Florida Gators
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Mississippi State
Men's Hoops Falls to MSU 79-68
Thursday, January 22, 2004 | Men's Basketball
The Florida Gators were not able to withstand Mississippi State's hot shooting as they were defeated by the Bulldogs 79-68 Wednesday night before a crowd of 12, 341 at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center.
Lawrence Roberts tallied a double-double with a game-high 21 points and 14 rebounds as Mississippi State (No. 19 AP, No. 20 ESPN/USA Today) dominated in the paint with 44 points to Florida's 28.
Four Bulldogs scored in double figures for Mississippi State (15-1, 4-1 Southeastern Conference), which won its second straight SEC road game.
Anthony Roberson scored 20 points for the Gators (11-4, 2-2), who shot 39 percent (24-of-62), including 29 percent (7-of-24) from three-point range.
The Gators kept up with the Bulldogs early in the game with eight lead changes in the first eight minutes. For the rest of the half, Florida struggled to put shots together and Mississippi State felt the hot hand, shooting 56 percent for the half.
The Bulldogs pulled away with a 10-2 run late in the first half and went into intermission leading by nine, 44-35.
The Gators did not have an answer for the Bulldogs in the second half. After trading baskets to open the half, Mississippi State went on a 9-0 run led by a Winsome Frasier three pointer. Frasier finished the night with 17 points.
Florida never allowed the Bulldogs a double-digit run, but Mississippi State added 4-0 and 6-0 runs to take as much as a 22 point lead in the second half.
Florida held Mississippi without a shot from the field for the last 4:48 of the game. Bonell Colas scored six of his eight points in the final 2:30.
The loss was Florida's first home loss to an SEC West team since 1999.
Despite the loss, the Gators are 24-7 against West opponents over the last five years. Florida's next two matchups are with SEC West Auburn and Alabama.
The Gators return to action when they face the Tigers at the Stephen C. O'Connell Center Saturday at 4 p.m. The game will be broadcast live on CBS.
