Tolu Smith was happy to take advantage.
The Mississippi State forward made the most out of a second chance the Bulldogs probably never should have gotten in Thursday’s second-round Southeastern Conference tournament game against South Carolina.
Just seconds after the Gamecocks’ Keyshawn Bryant blew a breakaway dunk attempt, Smith collected an offensive rebound off a miss by guard Shakeel Moore. Smith banked a tough layup off the glass and in, putting Mississippi State up five in a key second-half stretch.
“After that dunk, momentum completely went our way,” Moore said. “We took advantage of it, and it was up from there.”
With so much on the line Thursday night, Smith and the Bulldogs weren’t going to miss that kind of chance.
Playing in just his 19th game this season, Smith posted a double-double with 20 points and 12 rebounds to lead 10th-seeded Mississippi State (18-14) to a 73-51 rout of No. 7 seed South Carolina (18-13) on Thursday at Amalie Arena in Tampa, Florida.
“I thought Tolu had a great game today,” Mississippi State coach Ben Howland said. “He did a lot of nice things. His teammates did a good job feeding him.”
The Bulldogs big man missed time throughout most of the season for various reasons. He hurt one foot, then the other. He tested positive for COVID-19. Then he dislocated his knee.
But Smith has been making the most of his opportunities ever since getting healthy, and Thursday was no exception.
The one-time Western Kentucky transfer has scored 18 or more points in each of his past five games, including two double-doubles. Against the Gamecocks, Smith pulled down 11 of his 12 rebounds after halftime as the Bulldogs pulled away.
Mississippi State led by just two points at the break but locked down South Carolina throughout the second half. The Gamecocks made just 4 of their 31 shot attempts in the final 20 minutes, shooting an unsightly percentage from the field after making five 3-pointers in the first half.
“I thought our defense really picked up in the second half,” Howland said.
Some credit for that can go to Howland’s decision to start Andersson García, who had impressed off the bench all the season. García was no different Thursday, blocking a shot on the game’s very first possession and grabbing 14 rebounds in all before fouling out in 24 minutes.
Howland, who traded his typical sweatshirt for a black suit and maroon paisley tie, said his sartorial choice and the decision to insert García into the starting lineup for the first time were related.
“I’m wearing a suit. We’re starting Andersson. I’m changing it up,” Howland said.
Those changes worked to near perfection for the Bulldogs. Mississippi State scored nine of the next 11 points after Bryant’s missed dunk, all on layups and free throws before Shakeel Moore hit his second 3-pointer.
MSU made three triples Thursday, more than the past four games combined as the Bulldogs went 2 of 37 from deep in all.
But Mississippi State’s 42 points in the point that impressed Howland most after the victory.
“I thought we got a couple really big transition baskets that were easy layups, and I thought we got a lot on offensive rebounding,” he said.
Six points from Smith and a fastbreak layup by Molinar pushed Mississippi State’s lead to 18 with 4:17 to go, putting the Gamecocks away for good. Smith told the SEC Network the Bulldogs solved the pressure defense South Carolina used to keep them in check in the first half.
“We just had to go back to the drawing board and realize we could break this press,” Smith said. “Once we did that, we did good, and we executed well offensively.”
That earned Smith and Mississippi State a date with Tennessee, which beat MSU 72-63 on Feb. 9 in Starkville. The Bulldogs hung around late in that game but couldn’t pull the upset of the Volunteers.
This time, if they want to make the NCAA tournament, they’ll have to.
“They’re really good,” Howland said of the Vols. “I’m so impressed with them, how they move the ball. They’re top 10 in defensive efficiency in the country. They have depth.”
Theo DeRosa reports on Mississippi State sports for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter at @Theo_DeRosa.
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