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Mississippi State basketball thumped by Alabama, remains winless on road in SEC

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Mississippi State basketball carried two trends entering Saturday's game at Alabama. The Bulldogs had yet to win a true road game this season, and they'd lost their past five against the Crimson Tide.

It quickly became apparent at Coleman Coliseum that neither of those trends was coming to an end, with Alabama cruising to a 99-67 victory.

To call it a dominating effort undersells Alabama's performance. Despite not having its best shooting night, it made 15 3-pointers to Mississippi State's four. The Tide played cleaner, turning it over just 11 times while converting 18 Bulldogs turnovers into 27 points. Coach Nate Oats' squad played tougher, out-rebounding MSU 48-37.

Even the communication was better for Alabama (16-6, 8-1 SEC). During an inbounds play in the second half, MSU guard Shawn Jones Jr. was caught discussing a defensive play with a teammate while Alabama's Aaron Estrada was running toward an open 3-pointer.

Despite a 6-0 record in neutral site games, road environments continue to haunt Mississippi State (14-8, 3-6) in coach Chris Jans' second season.

D.J. Jeffries, Josh Hubbard injured

Prior to the under-8 media timeout in the first half, MSU forward D.J. Jeffries landed awkwardly and appeared to injure his left leg while on defense. However, he took the floor out of the break. On the first possession, though, it became apparent he was still hurt as he limped around the court.

Jans, appearing befuddled that the starting forward took the court while injured, immediately took Jeffries out of the game. He did not return to action.

MSU freshman guard Josh Hubbard was injured shortly after. However, after having his left ankle looked at on the bench, he returned to the court two minutes later. Hubbard, who entered Saturday averaging 15.2 points per game, finished with seven points while making 1 of 9 field goal attempts.

IMPRESSIVE DISPLAY: How Mississippi State, Ole Miss brought basketball fever back into heated rivalry

What’s next on Mississippi State’s schedule?

Mississippi State is back at Humphrey Coliseum on Wednesday (8 p.m. CT, SEC Network) to face Georgia (14-8, 4-5), marking just the second non-Quadrant 1 SEC game for MSU this season.

Mississippi State lost the lone meeting between the Bulldogs teams last season. Prior to that, MSU had won the previous five. UGA has lost its past three games, including Saturday’s 72-62 home defeat against South Carolina.

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 loses at Alabama, still winless on road