South Carolina Gamecocks vs Mississippi State Bulldogs Prediction, 1/4/2025 College Basketball Picks, Best Bets & Odds

Game: South Carolina Gamecocks vs Mississippi State Bulldogs

Date: Saturday, January 4, 2025

Location: Humphrey Coliseum in Starkville, MS

TV: ESPN+

The Mississippi State Bulldogs (12-1) will compete against the South Carolina Gamecocks (10-3) at Humphrey Coliseum on Saturday.

The South Carolina Gamecocks took the court against Presbyterian and notched a win by a score of 69-59 in their last game. South Carolina wrapped up the contest having earned a 45.8% FG percentage (22 out of 48) and made 5 of 13 3-point attempts. At the charity stripe, the Gamecocks buried 20 of their 30 tries for a percentage of 66.7%. In relation to pulling down boards, they earned 30 with 11 of them being offensive. They also recorded 15 assists in this contest as well as forcing the other team into 13 turnovers and having 7 steals. Concerning the defense, South Carolina allowed their opponent to shoot 47.7% from the field on 21 out of 44 shooting. Presbyterian doled out 8 assists and had 7 steals for the matchup. Moreover, Presbyterian grabbed 21 rebounds (3 offensive, 18 defensive), but wasn't able to record a block. Presbyterian finished the game shooting 75.0% from the charity stripe by converting 12 of their 16 shots. They made 5 of their 10 attempts from beyond the perimeter. Concerning personal fouls, the Gamecocks left the arena with 14 while Presbyterian totaled 25 personal fouls.

Collin Murray-Boyles is someone who was a major factor for this contest. He ended up going 60.0% from the floor and dished out 2 assists. He was on the hardwood for 34 minutes and totaled 9 rebounds. He ended up scoring 22 points on 6 out of 10 shooting.

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South Carolina heads into this game with a win-loss record of 10-3 for the year. They are turning it over 11.2 times per game and as a group are committing 15.9 fouls on a nightly basis. As a unit, South Carolina is pulling down 36.8 rebounds per contest and has accounted for 188 assists for the campaign, which ranks 197th in Division 1 in terms of passing the ball. The Gamecocks are shooting 35.2% on shots from distance (102 of 290) and 69.2% from the charity stripe. They have an average of 75.6 points per contest (190th in the country) on 45.8% from the field.

When they are on defense, the Gamecocks have forced 10.6 turnovers every game while drawing 21.0 fouls. They give up 31.5% from beyond the arc and they are ranked 54th in college hoops in points per game allowed (65.6). The Gamecocks defensively are giving up a FG percentage of 41.1% (311 of 756) and they relinquish 32.7 rebounds per contest as a group. They are ranked 28th in college in allowing assists to the opposition with 131 surrendered for the campaign.

When they last played, the Mississippi State Bulldogs took home the win by a final score of 87-73 against Bethune-Cookman. The Bulldogs earned 20 defensive boards and 12 offensive boards totaling 32 in this matchup. They also gave up possession of the ball 9 times, while recording 11 steals in the matchup. Bethune-Cookman had 18 fouls for the contest which took the Bulldogs to the free throw line for a total of 24 attempts. They were able to knock down 17 of the free throw tries for a percentage of 70.8%. Pertaining to shots from distance, Mississippi State converted 8 out of 25 tries (32.0%). At the conclusion of this game, the Bulldogs shot 31 for 61 from the field which had them shooting 50.8%. The Bulldogs allowed Bethune-Cookman to bury 26 out of 52 attempts from the floor which had them shooting 50.0% in this game. They went 33.3% from 3-point land by shooting 5 out of 15 and ended up going 16 of 24 at the free throw line (66.7%). In relation to how they cleaned up the glass, Mississippi State allowed Bethune-Cookman to collect 30 overall (8 offensive).

Riley Kugel was important for the Bulldogs for the contest. He made 10 of 13 in this matchup for a field goal percentage of 76.9%, and had 4 rebounds. He accumulated 22 points in his 22 minutes on the court and accounted for 3 assists in this contest.

Mississippi State has a win-loss mark of 12-1 on the year. On the offensive side of the ball, the Bulldogs are hitting on 46.9% from the floor, which is 108th in Division 1. Mississippi State has accounted for 1,091 pts for the season (83.9 per game) and they average 39.5 boards per game. They are dishing out assists 17.6 times per game (28th in college) and they are giving up possession 9.5 times per game. The Bulldogs are responsible for committing 16.8 fouls per contest while shooting 68.9% from the charity stripe.

The Bulldogs on the defensive side of the court are 101st in D-1 in PPG given up with 68.0. They have forced 14.8 TO's per game and allow teams to shoot 42.0% from the floor (127th in college hoops). The Mississippi State defense surrenders 35.5% from downtown (103 of 290) and opponents are converting on 67.8% of their shots from the free throw line. They allow 12.1 assists and 34.1 rebounds per contest, which has them ranked 112th and 168th in those categories.

Who will win tonight's NCAA game against the spread?

Tony Sink's Pick: Take South Carolina

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