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Moultrie, No. 24 MSU easily beat North Texas

Nov 27, 2011 - 11:27 PM Starkville, MS (Sports Network) - Arnett Moultrie scored 20 points and pulled down nine rebounds, leading No. 24 Mississippi State to an 82-59 drubbing of North Texas on Sunday afternoon.

Dee Bost had 18 points to go with five assists and four rebounds, while Jalen Steele and Rodney Hood both chipped in 11 points for the Bulldogs (7-1).

Chris Jones paced the Mean Green (1-3) with 12 points, while Jordan Williams added 10 points, five rebounds and three assists.

North Texas held a 7-4 lead two minutes into the game, but that's the largest it would have, as a jumper by Moultrie gave Mississippi State its first lead of the game, 8-7.

The Bulldogs scored the next seven points to pull out to a 15-7 lead with 14 1/2 minutes left in the opening half. Six straight points from Wendell Lewis put Mississippi State up 24-9.

The Bulldogs continued to pour it on the rest of the first half and went into the locker room at the break up comfortably, 51-30.

In the second half, it was more of the same for Mississippi State, as a three- pointer by Hood made it 56-36, and another trey by Hood with just over 13 1/2 minutes to go made it 67-38.

A pair of free throws by Deville Smith with 10 minutes to go gave the Bulldogs a 31-point advantage and they cruised the rest of the way.

Mississippi State shot 52 percent from the floor and 47 percent from three- point land, while outrebounding North Texas, 39-29.

"We played hard, especially the first 12 minutes in the first half," Mississippi State head coach Rick Stansbury said. "I thought we came out in the second half, even with the big lineup, and really locked in defensively."

Game Notes

The Bulldogs lead the series 67-65...Sunday's game marked the first meeting between the teams since 1972...North Texas shot 32 percent from the floor and only 5-of-20 from beyond the arc...The Bulldogs are 7-1 for the first time since starting 13-0 during the 2003-04 campaign...Mississippi State is 66-14 against members of the Sun Belt Conference.