By james art 
They don’t ask how, they just ask how much. #14 Mississippi State basketball had a tough road trip against South Carolina, prevailing 65-60 in overtime. It was a slow offensive day for the Bulldogs, but they eventually found enough momentum to take a 50-36 lead with 8:50 left in regulation.
Unfortunately, running an ugly offense would lead to enough easy buckets for South Carolina to get right back into it. The Gamecocks would close the game on a 19-5 run to force overtime. That sloppiness would continue into the extra period, and despite turning the lead over, State looked primed to get it back. Fortunately, they hung on and walked away with a much-needed win.
In the end, the Bulldog defense did enough
After allowing an average of 83 ppg over the last four, holding an opponent to 60 points (55 in regulation) was a welcome sight for the Bulldogs. State held South Carolina to 29.3 percent shooting and just 20 percent from three. They forced 19 turnovers. Outside of free throws and second-chance opportunities, the Gamecocks couldn’t get anything going on offense. Now, South Carolina is not a good offensive team, but this was an opportunity in a tight end game for a state quarterback and they took advantage.
The insistence on three-point shooting is hurting Mississippi basketball
This game could be a lot less stressful if the state didn’t shoot so many threes. The Bulldogs attempted 26 3-pointers, making just six of them. It’s only fair, a lot of those looks were eye-opening, and you’d think this list would be apt to take advantage. But as we’ve seen lately, this team as a whole is ice cold from distance.
Meanwhile, they are finding success attacking the paint. State shot 57 percent from two and was most effective when they got Keshaun Murphy and Michael Nwoko the ball. If that was the approach for the entire game, the Bulldogs probably won easily.
Despite the stressful game, Mississippi State basketball picking up another road win should not be dismissed
It wasn’t pretty and the opponent makes the performance a little more disappointing. But Mississippi State fans shouldn’t dismiss this win as insignificant. Road wins in the SEC, even against South Carolina, are incredibly difficult to come by. This same Gamecocks team went wire to wire with top 5 squads in Auburn and Florida. They are better than their records show.
State now has a 4-2 road record, with two of those wins coming in SEC Play. The only SEC team with more road wins on the year is Alabama. That’s big for their resurgence and could be a factor boosting their seeding come Sunday.