Tennessee will be back on its home floor for just the second time in two weeks Tuesday.

That's the good news for the No. 6 Vols, fresh off of a 1-point road defeat at Vanderbilt over the weekend. Their home warming gift is top 15 tilt with No. 14 Mississippi State at Food City Center (7 p.m. ET, ESPN2).

TALK ABOUT IT IN THE ROCKY TOP FORUM

That is a summary of life in the SEC in the year 2025--a league that has been tough for home teams and even tougher for the visitors. Tennessee (16-2, 3-2 SEC) hopes Tuesday is the kind of night that is harder on the visitor.

The Vols looked nearly unbeatable over the last 20 minutes of their last game in Knoxville, using a second half surge that turned a halftime deficit into a runaway rout of a ranked Georgia team.

That performance was followed by a late first half collapse, one that Tennessee very nearly overcame against Vanderbilt but ultimately didn't do enough.

Mississippi State (15-3, 3-2) has had its share of road woes, but picked up some momentum after beating Ole Miss, 84-81 in overtime in its most recent outing.

The Vols are in need of a bounce-back performance. The Bulldogs begin a five-game stretch against teams currently ranked in the AP Top 25, including No. 1 Auburn on the road on Saturday.

Here is what you need to know about the match up.

Who: No. 14 Mississippi State (15-3, 3-2 SEC) at No. 6 Tennessee (16-2, 3-2)

When: Tuesday, Jan. 21 | 7 p.m. ET

Where: Thompson-Boling Arena at Food City Center | Knoxville

TV: ESPN2 (Karl Ravech, play-by-play; Jimmy Dykes, analyst)

Radio: Vol Network (Bob Kesling, play-by-play; Bert Bertelkamp, analyst)

Series: 137th meeting all-time (Tennessee leads, 90-46)

Line: Tennessee, -6.5

KenPom Projection: Tennessee 74, Mississippi State 65

POINTS PER GAME

Mississippi State 82.9

Tennessee 76.8

FIELD GOAL PERCENTAGE

Mississippi State 46.6%

Tennessee 46.1%

THREE-POINT PERCENTAGE

Tennessee 34.9%

Mississippi State 32.7%

MORE FROM VOLREPORT: Bevy of issues plagued Tennessee in loss at Vanderbilt

ASSISTS

Mississippi State 16.2

Tennessee 16.1

REBOUNDS

Mississippi State 39.7

Tennessee 38.6

BLOCKS

Tennessee 5.2

Mississippi State 4.4

-- Tennessee and Mississippi State are meeting for the 137th time and the Vols hold a 90-46 edge in the series that dates back to more than 100 years. In that time, the Vols and Bulldogs have never met with both teams ranked in the AP Top 25 at the time of the match up, making Tuesday night a first.

-- Tennessee has won nine of the last 12 games against Mississippi State dating back the 2017-18 season. Two of the Bulldogs' three wins in that span happened last season. They were the only team that Vols did not beat in their run to the SEC title, losing the first game in Starkville and then again in the SEC Tournament in Nashville last March.

-- Tennessee guard Zakai Zeigler averaged 16.0 points his last three games. He was key in the Vols' come-from-behind win over Texas and sparked the offense in the second against Georgia. Zeigler has had similar success in his previous six appearances vs. Mississippi State, averaging 17.2 points. He scored 26 points in last game against the Bulldogs in the SEC Tournament.

MORE FROM VOLREPORT: Tennessee stays put in latest AP Top 25

-- Tennessee forward Felix Okpara has been strong in the paint on the defensive end. The 6-foot-10 Okpara has combined for 13 blocks over the last four games, including four against Vanderbilt while adding a season-high 16 points on offense. He is averaging 3.3 blocks through 18 games and will be key against a bigger Mississippi State lineup.

-- Mississippi State finished 21-14 in head coach Chris Jans' third season and reached the NCAA Tournament for the second-straight season. It marked the program's first consecutive tournament appearance since 2008-09. The Bulldogs were picked to finish 10th in the SEC in the preseason media poll.

-- Mississippi State guard Josh Hubbard leads the team in scoring with 16.6 points per game, which ranks 10th in the SEC. He gave Tennessee fits in both meetings between the two teams as a freshman last season, scoring 25 in the first game and 18 in the second. Hubbard is coming off of a 10-point outing against Ole Miss.

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