<p>STARKVILLE, Miss. — D.J. Stewart Jr. scored 15 points, Abdul Ado had 11 and Mississippi State jumped out early and cruised to a 69-48 victory over South Carolina on Wednesday night. </p>
<p>Tolu Smith added nine points and 13 rebounds for Mississippi State (13-11, 7-8 Southeastern Conference). Iverson Molinar also chipped in nine points. Stewart added five assists and Ado had eight rebounds and three blocks. </p>
<p>Keyshawn Bryant scored 14 points for South Carolina (5-12, 3-10), which has lost six straight. AJ Lawson had 10 points. The duo entered averaging a combined 35.5 points per SEC game, which is the third-ranked tandem in league play. </p>
<p>Mississippi State opened on a 21-7 run and led 38-23 at the break. Stewart had 12 points and five assists in the half, and the Bulldogs made all 11 of its free throws. </p>
<p>South Carolina cut the deficit to 12 points early in the second half but didn’t get closer. The Gamecocks shot 18 of 62 (29%) overall from the field. It was their lowest scoring output since a 75-59 loss to the Bulldogs on Feb. 6. </p>
<p>The Gamecocks last win at Humphrey Coliseum was during the 2017 SEC regular season. </p>
<p>South Carolina plays at Georgia on Saturday. Mississippi State, which has won consecutive games, hosts sixth-ranked Alabama on Saturday. </p>
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