The 12-seed Ole Miss Rebels baseball team (27-28) faces off against the 5-seed Mississippi State Bulldogs (36-19) in the first round of the SEC Tournament at 9 p.m. The SEC Tournament is being held in Hoover, Alabama.
SEC Tournament Time!
🆚 Mississippi State
📍 Hoover Met
⏰ 8:00 p.m. CT
📺 SEC Network
🖥️ https://t.co/2iTmeWP6iG
📻 https://t.co/VftoBcazWe
📊 https://t.co/YeRkE7w8dk pic.twitter.com/8834MZQptG— Ole Miss Baseball (@OleMissBSB) May 21, 2024
The Stakes
The first-round matchup between the Bulldogs and Rebels is a single-elimination game. The winner will advance to the second round of the tournament to face 4-seed Texas A&M in a double-elimination matchup.
Mississippi State enters the SEC tournament projected to be a two seed in the Terre Haute Regional by D1 Baseball. A deep SEC Tournament run is not a necessity for the Bulldogs, but it could boost their resume to the committee.
Ole Miss, however, is at jeopardy of missing a regional tournament appearance for the second year in a row. A deep SEC Tournament run could help boost Ole Miss’s chances in making a regional appearance. After winning the 2022 College Baseball World Series, the rebels failed to make the SEC Tournament in 2023 and narrowly squeaked in as the 12-seed this year.
It Just Means More.
⏰» approx. 8 p.m.
🆚» Ole Miss
📊» https://t.co/M9lwIJrhEu
📺» https://t.co/ato2c1l9K2
📻» https://t.co/2d62jujgeb #HailState🐶 pic.twitter.com/EUtFPdcjMA— Mississippi State Baseball (@HailStateBB) May 21, 2024
Regular Season Series
The Bulldogs and Rebels have faced off four times during the 2024 regular season, splitting the series at two-a-piece. On April 12, Ole Miss and Mississippi State started a three-game series. The Bulldogs took the first game of the three-game series by a final score of 8-0. The Rebels bounced back and took the last two games of the three-game series with scores of 10-9 and 14-2.
The last time the two teams played each other was on May 1st, at the annual Governor’s Cup in Pearl, Mississippi. Mississippi State won the game 5-1.
The trophy’s coming home!#HailState🐶 pic.twitter.com/skzW8JugwL
— Mississippi State Baseball (@HailStateBB) May 2, 2024
Projected Starters
Ole Miss is projected to send out righty Riley Maddox, who is 3-7 on the year, with a 6.10 ERA. Mississippi State is projected to start righty Brooks Auger, who is 1-2 on the year, with a 3.78 ERA.
Maddox appeared in the first game of the three-game series against the Bulldogs going 5.1 innings, giving up 6 runs (5 earned) and striking out two batters. Auger appeared in the second game of the three-game series going 3 innings, giving up 0 runs and striking out three batters.
Our Tuesday Starter, Brooks Auger
#HailState🐶 pic.twitter.com/ZiDodzCxYm— Mississippi State Baseball (@HailStateBB) May 20, 2024
Series History
The Mississippi State Bulldogs lead the all-time series 266-213-5 over Ole Miss. The last time the two teams met in the SEC Tournament was 2007 with the rebels winning 3-1.