With an 87-77 win over LSU on Wednesday, Mizzou snuck back up into the top half of the SEC standings. The Tigers will look to remain there as they take on Mississippi State on the road this weekend.

Like LSU, the Bulldogs got off to a strong start in non-conference play under first-year head coach Chris Jans, going 11-1, but appeared to hit a wall as league play approached. Mississippi State began its conference slate going 1-7, but has since bounced back with back-to-back wins over No. 11 TCU and South Carolina.

The game between Mizzou and the Bulldogs is set to be an interesting stylistic matchup, with the Tigers’ No. 9 scoring offense going up against Mississippi State’s No. 8 scoring defense. MU head coach Dennis Gates said he expects a tough contest.

“They have a lot of versatility as well,” Gates said. “They do a good job across all categories. They do a great job of offensively doing the things that they need to do, whether it's to post feed or make the shots or attack the paint. They essentially play a style that I think has, without a doubt, produced great defensive numbers. And whenever you can do that, you look at what you do offensively and defensively, and they do do those things.”

Missouri (17-5, 5-4 SEC) at Mississippi State (14-8, 2-7)

WHEN: 5 p.m. CT

WHERE: Humphrey Coliseum, Starkville, Mississippi

TV: SEC Network

SERIES: Mississippi State leads, 12-5

KENPOM PREDICTION: Mississippi State 73, Mizzou 70

Nick Honor-D'Moi Hodge-Isiaih Mosley-Noah Carter-Kobe Brown

Minutes played: 19

Offensive rating: 170.7

Defensive rating: 113.8

Net rating: +56.9

1. Take the ball and take care of it. Missouri took down No. 12 Iowa State last week despite the Tigers playing at the 38th-fastest pace in the country and the Cyclones playing at the 48th-slowest, per KenPom. They did so by pressuring ISU into giving the ball up, forcing 19 turnovers, staying disciplined on offense, committing 12 turnovers themselves, and pushing the ball in transition, scoring 20 points off of turnovers. The game plan should be similar against Mississippi State, a team that ranks 328th in adjusted tempo. The Bulldogs are also a threat to force a high number of turnovers — they rank No. 1 in the SEC in turnover rate while Mizzou is No. 2. The Tigers, however, have an edge in taking care of the ball: MSU has coughed it up on 19.0% of possessions while MU has done so just 15.9% of the time. If the Bulldogs want to play in a slow-paced game, the Tigers need to take away the number of opportunities they have to score.

2. As former NBA head coach Stan Van Gundy would say, “Form a f—ing wall.” Mississippi State rosters a high-caliber interior scorer in senior forward Tolu Smith. The big man is extremely efficient inside the arc, averaging 14.5 points per game while shooting 57.8% from the floor. He also gets to the free throw line at an incredible rate, drawing 7.5 fouls per 40 minutes, which ranks eighth in the nation according to KenPom. Smith has taken 206 field goal attempts and 146 foul shots, the latter of which leads the SEC. The post only knocks down 54.8% of his free throws, though, and, like many of his teammates, isn’t much of a threat from outside. Just two Bulldogs — senior guard Dashawn Davis and freshman forward KeShawn Murphy — are connecting on at least 30% of their 3-pointers. MSU makes 28.1% of its 3s, making it the fifth-worst shooting team in the NCAA. Mizzou has to pack the paint and dare the Bulldogs to fire from distance.

3. Don’t get discouraged by misses. The Tigers have been red hot on offense in their last three outings, shooting above 49% from the floor and above 46% from 3 in each victory. There’s a decent chance the ball won’t go in as often against Mississippi State. Defense is the Bulldogs’ calling card — they have allowed opponents to shoot just 44.7% from the field and 31.0% from deep all year long, both marks below the D1 average. Per KenPom, 37.4% of points scored against MSU have come from long-range, the 19th-highest percentage in the country. Gates said that he told his players to “keep shooting” as Mizzou went through a four-game slump before its current three-game winning streak. But the Tigers need to keep shooting while they’re on fire, too. Even if the first few don’t fall against the Bulldogs, Missouri has to continue to rely on triples.

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