It’s been a chaotic week in college basketball, and it’s only Wednesday night.
A pair of unranked teams knocked off top-five opponents again on Wednesday, marking a great beginning to conference play across the country. Mississippi State fended off No. 5 Tennessee 77-72 first in Starkville in what was the Bulldogs’ first win over a top-10 opponent since 2002. Then UCF grabbed its first conference win since joining the Big 12 when it knocked off No. 3 Kansas 65-60 in Orlando.
The upsets came one day after both No. 1 Purdue and No. 2 Houston lost to unranked opponents on Tuesday night. Nebraska rolled past Purdue to grab a dominant 16-point win in Lincoln, and Iowa State stunned No. 2 Houston in Ames. The Cougars were the last undefeated team left in men’s Division-1 basketball.
The four losses should, in theory, pave the way for UConn to jump to No. 1 in the rankings next week. The Huskies, who are currently ranked No. 4, entered their game against Xavier on Wednesday night with a 13-2 record.
Mississippi State fends off No. 5 Tennessee
Mississippi State and Tolu Smith got the job done on Wednesday night.
The Bulldogs, with Smith back in the starting lineup after an offseason injury, powered past the Vols at Humphrey Coliseum. They flew to a 15-point lead just before halftime while holding Tennessee to just 33% shooting from the field in the first 20 minutes. The Volunteers’ 22 points in the first half marked their worst output of the season.
Though Tennessee tied it back up by the final media timeout, and Dalton Knecht threw down a huge dunk to tie it once again with 34 seconds left on the clock, that was as close as the Vols got. Smith responded with an and-one layup through a ton of contact, and then Cameron Matthews threw down a dunk of his own after forcing a turnover at the buzzer to seal the five-point win.
🏀 What a game for Mississippi State men’s basketball
The Bulldogs top 5-Tennessee, 77-72
It’s MSU’s first AP Top 10 win since 2002
MRA grad Josh Hubbard led with 25 points
Tolu Smith had 23Here’s the wild ending: pic.twitter.com/4aQwtHjXlC
— David Edelstein 🌐 (@davidzedelstein) January 11, 2024
Knecht led Tennessee with 28 points and six rebounds in the loss while shooting 10-of-18 from the field. Zakai Zeigler had 26 points and seven assists. Those two combined for all eight of Tennessee’s 3-pointers on the night, and they were the only two to score in double figures. The loss was Tennessee’s fourth on the season, and it snapped a seven-game win streak.
Josh Hubbard led Mississippi State with 25 points off the bench, thanks to five made 3-pointers. Smith added 23 points and shot 7-of-10 from the field. The Bulldogs are now 12-3 on the season and have won six of their last seven games. They entered Wednesday night after falling to South Carolina.
UCF rallies to beat No. 3 Kansas
Kansas got out in front early on Wednesday night, and seemed poised to cruise to an easy win in its first conference trip to Orlando. The Jayhawks picked up a 16-point lead near the end of the first half, and had little issue shutting down the Knights early.
UCF, however, closed the first half on a 10-2 run to cut the game back to single digits at the break. Then the Knights limited Kansas to just 23 points in the second half — and just three points in the final three minutes of the game. The Jayhawks’ only points down the stretch came from a 3-pointer from Hunter Dickinson with 17 seconds left on the clock, but it was too late. Darius Johnson hit a pair of free throws to push UCF’s lead back to five points, and then the Knights got one last stop to secure the win — which sparked a big celebration at Addition Financial Arena.
That was only fitting, considering it was their first Big 12 win in program history.
Kevin McCullar led Kansas with 16 points in the loss, and Dickinson was held to just 12 points and four rebounds. K.J. Adams finished with 10 points and seven rebounds, and was the only other Jayhawks player to hit double figures.
Jaylin Sellers led UCF with 18 points in the win after he shot 7-of-11 from the field. Johnson finished with 17 points and six assists, and Ibrahima Diallo added 13 points. UCF now sits at 10-4 on the season, and entered Wednesday night on the heels of a 25-point loss to Kansas State to kick off conference play last week. It marked the Knights’ first win over a ranked opponent this season, too, after they fell to Miami early on.
While the win is undoubtedly huge for the program, the Knights won’t have much time to celebrate. They’ve got No. 18 BYU, No. 25 Texas and No. 2 Houston waiting for them in their next three games.
Welcome to the Big 12.
Daniel Miller is a sports fanatic who lives and breathes athletics. His coverage spans from major league championships to local sports events, delivering up-to-the-minute updates and in-depth analysis for sports enthusiasts.
