Murphy, Matthews lead Mississippi State to 72-54 win over North Texas

TUPELO, Miss. -- — KeShawn Murphy scored 18 points off the bench, Cameron Matthews was all over the stat sheet and Mississippi State defeated North Texas 72-54 on Sunday.

Matthews had nine points, 12 rebounds, seven assists, five steals and three blocks. D.J. Jeffries had 13 points and was the only starter to reach double figures in scoring. Josh Hubbard, another reserve for the Bulldogs (9-2), scored 11 points.

Mississippi State led 36-32 at halftime after North Texas shot 54% to keep up with the Bulldogs. The second half was a different story as MSU outscored North Texas 36-22 and the Mean Green made only five field goals in 23 tries (21.7%). For the game, Mississippi State shot 41.7% to 38.3% for North Texas.

The Bulldogs had runs of 12-0 and 9-0 in the second half to blow the game open.

Rubin Jones scored 20 points, Jason Edwards 11 and Aaron Scott 10 for the Mean Green (5-5).

Mississippi State made the trek to Tupelo for the first time in over a decade and the Bulldogs improved to 5-0 at their alternate home.

Mississippi State plays Rutgers on Saturday at the Gotham Classic in Newark, N.J.

North Texas hosts UT Arlington on Saturday.

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