Whether Hinson's words at the break leaned more toward expletives or strategy, it worked. The Bears walked out of Winthrop Coliseum with a 73-69 victory after trailing by as many as 23 points.

The comeback was one-part stopping Jenkins -- who scored just five points in the second half -- and an increase in the Bears' scoring. MSU shot 54 percent after halftime and outscored Winthrop 44-24.

Jenkins' 23 points still led all scorers in the game, but the Bears had their own hot shooter in forward Chris Cooks. The 6-foot-4 junior has played in just two games after going through some off-court legal issues.

Against the Eagles, he showed what MSU (4-1) was missing in his absence. He dropped 19 points on a perfect 6-of-6 shooting. Cooks made his only 3-point attempt and was 6-of-9 from the free-throw line.

He also contributed toward keeping Jenkins from more easy buckets.

"[Hinson] got on to us, [saying] chase him around the screens, get on his hip pocket and everything," Cooks said. "'Stop letting him do whatever he wants to do.'"

Said Jenkins: "They tried to deny me the ball. It just didn't come to me the second half like it did the first."

The turnaround -- which started when MSU went on an 8-0 run toward the end of the first half -- helped the Bears snap Winthrop's home-court winning streak, which stood at 24 games. Winthrop (3-2) had won 47 of its last 48 at Winthrop Coliseum. It is also the first time the Eagles have lost consecutive games since 2005, when they fell in early season contests at Alabama and South Carolina.