gophers/ncaa

Final Score: Mississippi State 78, Florida Atlantic 58

Starkville, MS (Sports Network) - Roquez Johnson came off the bench to score 17 points as the Mississippi State Bulldogs downed the Florida Atlantic Owls, 78-58, at Humphrey Coliseum.

Fred Thomas tallied 16 points and five steals for Mississippi State (1-1). Craig Sword (11 points) and Gavin Ware (10 points) added to the impressive bench effort for the Bulldogs. Trivante Bloodman recorded nine points and seven assists.

For FAU (0-2), Greg Gantt scored 17 points but did so on just 6-of-16 from the field. Cavon Baker was the only other Owl in double figures with 11 points.

Mississippi State shot 53.1 percent from the field in the opening 20 minutes, while FAU made just 35.7 percent of its attempts from the floor. The Bulldogs took a comfortable 43-26 lead into intermission.

The Bulldogs led by as many as 30 in the second half as it cruised to an easy victory.

Mississippi State was able to take advantage of FAU's mistakes, as it turned 27 turnovers into 31 points.