National Basketball Association
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Mississippi St. 62, Florida St. 55
When: 8:00 PM ET, Friday, January 2, 2015
Where: Humphrey Coliseum, Starkville, Mississippi
Officials: # Lee Cassell, # Tony Greene, # Chuck Jones
Attendance: 5756

Mississippi State 62, Florida State 55: I.J. Ready was 6-of-7 shooting and scored 12 of his 14 points in the second half as the host Bulldogs edged the Seminoles.

Travis Daniels added 12 points as Mississippi State (7-6) won for only the second time in eight games. Gavin Ware contributed 10 points and eight rebounds and the Bulldogs racked up 10 steals.

Devon Bookert scored 16 points and made four 3-pointers for Florida State (8-6). Xavier Rathan-Mayes added 12 points but committed five of the Seminoles’ 19 turnovers.

A three-point play by Daniels pushed the Bulldogs ahead 54-50 with 3:35 remaining before the Seminoles moved back within 54-53 on Rathan-Mayes’ hoop with 2:02 left. Mississippi State’s Craig Sword drove for a hoop with 52.5 seconds to play and Roquez Johnson added two free throws for a five-point margin and Florida State never got closer than three before the horn sounded.

A tip-in by Daniels gave Mississippi State a 22-16 lead with 3:09 left in the first half before Florida State closed with a 9-0 run, including a 3-pointer by Rathan-Mayes for a 25-22 halftime advantage. Montay Brandon’s ferocious dunk gave Florida State a 39-38 lead with 11:16 remaining before Johnson scored back-to-back baskets to start a 9-2 burst as the Bulldogs took a six-point lead with seven minutes to play.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Four different Florida State players committed three or more turnovers. … Mississippi State was 2-of-14 from 3-point range. … The Seminoles were 11-of-19 from the free-throw line while the Bulldogs were 12-of-13.
Top Game Performances
 
Florida St.   Mississippi St.
Devon Bookert 16 Scoring I.J. Ready 14
Xavier Rathan-Mayes 4 Assists Trivante Bloodman 2
Xavier Rathan-Mayes 6 Rebounds Gavin Ware 8
Boris Bojanovsky 2 Free Throws Made Roquez Johnson 3
Xavier Rathan-Mayes 2 Steals I.J. Ready 3
Boris Bojanovsky 1 Blocks Gavin Ware 2
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Florida St. 55 44.2 6-14 11-19 10 23 5 4 19
Mississippi St. 62 46.2 2-14 12-13 7 26 4 10 12