Mississippi State 58, Jackson State 56: Craig Sword's 12 points led three scorers in double figures, and the Bulldogs held the Tigers to one field goal over the final 5:30 in a hard-fought home win.

Julysses Nobles scored a game-high 22 points, including 16 points in the second half for Jackson State (2-5). Brandon West chipped in 10 points and a season-high 12 rebounds.

Mississippi State (4-1) shot 43.5 percent from the floor and was 14-of-19 from the foul line. Fred Thomas and Roquez Johnson added 11 points apiece for the Bulldogs, who received only four points from leading scorer Gavin Ware after he left early in the second half with an injury.

Trailing by five points at halftime in a game where neither team led by more than seven, the Bulldogs went on a 17-7 run early in the second half to go in front 41-36, but the Tigers answered behind nine points by Nobles to pull even at 51-51 with 5:31 remaining. The two teams traded baskets before Sword's jumper broke the final tie.

Both defenses dominated the first half as Mississippi State shot 28 percent from the floor and committed 10 turnovers in its lowest scoring half of the season. Jackson State wasn't much better, shooting 36.7 percent, but went on an 8-3 run in the final four minutes to grab a 28-23 lead at the intermission.

GAME NOTEBOOK:. Jackson State's leading 3-point shooter this season, Javeres Brent, was 1-for-5 from beyond the arc to finish with three points. ... The Bulldogs improved to 5-0 in the series. ... Mississippi State had six blocked shots to none for Jackson State.