Thursday Recaps: Bulldogs vs. Bulldogs In Arizona Tip-Off Title Game
Showdown between Butler and Mississippi State Caps four-game slate at Mullett Arena on Friday
Butler survived a late flurry from Northwestern that saw the Wildcats have two attempts from inside the lane that could have tied the contest as Butler took a 71-69 win on Thanksgiving as part of the Arizona Tip-Off in Tempe.
Jahmyl Telfort led the Bulldogs with 23 points and five assists. With the win, Butler improves to 5-1, while Northwestern falls to 5-2.
With the win, Butler will face Mississippi State in the Arizona Tip-Off championship game at 7:30 p.m. MST on Friday. Meanwhile Northwestern will face UNLV in the Cactus Division Third-Place Game at 5 p.m. Both games will air on CBS Sports Network
Bulldogs Rout UNLV to Clinch Title Game Appearance
After needing to pull off double-digit comebacks in each of the last two games, No. 25 Mississippi State’s sixth straight win to start the season came with a little less drama. MSU completely controlled UNLV on Thursday night as the Bulldogs rolled to an 80-58 victory over the Runnin’ Rebels at the Arizona Tip-Off in Tempe.
UNLV scored eight of the game’s first 10 points, but less than two minutes after the Rebels took their early 8-2 edge, Josh Hubbard nailed a 3-pointer that put the Dawgs up 11-10 and State led the rest of the way. For most of the evening, MSU’s lead was double figures.
The Bulldogs went up 29-17 with 9:57 left in the first half and the State advantage never got below 10 points again. State went on to lead by as many as 28 points as the Maroon and White coasted to the triumph.