JACKSON, Miss. - Jackson State opened up the 2020-21 season Tuesday night on the road at Mississippi State for a Tuesday night non-conference matchup.

The Tigers fell to the Bulldogs, 82-59, but kept pace with MSU through the first half of play. For the first 20-minutes of the contest, the Tigers led for 9:46 compared to MSU's 6:56 in time with the lead.

Jackson State led 27-25 with 2:45 until the break before the Bulldogs went on a 9-3 run to close out the final two minutes of the half.

JSU shot 43 percent (10-for-23) compared to Mississippi State's 34 percent (11-for-34) at halftime. The Tigers earned big play by preseason SWAC Player of the Year, Tristan Jarrett, throughout the first half as he paced the Tigers with nine points in half one.

JSU newcomer Zeke Quinlan hit two key three-point shots in the first half, with one allowing JSU to regain a 24-22 with 6:05 left to the break. He had seven points at the break.

The Bulldogs opened up the second half on a 13-0 run to distance their lead, 47-30 over Jackson State. Mississippi State went on to defeat Jackson State by a final score of 82-59 to hand JSU it's first loss of the season.

Tristan Jarrett led JSU with 17 points on the night on 6-of-15 shooting from the field. He also finished with three assists in the game. 

Darius Hicks tallied 11 points in his debut in the Blue and White after finishing 4-of-6 shooting. 

Jonas James led Jackson State with six rebounds while finishing his night with nine points scored. 

As a team, Jackson State shot 19-of-52 from the field and 10-of-24 from behind the arc. 

With the loss, JSU fell to 0-1 overall. The Tigers return to the court on Thursday for a non-conference matchup versus Ole Miss in Oxford, Miss. 

Tip-off is set for 7:00 p.m. and will be televised on the SEC Network.