STARKVILLE, Miss. - Jamal West Jr. posted his first double-double of the season with 17 points and 13 rebounds while Byron Ireland cracked double figures in his first action of the season as the Nicholls State University men's basketball team fell at No. 25 Mississippi State, 74-61, on Friday afternoon in Humphrey Coliseum.

Nicholls (3-4) and Mississippi State (6-0) were nearly identical in the game statistics with one exception -- rebounding. The Bulldogs pulled down 48 rebounds to 29 by the Colonels, and had a significant 20-2 edge in second-chance points. 

The Colonels never led in the game but tied it up twice in the early going after three-pointers by Robert Brown III and Diante Smith. The Bulldogs then went on a 7-0 run and never looked back. 

Nicholls came within four in the first half after Michael Gray Jr. scored on a basket-and-one. But another run, this one a 10-2 spurt, gave Mississippi State a double-digit lead.

In the second half, MSU's lead grew to as much as 23 before Nicholls made a late run. Nicholls outscored the Bulldogs 11-2 to close out the game.

Nicholls shot 39 percent for the day and connected of 6 of 20 from three-point range. Brown added seven points while Micah Thomas came off the bench for six. 

Josh Hubbard led MSU with 15 points.

UP NEXT
Nicholls will face another stiff test on Tuesday, Nov. 28 at they take on No. 13 Baylor. Tipoff in Waco, Texas is scheduled for 7 p.m.