referee nearest him to earn a technical foul. Perhaps searching for a tactic to fire up his team, Beard instead sparked a Humphrey Coliseum crowd anxious to let him hear it.

The Bulldogs (18-8, 7-6 SEC) used it to their advantage, using the momentum to fuel a crucial 10-2 run en route to a 83-71 win.

For MSU coach Chris Jans, who earned his own technical foul shortly afterwards, the victory earned a series split against the Rebels (19-7, 6-7) and improved his record to 3-1 against them in two seasons.

Wednesday served as a missed opportunity for Ole Miss that could prove costly in the Rebels' quest toward an at-large NCAA Tournament bid. Entering the contest, ESPN projected Ole Miss as the last team in the field of 68. However, with a loss, bracketologist Joe Lunardi said the Rebels would move to the wrong side of the bubble.

Tolu Smith comes off bench, shines for MSU

The first surprise of the evening came moments before tip-off when MSU forward Jimmy Bell Jr. was announced as a starter instead of All-SEC forward Tolu Smith. However, Smith was in uniform and quickly made an impact for the Bulldogs.

Smith checked in just before the under-16 media timeout in the first half. In 14 first-half minutes, he scored 18 of his 24 points. He accounted for nearly half of Mississippi State’s points in the period.

Bell accounted for MSU’s first four points, but he didn’t score again. Bell started the first 14 games of the season for Mississippi State while Smith worked his way back from an offseason injury. However, Smith had started the previous 11 games prior to Wednesday.

Ole Miss flips first half with hot shooting

Mississippi State built a lead as large as 12 in the first half, thanks in large part to Ole Miss missing nine of its first 11 attempts from the field. However, Ole Miss flipped its fortunes and turned the first half around from there.

The Rebels made 13 of their final 19 shots in the first half, including a stretch of three straight made 3-pointers midway through the period. Guard Matthew Murrell continued his strong play by scoring 16 of his 23 points in the first to fuel a 44-40 halftime edge for the visitors.

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What's next on schedule for Mississippi State, Ole Miss?

Mississippi State returns to the road Saturday (7:30 p.m., SEC Network) for a matchup at LSU. The Bulldogs are seeking just their second true road victory this season with the first coming on Feb. 10 at Missouri.

Ole Miss returns to the SJB Pavilion on Saturday (2:30 p.m., SEC Network) to face South Carolina. The matchup opens a crucial two-game homestand for the Rebels with Ole Miss closing the month on Feb. 28 against Alabama.

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: Mississippi Sate basketball vs. Ole Miss: Bulldogs beat Chris Beard