MSU (16-6, 4-3) has won two straight against the Gators, including its last trip to the O’Connell Center in 2008, 68-59. But to make it three in a row, the Bulldogs will have to bounce back from a disappointing 75-72 setback at No. 18 Vanderbilt on Wednesday that saw them nearly erase a 14-point deficit for a shot at victory.
Mississippi State , playing its fourth road outing in five games, hasn’t defeated Florida three-straight times since doing so from 1982-83. The two have split their last 10 meetings.
The Gators (16-6, 5-3) enter the contest following a back-and-forth battle with Alabama on Thursday in Tuscaloosa that resulted in a 66-65 victory.
Saturday is key for the Bulldogs, who look to maintain their pace with Arkansas for the lead in the Western Division.
MSU travels to Gainesville with four players scoring in double-digits, paced by junior guard Ravern Johnson’s 13.7 clip. Senior All-SEC forward Jarvis Varnado is second at 13.4, followed by Dee Bost and Barry Stewart at 11.5 and 11.3 points, respectively.
At Vanderbilt, Varnado, who leads the SEC in rebounding at 11.2 boards an outing, nearly recorded his second triple-double of the year and the third of his career with 12 points, 14 rebounds and nine blocked shots. He’s currently second in the nation with 115 blocks and needs just 26 more to tie the NCAA career mark.
The Gators are led in scoring by Kenny Boynton at 14.5 points, followed by Erving Walker at 13.2 and Alex Tyus at 13.0
After Saturday, the Bulldogs finally return home on Thursday, Feb. 11 against rival Ole Miss in an 8 p.m. game televised on ESPN.
