Mississippi State 66, Western Carolina 56: Roquez Johnson scored 10 of his 16 points in the second half as the Bulldogs defeated the visiting Catamounts in the season opener for both teams.

Fred Thomas added 15 points for Mississippi State, which was without starting guard Craig Sword (back). Gavin Ware had 14 points, 10 rebounds and three blocked shots for the Bulldogs, who shot 28-of-37 from the free-throw line.

James Sinclair scored 20 points and Rhett Harrelson added 14 for Western Carolina. Mike Brown chipped in 11 points for the Catamounts, who were just 5-of-10 from the line.

The Bulldogs began the second half with a 14-5 burst and took a 45-35 lead after a three-point play by Johnson with 16:16 to play. Four straight points by Johnson gave Mississippi State a 59-47 edge with 2:52 remaining and the closest the Catamounts got down the stretch was at 61-55 on a three-point play by Sinclair with 53 seconds left.

Western Carolina led 16-10 after a basket by Torrion Brummitt, but Mississippi State rebounded a short time later with eight straight points, capped by back-to-back 3-pointers by Maurice Dunlap for a 21-18 lead with 9:55 left in the half. Ware’s basket gave the Bulldogs a five-point edge, but the Catamounts recovered to take the lead before Ware’s tip with one second left gave Mississippi State a 31-30 lead at the break.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Mississippi State had just seven assists, six handed out by G Trivante Bloodman. … Western Carolina shot 36.2 percent from the field and went 9-of-24 from behind the arc. … The Bulldogs posted a 39-27 rebounding advantage.