Mississippi State 71, South Florida 66: Fred Thomas had 14 points and Gavin Ware recorded 10 points and 15 rebounds as the Bulldogs edged the Bulls at the Las Vegas Classic.

Mississippi State (9-2) won its fourth in a row thanks in large part to Thomas, who made four 3-pointers, and Ware, who notched his fourth double-double of the season. The Bulldogs, who will face UNLV in Monday's championship game, forced 18 turnovers and held a slight 32-31 rebounding advantage.

Victor Rudd scored 17 points for South Florida (8-3), which had won four straight games and will meet Santa Clara in Monday's consolation game. Chris Perry chipped in 14 points and nine rebounds.

Following a first half in which Mississippi State outscored South Florida 38-35, the Bulls rallied to take the lead on Javontae Hawkins' dunk with 15:41 to play. The Bulldogs then took control for a stretch en route to a 58-52 lead with under 10 minutes left.

Corey Allen Jr.'s two free throws got South Florida within 67-64 with 1:05 remaining and after Mississippi State's Colin Borchert made 1-of-2, Perry knocked down a pair of free throws to make it a two-point game. Thomas converted a pair of foul shots before the Bulls came up empty on their next possession to essentially seal their fate.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Allen finished with 16 points and four assists before fouling out. ... In addition to Thomas and Ware, three other players scored in double figures for Mississippi State - Borchert (11), Roquez Johnson (10) and Craig Sword (10). ... IJ Ready had a game-high seven assists for the Bulldogs.