Tolu Smith's absence felt in Mississippi State basketball's first loss at Georgia Tech
Mississippi State basketball won six straight games to open the season, including three against Power Five foes, to make the absence of All-SEC forward Tolu Smith look manageable until his expected return in conference play.
But for the first time this year, with MSU losing 67-59 at Georgia Tech (3-2) on Tuesday in the ACC/SEC Challenge, Mississippi State (6-1) clearly missed its best player.
The Bulldogs had their worst shooting night of the season (31%), much of which was due to a lack of presence in the post. West Virginia transfer Jimmy Bell Jr., who was expected to be Smith’s backup but stepped into a bigger role following the offseason injury, has been a trustworthy option for MSU to open the season. But Bell's line of six points on 2-4 shooting summed up the Bulldogs’ woes.
MSU couldn’t get the inside game going with players settling for shots outside the paint. To open the second half, MSU had a stretch of nine consecutive 3-point attempts.
Mississippi State struggles in transition
On nights where Mississippi State struggled offensively last season, coach Chris Jans’ first at the helm, the transition game created by its defense often helped. That wasn’t the case against the Yellow Jackets.
MSU scored just five points off 12 turnovers. The Bulldogs had just one more turnover than the Yellow Jackets, but the hosts turned their chances into 16 points.
Georgia Tech dominates first half
To assume Georgia Tech would make seven 3-pointers against MSU would be fair. That’s how many makes the Yellow Jackets were averaging from deep entering the contest, and that’s how many the Bulldogs were allowing.
However, Georgia Tech nearly surpassed that mark in the first half en route to a 13-point lead at the break. GT shot 6-of-14 (43%) in the opening half, highlighted by three makes from guard Miles Kelly.
On the other end, Mississippi State made just two of its 10 attempts from range and only one in the final 16 minutes of the first period. MSU shot 30% to Georgia Tech’s 48% while turning it over four times and scoring no points off the Yellow Jackets’ three turnovers in the first.
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What’s next on Mississippi State’s schedule?
Mississippi State returns to Humphrey Coliseum on Sunday (3 p.m., SEC Network) for a matchup with Southern. MSU then gets a week off for final exams before returning to Atlanta for a Holiday Hoopsgiving game against Tulane at State Farm Arena.
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 State basketball: Loss of Tolu Smith felt at Georgia Tech
