Bulldogs hold off late-charging Tigers

STARKVILLE, Miss. -- Arnett Moultrie scored 28 points and grabbed 12 rebounds for his 12th double-double of the season and No. 18 Mississippi State held off a late LSU charge to win 76-71 on Wednesday night.

Moultrie had 19 points in the second half as the Bulldogs built on a 32-31 halftime lead. The 6-foot-11 junior made 10 of 18 shots from the field and grabbed six offensive rebounds.

Jalen Steele scored 15 points -- hitting 3 of 4 from 3-point range -- and Rodney Hood added 13 for Mississippi State (17-4, 4-2 Southeastern Conference), which outrebounded LSU 46-26. Dee Bost had nine points and 10 assists.

Andre Stringer led the Tigers (12-8, 2-4) with 17 points off the bench. Anthony Hickey scored 16 and Justin Hamilton added 11.

Mississippi State led by as many as 12 points in the second half and appeared to have the game in hand after taking a 68-59 lead with 1:50 remaining. But then LSU went on a stunning run from 3-point range.

Hickey drilled back-to-back jumpers from long range to pull LSU within 68-65 with 54 seconds remaining. Ralston Turner hit another 3 to make it 70-68 and Hickey hit another to pull to 72-71 with 15 seconds left.

The only thing that saved the Bulldogs was a 6-for-6 performance at the free throw line during LSU's run.

Steele scored a team-high 10 points in the first half as Mississippi State took a 32-31 lead at halftime.

LSU scored first after the break on Hamilton's layup, but the Bulldogs scored the next 11 points to take a 43-33 lead.

LSU is one of the few teams in the SEC that appeared to have the size to match up against the Bulldogs, especially since 6-9 freshman Johnny O'Bryant played for the first time in five games after breaking a bone in his non-shooting (left) hand. O'Bryant played with a wrap on the hand, scoring six points and grabbing four rebounds.

But nobody could stop Moultrie, who scored on his usual array of alley-oops, putbacks and post moves. He leads the SEC in double-doubles and rebounding, averaging more than 11 per game.

LSU has lost four of its past five games.

Stringer was banished to the bench for just the second time this season after a poor performance over the weekend against Florida, but he responded with one of his better games of the season, scoring 17 points in 25 minutes.

The 5-9 point guard from nearby Jackson single-handedly kept the Tigers close in the second half, scoring eight straight points, including back-to-back 3-pointers, to shrink an 11-point deficit to 49-46 with just over 10 minutes remaining.