Murphy has a double-double as No. 25 Mississippi State rolls to an 80-58 win over UNLV

TEMPE, Ariz. — KeShawn Murphy had 14 points and 13 rebounds, Josh Hubbard scored 11 and No. 25 Mississippi State overpowered UNLV 80-58 on Thursday night in the Arizona Tip-Off.

The Bulldogs (6-0) used a pair of runs to build a 13-point halftime lead and blew it wide open early in the second half to move into the championship game Friday night against Butler.

Mississippi State had a 46-29 rebounding advantage and scored 30 second-chance points off 19 offensive rebounds.

Jailen Bedford had 13 points and Jalen Hill added 11 to lead the Runnin’ Rebels (4-2).

The Bulldogs dominated after the opening six minutes, using runs of 7-0 and 12-2 to build a 39-21 lead. UNLV used a 6-0 spurt to cut it to 45-32 at halftime.

The Runnin' Rebels shot better overall in the first half at 14 of 25, but the Bulldogs went 7 for 14 from 3-point range and had 16 second-chance points off nine offensive rebounds.

Mississippi State went on an 11-0 run to go up 62-36 and didn't allow UNLV to trim the lead under 20 the rest of the way.

Takeaways

UNLV: The Runnin' Rebels were no match for Mississippi State inside and had a hard time getting big man Jeremiah Cherry going. The 6-foot-11, 280-pound forward finished with eight points on 4-of-5 shooting and had two rebounds against constant double-teams.

Mississippi State: The Bulldogs were relentless on the offensive glass and it paid off, particularly in the first half. Murphy led the way with four offensive rebounds.

Key moment

Mississippi State hit five straight shots while building its big early lead, but the defense keyed it, holding UNLV scoreless for a stretch of 3:18.

Key stat

Mississippi State showed off its depth, outscoring UNLV 48-13 off the bench.

Up next

Mississippi State will face Butler in the championship game Friday night. UNLV plays Northwestern.