Miss State
STARKVILLE, Miss. (11/10/2026) — Favour Nwaedozi recorded 22 points and 19 rebounds as the Mississippi State Bulldogs pulled away from the Troy Trojans with a commanding 79-57 victory at Humphrey Coliseum on Tuesday night, outrebounding their opponent 55-36 in a performance that left little doubt about Mississippi State's interior dominance.
How It Happened
Mississippi State seized control from the outset. Madison Francis opened the scoring with a 5-foot jumper at the 8:47 mark of the first quarter, igniting a Bulldogs surge Troy could not counter. A 16-0 Mississippi State run ballooned the lead from 14-4 to 28-6, the decisive stretch capped by back-to-back Macie Phifer layups — the last assisted by Tootie Lockett — to close the first quarter with the Bulldogs ahead 28-4.
Troy found brief life at the start of the second quarter when Maliyah Meeks converted a layup off a Hannah Smith assist to make it 28-6, but Mississippi State answered with another extended run. A Madison Francis three-pointer at the 2:57 mark pushed the Bulldogs ahead 43-14, and Grace Ndubueze added four free throws in the closing seconds to send both teams to halftime with Mississippi State leading 45-14.
The Bulldogs kept the pressure on out of the break. Nwaedozi opened third-quarter scoring with a layup off a Francis assist, extending the advantage to 33. Troy showed some resilience — Aniya Hubbard hit a pair of three-pointers and a layup over a five-minute stretch to help the Trojans outscore Mississippi State in the frame — but Aryss Macktoon's layup at the 0:20 mark sent the Bulldogs into the fourth quarter ahead 60-39.
Macktoon opened the fourth with another layup to push the advantage to 23, and Nwaedozi followed with a 4-foot jumper at 6:58. Lani Smallwood delivered a 23-foot three-pointer at 4:28 to extend the lead to 27, and while Smith connected on back-to-back three-pointers in the final two minutes to close the final gap, the 79-57 margin stood as a clear reflection of Mississippi State's control throughout.
Turning Point
The 16-0 run that pushed Mississippi State from 14-4 to 28-6 in the first quarter was the decisive sequence of the night. With the Trojans held scoreless for the better part of eight minutes, any realistic path to a Troy victory closed before the first quarter expired. The Trojans' 33% shooting from the field and 26 turnovers on the night made it impossible to generate the sustained runs needed to climb out of a 24-point hole.
Star of the Game
Nwaedozi delivered one of the more complete individual performances of the early season, finishing with 22 points and 19 rebounds to anchor a Mississippi State front line that owned the paint all night. Her double-double anchored the Bulldogs' physical advantage on the glass and in the scoring column. Madison Francis complemented that effort with 15 points — including a three-pointer — and distributed an assist while helping direct Mississippi State's half-court attack. Macktoon added 11 points and three assists, providing consistent secondary scoring when the Bulldogs needed it.
For Troy, Smith led all scorers with 16 points, including two three-pointers in the fourth quarter, and added six rebounds and three assists. Saniya Jackson and Aniya Hubbard each finished with 10 points, with Hubbard pulling down eight rebounds, but the Trojans lacked the depth to match Mississippi State's production across 40 minutes.
What It Means
The result gives Mississippi State an early-season home victory backed by the kind of interior dominance — a 55-36 rebounding advantage — that sets the tone for a Bulldogs squad capable of controlling games up front. Even connecting on just 9% from three-point range, Mississippi State managed 43% overall shooting while Nwaedozi's 19 rebounds alone illustrated how thoroughly the Bulldogs owned the glass.
For Troy, 26 turnovers and 33% shooting from the field represent areas that will need attention. The Trojans showed resolve in the third quarter with Smith and Hubbard combining for 20 second-half points, but overcoming a 31-point halftime deficit against a team Mississippi State's size proved too steep a climb. The 3,874 fans in Starkville saw a Bulldogs team that made unmistakable early statements about its physicality on both ends of the floor.
