2018–19 Mississippi State Bulldogs men's basketball team

The 2018–19 Mississippi State Bulldogs basketball team represented Mississippi State University in the 2018–19 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Bulldogs, led by fourth-year head coach Ben Howland, played their home games at the Humphrey Coliseum in Starkville, Mississippi as members of the Southeastern Conference. They finished the season 23-11, to finish a tie for 6th place. In the SEC Tournament, They defeated Texas A&M in the second round before losing to Tennessee in the quarterfinals. They received a at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament where they were upset by 12th seed Liberty in the first round.

2018–19 Mississippi State Bulldogs men's basketball
NCAA tournament, First Round
Conference	Southeastern Conference
Record	23–11 (10–8 SEC)
Head coach	Ben Howland (4th season)
Assistant coaches	George Brooks Korey McCray Ernie Zeigler
Home arena	Humphrey Coliseum
Seasons ← 2017–18 2019–20 →

2018–19 Southeastern Conference men's basketball standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
No. 15 LSU	16	–	2		.889			28	–	7		.800
No. 10 Tennessee	15	–	3		.833			31	–	6		.838
No. 7 Kentucky	15	–	3		.833			30	–	7		.811
No. 5 Auburn†	11	–	7		.611			30	–	10		.750
South Carolina	11	–	7		.611			16	–	16		.500
Mississippi State	10	–	8		.556			23	–	11		.676
Ole Miss	10	–	8		.556			20	–	13		.606
Florida	9	–	9		.500			20	–	16		.556
Alabama	8	–	10		.444			18	–	16		.529
Arkansas	8	–	10		.444			18	–	16		.529
Texas A&M	6	–	12		.333			14	–	18		.438
Missouri	5	–	13		.278			15	–	17		.469
Georgia	2	–	16		.111			11	–	21		.344
Vanderbilt	0	–	18		.000			9	–	23		.281
† 2019 SEC tournament winner Rankings from AP Poll

Previous season

The Bulldogs finished the 2017–18 season 25–12, 9–9 in SEC play to finish in a tie for seventh place. They defeated LSU in the second round of the SEC tournament before losing in the quarterfinals to Tennessee. They were received an at-large bid to the National Invitation Tournament where they defeated Nebraska, Baylor, and Louisville to advance to the semifinals where they lost to Penn State.

Offseason

Departures

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Reason for departure
Xavian Stapleton	3	G	6'6"	210	RS Junior	Flora, MS	Transferred to Florida Atlantic
Drew Davis	12	G	5'10"	165	Senior	Atlanta, GA	Graduated
Nick Singleton	13	G	6'5"	195	Junior	Decatur, GA	Left team
Eli Wright	32	G	6'4"	190	Sophomore	Owesnboro, KY	Transferred to St. John's
Schnider Herard	34	C	6'10"	260	Sophomore	Plano, TX	Transferred to Maryland

Incoming transfers

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Previous School
Prince Oduro	15	F	6'8"	253	Sophomore	Toronto, ON	Siena
Jethro Tshisumpa	42	F	6'10"	260	Junior	Lubumbashi, Congo	San Jacinto College

2018 recruiting class

College recruiting information

Name	Hometown	School	Height	Weight	Commit date
Reggie Perry #8 PF	Thomasville, Georgia	Thomasville High School	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	239 lb (108 kg)	Jul 17, 2017
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Robert Woodard II #10 SF	Columbus, Mississippi	Columbus High School	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	222 lb (101 kg)	Nov 14, 2017
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
D. J. Stewart Jr. SF	Grace, Mississippi	Riverside High School	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	Jul 24, 2017
	Recruit ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports:    ESPN:
Overall recruit ranking:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, On3, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "Mississippi State 2018 Basketball Commitments". Rivals. Retrieved September 17, 2018. "2018 Mississippi State Basketball Commits". Scout. Retrieved September 17, 2018. "ESPN". ESPN. Retrieved September 17, 2018. "Scout.com Team Recruiting Rankings". Scout. Retrieved September 17, 2018. "2018 Team Ranking". Rivals. Retrieved September 17, 2018.

Roster

2018–19 Mississippi State Bulldogs men's basketball team
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown G 0 Nick Weatherspoon 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 195 lb (88 kg) So Velma Jackson HS Camden, MS F 1 Reggie Perry 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 245 lb (111 kg) Fr Thomasville HS Thomasville, GA G 2 Lamar Peters 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Jr Landry-Walker HS New Orleans, LA G 3 D. J. Stewart Jr.  6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Fr Riverside HS Grace, MS G 4 T. J. Gray (W) 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 165 lb (75 kg) Jr Columbus HS Columbus, MS F 5 Mitchell Storm (W) 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 202 lb (92 kg) Jr Madison Central HS East Mississippi CC Madison, MS G 10 Tate Clayton (W) 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 170 lb (77 kg) So Tupelo HS Tupelo, MS G 11 Quinndary Weatherspoon 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Sr Velma Jackson HS Camden, MS G 12 Robert Woodard II 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 230 lb (104 kg) Fr Columbus HS Columbus, MS F 15 Prince Oduro  6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 255 lb (116 kg) So First Love Christian Academy Siena Toronto, ON F 22 KeyShawn Feazell 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 230 lb (104 kg) So Lawrence County HS New Hebron, MS G 23 Tyson Carter 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 165 lb (75 kg) Jr Starkville HS Starkville, MS F 24 Abdul Ado 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 250 lb (113 kg) RS So Hamilton Heights HS Chattanooga, TN F 30 Andrew Junkin (W) 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 240 lb (109 kg) Fr New Hope HS New Hope, MS F 35 Aric Holman 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 225 lb (102 kg) Sr Owensboro HS Owensboro, KY F 42 Jethro Tshisumpa 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 260 lb (118 kg) Jr Mountain Mission San Jacinto College Lubumbashi, Congo C 45 E. J. Datcher 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 250 lb (113 kg) Jr Vincent HS Vincent, AL	Head coach Ben Howland (Weber State) Assistant coach(es) George Brooks (Mississippi State) Korey McCray (Mercer) Ernie Zeigler (Cleary) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible (W) Walk-on Injured Current redshirt Roster

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Rank#	Opponent#	Result	Record	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Site (attendance) city, state
Exhibition
November 4, 2018* 2:00 pm, SECN+	No. 18	Georgia Southwestern State	W 88–57		17 – Peters	12 – Perry	5 – Peters	Humphrey Coliseum (2,621) Starkville, MS
Non-conference regular season
November 9, 2018* 6:30 pm, SECN+	No. 18	Austin Peay	W 95–67	1–0	21 – Q. Weatherspoon	10 – Holman	7 – Peters	Humphrey Coliseum (5,977) Starkville, MS
November 11, 2018* 4:00 pm, SECN	No. 18	Hartford MGM Resorts Main Event campus-site game	W 77–59	2–0	22 – Q. Weatherspoon	10 – Ado	4 – Peters	Humphrey Coliseum (5,953) Starkville, MS
November 16, 2018* 8:00 pm, SECN	No. 17	Long Beach State MGM Resorts Main Event campus-site game	W 79–51	3–0	21 – Q. Weatherspoon	14 – Perry	4 – Tied	Humphrey Coliseum (8,106) Starkville, MS
November 19, 2018* 10:00 pm, ESPNU	No. 15	vs. Arizona State MGM Resorts Main Event Heavyweight semifinals	L 67–72	3–1	22 – Holman	10 – Holman	6 – Peters	T-Mobile Arena (2,507) Paradise, NV
November 20, 2018* 7:30 pm	No. 15	vs. Saint Mary's MGM Resorts Main Event Heavyweight	W 61–57	4–1	12 – Tied	11 – Holman	5 – Peters	T-Mobile Arena (3,157) Paradise, NV
November 26, 2018* 7:00 pm, SECN+	No. 25	Alcorn State	W 88–65	5–1	17 – Tied	11 – Perry	7 – Peters	Humphrey Coliseum (6,537) Starkville, MS
November 30, 2018* 6:00 pm, CBSSN	No. 25	at Dayton	W 65–58	6–1	21 – Q. Weatherspoon	12 – Q. Weatherspoon	8 – Peters	UD Arena (13,455) Dayton, OH
December 4, 2018* 7:00 pm, SECN+	No. 22	McNeese State	W 90–77	7–1	27 – Peters	11 – Holman	5 – Peters	Humphrey Coliseum (6,437) Starkville, MS
December 8, 2018* 3:00 pm, ESPN2	No. 22	vs. Clemson Never Forget Tribute Classic	W 82–71	8–1	28 – Peters	7 – Q. Weatherspoon	6 – N. Weatherspoon	Prudential Center (7,142) Newark, NJ
December 15, 2018* 7:30 pm, SECN	No. 18	Cincinnati	W 70–59	9–1	14 – Tied	10 – Holman	9 – Peters	Humphrey Coliseum (9,120) Starkville, MS
December 19, 2018* 7:00 pm, SECN+	No. 17	Wofford	W 98–87	10–1	19 – Tied	8 – Holman	8 – Peters	Humphrey Coliseum (6,443) Starkville, MS
December 22, 2018* 6:00 pm, SECN	No. 17	vs. Wright State Jackson Showcase	W 67–63	11–1	14 – Q. Weatherspoon	9 – Holman	6 – Peters	Mississippi Coliseum (3,021) Jackson, MS
December 29, 2018* 11:00 am, ESPNU	No. 19	BYU	W 103–81	12–1	28 – Holman	8 – Tied	6 – Peters	Humphrey Coliseum (10,202) Starkville, MS
SEC regular season
January 8, 2019 8:00 pm, ESPNU	No. 14	at South Carolina	L 82–87 OT	12–2 (0–1)	20 – Holman	10 – Holman	7 – Peters	Colonial Life Arena (8,776) Columbia, SC
January 12, 2019 12:00 pm, CBS	No. 14	Ole Miss	L 77–81	12–3 (0–2)	18 – Q. Weatherspoon	11 – Ado	4 – Peters	Humphrey Coliseum (10,021) Starkville, MS
January 15, 2019 6:00 pm, SECN	No. 24	Florida	W 71–68	13–3 (1–2)	16 – Peters	5 – Tied	6 – Peters	Humphrey Coliseum (7,501) Starkville, MS
January 19, 2019 7:30 pm, SECN	No. 24	at Vanderbilt	W 71–55	14–3 (2–2)	17 – Q. Weatherspoon	9 – Holman	4 – Q. Weatherspoon	Memorial Gymnasium (9,570) Nashville, TN
January 22, 2019 6:00 pm, ESPN	No. 22	at No. 8 Kentucky	L 55–76	14–4 (2–3)	19 – Q. Weatherspoon	13 – Woodard II	3 – Peters	Rupp Arena (21,449) Lexington, KY
January 26, 2019 7:00 pm, SECN	No. 22	No. 16 Auburn	W 92–84	15–4 (3–3)	27 – Q. Weatherspoon	11 – Perry	10 – Peters	Humphrey Coliseum (10,063) Starkville, MS
January 29, 2019 7:30 pm, SECN	No. 22	at Alabama	L 79–83	15–5 (3–4)	18 – Perry	8 – Holman	4 – Peters	Coleman Coliseum (11,632) Tuscaloosa, AL
February 2, 2019 2:30 pm, SECN	No. 22	at Ole Miss	W 81–75	16–5 (4–4)	27 – Q. Weatherspoon	11 – Perry	6 – Peters	The Pavilion at Ole Miss (9,500) Oxford, MS
February 6, 2019 8:00 pm, ESPN2		No. 21 LSU	L 88–92 OT	16–6 (4–5)	27 – Q. Weatherspoon	10 – Perry	6 – Peters	Humphrey Coliseum (7,456) Starkville, MS
February 9, 2019 12:00 pm, CBS		No. 5 Kentucky	L 67–71	16–7 (4–6)	16 – Peters	5 – Woodard II	3 – Q. Weatherspoon	Humphrey Coliseum (9,019) Starkville, MS
February 12, 2019 8:00 pm, SECN		Alabama	W 81–62	17–7 (5–6)	22 – Peters	10 – Perry	6 – Q. Weatherspoon	Humphrey Coliseum (8,022) Starkville, MS
February 16, 2019 7:30 pm, SECN		at Arkansas	W 77–67	18–7 (6–6)	22 – Q. Weatherspoon	10 – Perry	4 – Carter	Bud Walton Arena (17,022) Fayetteville, AR
February 20, 2019 5:30 pm, SECN		at Georgia	W 68–67	19–7 (7–6)	31 – Q. Weatherspoon	6 – Tied	4 – Carter	Stegeman Coliseum (7,153) Athens, GA
February 23, 2019 5:00 pm, SECN		South Carolina	W 76–61	20–7 (8–6)	21 – Perry	6 – Perry	9 – Peters	Humphrey Coliseum (8,655) Starkville, MS
February 26, 2019 6:00 pm, SECN		Missouri	W 68–49	21–7 (9–6)	24 – Carter	9 – Perry	5 – Peters	Humphrey Coliseum (7,058) Starkville, MS
March 2, 2019 3:00 pm, ESPNU		at Auburn	L 75–80	21–8 (9–7)	25 – Q. Weatherspoon	14 – Perry	6 – Q. Weatherspoon	Auburn Arena (9,121) Auburn, AL
March 5, 2019 8:00 pm, SECN		at No. 5 Tennessee	L 54–71	21–9 (9–8)	14 – Carter	12 – Perry	3 – Tied	Thompson–Boling Arena (20,555) Knoxville, TN
March 9, 2019 1:00 pm, ESPN2		Texas A&M	W 92–81	22–9 (10–8)	21 – Peters	9 – Holman	8 – Peters	Humphrey Coliseum (8,732) Starkville, MS
SEC tournament
March 14, 2019 8:00 pm, SECN	(6)	vs. (11) Texas A&M Second Round	W 80–54	23–9	15 – Peters	8 – Woodard	9 – Q. Weatherspoon	Bridgestone Arena (14,813) Nashville, TN
March 15, 2019 8:00 pm, SECN	(6)	vs. (3) No. 8 Tennessee Quarterfinals	L 76–83	23–10	20 – Holman	12 – Perry	5 – Peters	Bridgestone Arena (19,575) Nashville, TN
NCAA tournament
March 22, 2019* 6:27 pm, truTV	(5 E)	vs. (12 E) Liberty First Round	L 76–80	23–11	27 – Q. Weatherspoon	10 – Perry	5 – Peters	SAP Center (12,824) San Jose, CA
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central Time.

^[1]

Rankings

See also: 2018–19 NCAA Division I men's basketball rankings

Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
— = Not ranked RV = Received votes

	Week
Poll	Pre	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	Final
AP	18	17	15	25	22	18	17	19	17	14	24	22	22	RV	—	RV				Not released
Coaches	19	19^	15	25	22	17	16	17	16	14	23	22	21	22	—	RV				RV

*AP does not release post-NCAA Tournament rankings
^Coaches did not release a Week 2 poll.