STARKVILLE, Miss. (Interstat) — Tennessee built a large first-half lead and withstood a second-half push to defeat Mississippi State 73-64 in a Southeastern Conference men’s basketball game Wednesday night at Humphrey Coliseum.

The Volunteers led 39-28 at halftime and by as many as 18 points before the Bulldogs cut the deficit to six late. Tennessee’s interior dominance proved decisive, outscoring Mississippi State 42-24 in the paint.

Josh Hubbard led all scorers with 31 points for Mississippi State (9-13). Ja’Kobi Gillespie scored 18 points and Nate Ament added 16 for Tennessee (17-6), which improved to 5-4 in true road games this season. Attendance was 7,986.