Mississippi State Basketball

It is a big weekend for some of the nation’s best teams. For the country’s bubble teams, the door is closing fast. With two weeks left before Selection Sunday, what teams will look to make their move this weekend?

Charlotte (19-8, 9-4) (Atlantic 10):

Charlotte has to win at George Washington on Saturday.

RPI: 56

S.O.S.: 107

Rhode Island (20-6, 8-5) (Atlantic 10):

The Rams are on the road at St. Bonaventure on Saturday.

RPI: 27

S.O.S.: 64

Dayton (18-9, 7-6) (Atlantic 10):

Back-to-back losses have come at the wrong time for the Flyers.

RPI: 43

S.O.S.: 34

Clemson (19-8, 7-6) (ACC):

Can the Tigers win on the road at Florida State on Sunday?

RPI: 37

S.O.S.: 33

Georgia Tech (18-9, 6-7) (ACC):

The Yellow Jackets have dropped three of their last four and have fallen below .500 in the ACC. They better not slip up when Boston College comes to town on Saturday.

RPI: 34

S.O.S.: 17

Oklahoma State (19-8, 7-6) (Big 12):

No. 1 Kansas is coming to Gallagher-Iba Arena on Saturday afternoon.

RPI: 33

S.O.S.: 36

Marquette (18-9, 9-6) (Big East):

The Golden Eagles are red-hot. They have won seven of their last eight games.

RPI: 55

S.O.S.: 54

Louisville (18-10, 9-6) (Big East):

It is make or break for the Cardinals. They are at UConn on Sunday and then at Marquette this upcoming Tuesday.

RPI: 41

S.O.S.: 7

Seton Hall (16-10, 7-8) (Big East):

The Pirates have been moving up, winning four of their last five games overall. Marquette pays them a visit on Sunday.

RPI: 52

S.O.S.: 20

Cincinnati (16-11, 7-8) (Big East):

The remaining schedule for Cincy is tough. It starts with a road game at West Virginia on Saturday.

RPI: 59

S.O.S.: 23

Connecticut (17-11, 7-8) (Big East):

They have needed wins and they have gotten wins, three in a row now for the Huskies.

RPI: 40

S.O.S.: 2

Notre Dame (18-10, 7-8) (Big East):

No Harangody. No Problem. Notre Dame knocked off Pittsburgh the other night and now focuses on a road game at Georgetown on Saturday.

RPI: 72

S.O.S.: 55

Illinois (18-10, 10-6) (Big Ten):

Minnesota will pay them a visit on Saturday afternoon.

RPI: 63

S.O.S.: 57

Old Dominion (22-8, 14-3) (CAA):

They will look to capture the CAA regular season title with a win over VCU on Saturday.

RPI: 42

S.O.S.: 87

Memphis (20-8, 10-3) (C-USA):

Can Josh Pastner get Memphis into the dance in his first season as head coach?

RPI: 69

S.O.S.: 100

UAB (22-5, 10-3) (C-USA):

Their next two games are at home. Tulane and Memphis will come to Birmingham in the next week.

RPI: 30

S.O.S.: 100

Siena (22-6, 15-1) (MAAC):

People are thinking Siena has to win the MAAC tournament to get into the dance.

RPI: 36

S.O.S.: 111

UNLV (21-7, 9-5) (Mountain West):

Air Force and Wyoming should be two more wins for UNLV to end the regular season.

RPI: 44

S.O.S.: 69

San Diego State (20-8, 9-5) (Mountain West):

They could have used a win over BYU on Wednesday, but to no avail. They now have time off until next Wednesday.

RPI: 38

S.O.S.: 62

Arizona State (20-8, 10-5) (Pac-10):

With 20 wins, Arizona State is looking to join Cal in the NCAA Tournament. They play on the road against the Golden Bears on Saturday.

RPI: 54

S.O.S.: 76

Mississippi State (20-8, 8-5) (SEC):

The Bulldogs have taken over first place in the SEC West. They are on the road at South Carolina on Saturday, looking for their 21st victory.

RPI: 58

S.O.S.: 109

Ole Miss (18-9, 6-7) (SEC):

The door is closing for Ole Miss, but the rest of their games in the regular season are winnable.

RPI: 61

S.O.S.: 60

St. Mary’s (23-5, 10-3) (WCC):

Will St. Mary’s be playing the waiting game again if they don’t win the WCC Tournament?

RPI: 50

S.O.S.: 146

Utah State (23-6, 12-2) (WAC):

They can clinch the WAC regular season title with a win over Fresno State on Monday night.

RPI: 35

S.O.S.: 104

Outside the Bubble: Saint Louis (18-9), South Florida (16-11), Minnesota (16-11), Northwestern (18-10), Northeastern (18-11), VCU (20-7), Marshall (21-7), Murray State (26-4), Washington (18-9), Portland (18-9), New Mexico State (18-9), Louisiana Tech (21-7).

RPI and Strength of Schedule rankings from RealTimeRPI.com

Sometimes fans get a little carried away with their enthusiasm at games.

On Christmas just this past year, the Cleveland Cavaliers played the Los Angeles Lakers in a marquee NBA matchup. Down 20 points with a little over four minutes remaining, Lakers fans decided to let the refs (and to an extent, the Cavs) know how they felt. Suddenly, objects began to rain down on the court in a flurry of fan fury. 

On Feb. 3, the Pittsburgh Panthers squared off against their bitter rivals, the West Virginia Mountaineers, at the WVU Coliseum. The Mountaineers were in control, but when Pitt got close, the fans reacted. Objects could be seen flying onto the court from all over. It got so bad that WVU coach Bob Huggins had to grab the microphone and tell fans not to throw objects. 

However, Pittsburgh assistant Tom Herrion was later hit in the face by a coin thrown from the stands.

The most recent, and arguably worst incident, happened a few nights ago in an SEC thriller in which the Mississippi State Bulldogs were thwarted on their own floor by John Wall and the second ranked Kentucky Wildcats in overtime. It was clear from the abundance of boos that the Bulldog fans were not pleased with the game’s officiating crew. 

However, fans in the student section took it a few steps too far by hurling water bottles onto the court. And we’re not talking empty bottles consumed at the games. Several full water bottles were thrown, coming close to John Wall and within inches of referee Mike Kitt. These are the types of things that would have likely garnered felony assault charges, had the makeshift missiles met their marks.

Sometimes the referees get it wrong. Just about every diehard sports fan at some point in their lives has echoed this sentiment. Does this mean that the refs got it wrong? Sometimes. Does it warrant verbal tirades? Sure, sometimes fans need to let refs know how they feel. Should fans throw things to show their displeasure? NO. 

Quite simply, one of the worst deeds a fan can commit is to toss objects onto the playing surface at a game (unless, of course, we’re talking hockey and a hat trick is scored). Most fans are pretty good at keeping their potential projectiles in their possession. However, these recent incidents have brought this problem into the spotlight.

So whose fault is this recent rash of boorish behavior? First off, these actions cannot be blamed on an entire fan base. Most fans would never dream of engaging in this childish behavior. Yet, a few idiots can go and tarnish a reputation of the fanbase with one moment of immaturity. Another oft-blamed group is the media. 

Some fans would argue that networks like ESPN intensify hatred by building hype before a game. Maybe if they focused less on games, the fans would be less likely to overreact at games. There are only two words that need be spoken to this group: Come on. 

Does anyone really believe that if sports networks would reduce coverage and not hype important matchups that the fans would behave differently? That’s ludicrous. No amount of media coverage is going to make the UNC basketball fan hate Duke more. Same goes for just about every other intense rivalry in the country.

There really is only one person to be blamed for the moronic conduct of fans that throw things on the court. The blame lies squarely on the shoulders of the people who threw the objects, plain and simple. If these fans could replace their infantile manners, the problem would dissipate into thin air. 

Why blame all Mississippi fans for the couple of bottles heaved onto the court? Why blame ESPN for exacerbating a heated rivalry. Only the person who consciously decides to cast items at the court is to blame.

If these offenders could just use this anger to do something creative, then the atmosphere at these games would keep the same intensity without getting a team’s fans associated with thuggery. Imagine if, instead of throwing an object on the floor, a fan yelled, “Hey ref! If you had one more eye, you’d be a Cyclops!” 

This type of statement includes no vulgarity and is sure to elicit laughs from the surrounding fans. Or what if these fans just yelled from the start of the game right up until game’s end? Show opposing fans in the arena that your fans bring the intensity. This would reap massive amounts of respect for the team as well as the fan base.

West Virginia senior starter De’Sean Butler said it best when he addressed reporters after the Feb. 3 game against West Virginia.

"It was uncalled for. There is a time and a place for stuff like that, but one place is not the basketball court. Take that outside if you're going to do it. I don't know what the fans are trying to prove whether they're tough or not but it's not what we do. I would appreciate it if they would stop. It might cost us a game."

He’s spot on with this remark. Technical fouls can be assessed if this occurs. What would happen if a team lost a game by a single point because an idiot threw something on the court and the team was given a technical? Fans should not be angered at the ref for doing the job. Take a step to the plate and disbar the fan that doesn’t understand the difference between intensity and aggression.

Don't know the name yet? You will. Jarvis Varnado is currently the second best shot blocker in NCAA Men's Basketball history. He is a 6-9, 230 pound, senior forward on the Mississippi State Bulldogs. As of February 19, 2010, Varnado has 521 career blocks. The NCAA Men's Basketball career block record stands at 535 blocks, set by Wojciech Myrda. Varnado has a 7'4" wingspan. His nicknames include "Swat" and "Sultan of Swat."

Mississippi State University is located in Starksville, Mississippi. When there is a home basketball game, the city is nicknamed "Swatville" in dedication of Varnado. In Mississippi State's home stadium (nicknamed "The Hump"), the athletic department put a banner directly behind the visitor bench that reads, "Welcome to Swat's Block Party." The athletic department also ordered 10,000 fly swatters to distribute to fans when Varnado breaks the NCAA block record.

In my opinion, Varnado is the most underrated player in the NCAA. He is also the most dominant. He is on pace to shatter the block record. Varnado is a force. Just take a look at his stats from this season: 13.2 points per game, 11.1 rebounds per game, .9 assists per game, .6 steals per game, and a staggering and unbelievable 5 blocks per game. With five games remaining in the regular season, Varnado is a lock to break the block record. His coaches highly respect his ability to play. Head coach Rick Stansbury said, "I can promise you this: In his four years here, we've never done one shot-blocking drill."

Varnado is not only the best defensive player in the game (he is the back-to-back SEC Defensive Player of the Year), he is a role model off of the court. In an interview with Sports Illustrated writer Joe Lemire, Varnado said that breaking the NCAA block record would be, "an extreme honor." When Lemire asked about the feeling of blocking so many shots Varnado replied, "All of them are the same to me. I don't get too high off one." He is not only humble, but also very unselfish. Varnado gave up his scholarship his senior season so that Mississippi State could get blue-chip recruit Renardo Sidney a scholarship.

In Varnado's future, he will enter the NBA Draft. According to draftexpress.com, Varnado is currently projected to be the 32nd pick of the 2010 NBA Draft. In 40 minutes of playing time (a pace-changing projection by draftexpress.com), he would average 19.1 points per game, 15.1 rebounds per game, and an absurd 7.2 blocks per game.

Varnado is unknown throughout most of the country, but I don't expect that to continue. A player of his caliber and of his heart shouldn't have gone unnoticed for this long. But it won't matter. When it is all said and done, I believe that Jarvis Varnado will be remembered as a legendary defensive player, known mostly for his unimaginable ability to block shots. The way that I look at him, he truly is the, "King of the Paint."

Long story short, State fans in an  ‘upset-ready’  atmosphere, saw the Bulldogs fight and claw the #2 UK Wildcats and the officials, for 65 minutes. Goaltending, blocking fouls, grabs, pushes, charges, over the back calls, were simply non-existent for MSU, but in the Wildcats’ case, they were not to be touched. MSU was whistled 27 times, for ridiculous calls that eventually led to items being thrown onto the court, in the final seconds. Rick Stansbury, known for working the officials, and sometimes earning a tech, found his hands tied throughout this match up, due to the close score and the fact that every possession seemed to be of the utmost importance…giving away points or a possession, was not an option. Jarvis Varnado, was whistled for back-to-back fouls at the 17 minute mark of the 2nd half, earning his 3rd and 4th fouls. Any type of inside presence for MSU, was gone with JV absent. Varnado’s 5th foul, drew cries of disbelief from the crowd, and from the center himself. Turner, Augustus, JV, and Osby, were all pushed around near the rim the entire night (I actually wanted to say RAPED, but out of respect for that type of horrific experience, and the vulgarity of the term, I’ll change the wording). Wow, all this and I haven’t even discussed other aspects of the game, so here’s my game notes…

(1) Fans can blame the players for lack of execution during the final minutes, but like I always say, what takes place on the court, is a product of coaching. I’m gonna lay off Stans for the most part today, due to a decent night all around from his standpoint, but up 67-60, with 3 minutes to play, we cannot sit on the ball, especially with history not on our side-when we do so. His inability to hold a lead, be it early or late in a game, is sickening. The 3 or 4 possessions leading up to that 7 point lead, State had out-rebounded, out-scrapped, and out scored UK, and taking their foot off the gas in the final minutes cost us dearly. To be specific, it cost us an extra 5 minute period, when time was our enemy, not to mention we were 2 starters down, with others in foul trouble. You have to win that one in regulation. (2) We also are in terrible need of an assistant coach who knows X’s and O’s. Not trying to score on a game winning possession, but rather looking to get fouled and go to the line and win it, is NOT how you win ball games. Especially not against the SEC’s golden child in basketball, which is the equivalent of Alabama in football, you are NOT getting the call. UK is the perfect example of a mechanical offense. Screens left and right, the dribble drive, working the ball in and out, and they always have a back up plan when the play is not developing. We need that. (3) John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins, are two of the most arrogant young men that I have ever watched play college sports. One and dones are all they are, probably taking English I, Tennis, and Scuba Diving, while they snicker with their pompous smiles, completely in it for themselves. They could take a whole novel of notes from Patrick Patterson, who is classy. Funny how Coach Cal put the attention back on our fans at the end, that after Cousins was jawing with fans, and Wall fingered the crowd going into the tunnel, then flashing what appeared to be gang signs. (4) Even though we can complain about Barry Stewart (16pts) and Dee Bost (22pts) throwing up some junk in the closing minutes, they both hit big shots to keep us in the game, all night. I think Kodi Augustus (17 pts) is starting to choose wiser shots (5-10 FG’s, 4 of 7 from 3pt, and 3-4 FT’s), protect the ball, and pitch in on rebounding. He could be special next year, but still needs some work. We needed more from Romero Osby. He played 38 minutes, but came away with only 5pts. I know it was an odd role for him, thanks to Ravern, but we gotta have smarter shots. (5) Speak of the devil, I sure hope Ravern Johnson has learned his lesson. Ray is and has been my favorite player on the team, but man did we miss his 13.7 ppg. Selfish actions hurt the team. I just wish Stans wouldn’t have dressed him, because it sucked knowing that he was on the bench, dressed and ready, in a game with multiple clutch situations. Put the pride aside, and get back to work #2. (6) If you have noticed my frustration with this team throughout the season, lastnight is why. A starter down, foul trouble all night, but hung step for step with the #2 team in the country. We could have played up to those standards all year, and haven’t, which leaves a lot to be desired.

The Ugly Truth: MSU was a couple of loose balls, a bounce here and there, a 3 pointer that just wouldn’t stay in- away from having this one in the bag. Hurts. The loss probably puts us out of the Dance, unless we go undefeated the rest of the way…not probable.

It’s nights like lastnight, that make you hope we don’t lose Greg Byrne any time soon. Great crowd, atmosphere, and producti0n.

I should be writing about the great second half Tennessee had against Georgia last night as the Vols won a "must win" game over the Bulldogs 69-60. However, what has me all worked up is what happened at Mississippi State Tuesday night in the game against Kentucky.

The Wildcats won a tough 81-75 overtime victory against the Bulldogs in Starkville, but it was the fans that got most of the attention.

The officials got under the skin of the fans down the stretch as Mississippi State was called for 10 fouls to zero for Kentucky.

Three of those calls were key: A block-charge call that went Patrick Patterson’s way, when virtually every collision had been called a charge all night, a no-call on a John Wall goal tend, and a tickle foul on a Wall jumper.

The officiating last night has added to the notion that SEC officials are favoring the national title contenders, just like during the football season.

Don't get me wrong, the officiating in the SEC this season has been dreadful, but I do not believe there is some conspiracy going on. However, the officials were terrible in Starkville. Home teams usually do not get jobbed like that.

During the waning moments of the game, the fans started throwing full bottles of water on the floor, one nearly hitting one of the officials. This really got under my skin. I hate boorish fan behavior. It was the same a few weeks ago in West Virginia when fans threw things on the floor and a Pitt assistant coach got hit with a coin in the neck.

I have been hit in the face by a coin flung from a crowd and it left a mark for a week and stung for a few days.

I know it is just a handfull of fans that make everyone look bad but I think the schools and the NCAA need to come down hard on these idiot fans. Here is what I think needs to happen.

First, fans around the area of the fool who threw something on the court need to stop cheering him and point them out to police. If said fan who threw something is a student at the school, they should be expelled immediately.

People like that should not represent your university. If the fan is a paying customer, he should be banned from the arena forever.

The school needs to be punished as well for fan behavior.

Every time something is thrown onto the court or field the officials have the right to flag the home team 15 yards for unsportsmanlike conduct in football, and call a technical foul on the home crowd in basketball and award the opposing team two free throws.

For really lousy fan behavior like we saw at Mississippi State and West Virginia, the NCAA needs to take a page from Europe when soccer fans get out of hand. For the next home game, you have to play in an empty arena.

No fans mean no ticket and concessions revenue.

You want to make a school get tough on its fans for bad behavior, hit them in the wallet.

So that’s what winning feels like…man it’s been awhile. MSU (17-7)  had loss 4 of their last 5, and 2 in a row, coming into Thursday night’s game versus rival Ole Miss (17-7). State came out of the gate on a 6-0 run, which drew an Ole Miss timeout, and some noise from the home crowd. But, what does history tell you? If you guessed an 18-6 run by Ole Miss, you are a WINNER! Careless passes by Stewart, Benok, and Bost, wasted turnovers MSU took from the Rebs, and killed opportunities to put Ole Miss away even earlier. During the first half, Trevor Gaskins and Zach Graham, kept the game in reach, along with the shooting of Terrico White. MSU would respond with a 8-2 run and tie it at 20, the teams would battle back-n-forth til half, where State held a 4 point lead of 33-29. The Bulldogs would never trail again, leading by as much as 13 in the second half, and allowing the Rebs back within 5 during the closing minutes. The Rebels heated run, was the result of press defense, which was consistent in forcing Bulldog turnovers, keeping the ball out of Dee Bost’s hands, and not allowing the Dawgs to find an offensive rhythm for about a 3 minute stretch. Romero Osby was almost solely responsible for keeping the Rebs at bay during that stint, and securing an MSU win, by driving the lane and creating scoring opportunities. That’s my brief synopsis, now for the numbers and stats, and what caught my attention.

Major Props: Ravern Johnson, with 18 points, 1 block, and 2 stls. Barry Stewart, with 11 points, 6 rebs, and 4 asst. I wanted more of Stewart earlier on in games, and I got it. Jarvis Varnado, with 11 points, 4 blk, 4 asst, and 11 rebs. Varnado got pushed around almost the whole night on the offensive end, but with strong play on the boards, and effective shot blocking and altering, made his presence felt. And btw, how the heck did Reese Davis and Jimmy Dykes, not acknowledge the fact that the Henry kid from Ole Miss FLOPPED on the elbow from JV. There was some contact, but after getting pushed around all night, not to mention the elbow to his chin, I can’t blame JV for throwing one himself, and making a STATEment. Dee Bost, even though he didn’t play anywhere near his full potential, and was careless with the ball, Dee showed some signs of life for the first time in 2 weeks, with 11 points, 2 steals, 3 asst, and 4 rebs. So, we know he’s alive, some emotion was shown. Romero Osby was huge in his 13 minutes of play, posting 9 points, 1 blk. Finally, I have to give Kodi Augustus some ‘heart points’, he had 2-3pt plays the old fashion way, and was 4-4 from the line, finishing with 8 points and 3 rebs. Phil Turner didn’t score, but 3 asst and 5 rebs, and the all out effort he provides, very beneficial. I know some of these stats aren’t eye-popping, but the timing in which these guys hit shots, got a dunk or block, or made their free throws…HUGE. Total team effort. No Props: To the lack of adjustments made to combat the Reb’s pressure D, but I have to say about 90% of what I saw was on the boys, not Stans. For the Rebs, Gaskins and Graham made some key shots throughout the game, but displayed some poor judgement in shot choices in 2nd half.

Numbers/Stats: State shot 49% from the field, and the Dawgs are now 10-0 when shooting 45% or better. State only shot 33% from the perimeter, 8 of 24, but like I said, the timing of the shots was everything. Get out your Block Meter- JV is only 22 away from the all-time blocks record. State held the #2 offense in the SEC, to 18 points below their average.

Bragging Rights: The Bulldogs now have a +36 game advantage in the basketball series with Ole Miss. Stansbury has improved to 18-7 all time vs the Rebs. And Ole Miss has 1 victory in Starkville, in the past 11 years. And this is the 4th time the Dawgs have swept the season series with the Rebs, in the last 7 years. And a little bragging on my prediction, I was 4 points off. I predicted 71-67, while the final was 71-63…not bad.

State now turns their attention to Auburn on Saturday night, then #2 UK on Tuesday. Both games will be televised by the ESPN Networks.

Is this what the Dawgs needed for the road ahead? Sometimes it doesn’t matter how ugly a win is, but rather reminding yourself of what it feels like to win once again. Your opinion? I think there’s some danger in over looking Auburn, Tay Waller and Hargrove can ball…glad they don’t play D though.

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I had a dream about Renardo Sidney on Wednesday night. I don’t remember much about it, but I do remember that in my dream, he was playing basketball for No. 23 Mississippi State.

This means one of two things: My psychic abilities are returning to me, or I’ve written way too many stories about the 6'10" freshman.

I don’t think I’ve ever written so much about a player who wasn’t actually playing.

I’m not sure that’s going to change any time soon either. The NCAA’s Amateurism Fact-Finding Committee will convene Monday to review the Eligibility Center’s findings from its amateurism evaluation of Sidney and MSU’s response to those findings (and the NCAA’s response to that response).

Andy Katz of ESPN.com wrote the other day that any sort of resolution in the case will probably be “weeks away.”

MSU coach Rick Stansbury and the Sidney family’s attorney, Don Jackson, both have expressed optimism that they might hear something regarding Sidney’s status this week, but if so, it won’t be any sort of final word.

Once the 16-member Fact-Finding Committee, composed of officials from various Division I schools and conferences, reaches a decision—and it must do so within seven days of meeting—then MSU would have an opportunity to appeal an unfavorable decision.

Then the case would go before the Amateurism Cabinet, which makes a final decision that “shall not be subject to further review by any other authority,” according to the NCAA.

So when’s the earliest we could see Sidney on the court? Well, if the Fact-Finding committee rules quickly in favor of Sidney, then he could, in theory, be in the rotation for Thursday’s game at Arkansas.

But is it too late to work him in? It’s not like MSU (15-3, 3-0 SEC) has outstanding chemistry at the moment, as evidenced by the long scoring droughts it has had in recent games. Depth in the post, and off the bench, is a huge concern as well.

As Stansbury has said before, Sidney’s talent alone would be enough to get him in the rotation immediately.

Problem is, he hasn’t been practicing with the team for a while, therefore the big men, who are eligible, have been getting enough reps. Sidney, on the other hand, works out individually.

So, if he were cleared next week, the most sensible approach would be to bring him off the bench for just a few minutes per game, see how he fits into the flow of things, and then eventually have him be one of the main subs.

If he progresses quickly enough, Sidney could eventually be starting.

But that’s the best-case scenario. More realistic is that, if he’s able to play at all this season, it would be near the end, when perhaps MSU has gotten on a roll and would have a tough time working in a new guy, no matter how talented he is.

The way things have gone thus far, Sidney putting on an MSU uniform this season—or ever—seems little more than a dream.

I was really impressed with Georgia for about the first 35 minutes of the game.  They had a game plan and executed it very good.  I had to check their record twice because they didn’t look like a .500 ball club.  Then the last 5 minutes of the game came.  I saw why they’ve lost as many games as they’ve won this year.  Mississippi State turned up the pressure on defense and put on the full court press.  Georgia lost their composure and looked like a middle school basketball team trying to break the press.  Mississippi State erased a 13 point deficit and held on to a 3 point advantage (their largest lead of the game) for the win.

Georgia now has a record of 8-8, but they sure looked like a team that could compete to win the SEC for most of this game.  They played within themselves pounding the basketball inside and scoring with consistency.  Georgia isn’t a strong perimeter shooting team and they know that.  They took high percentage shots and attacked a very good defensive team in Mississippi State.  If they could have figured out how to break a full court press, they would have won this game…rather easily.  Georgia is a fairly young team with their two leading scoring being sophomores (Trey Thompkins and Travis Leslie).  They will continue to get better but I see a NIT bid at best for this team.

Mississippi State is a very good defensive team.  This is no secret just check the stats.  They feature the country’s best shot blocker in Jarvis Varnado who finished with 6 blocks to go along with his 14 points and 14 rebounds.  Their defense was really tested by Georgia because Georgia didn’t settle for many outside shots.  They attacked the rim almost every single possession.  Give Mississippi State a lot of credit for battling back in this one after a poor shooting first half.  With a 3-0 SEC record (15-3 overall) I think Mississippi State has the talent to compete with the likes of Kentucky, Tennessee and Vanderbilt for the SEC title.  They should be a NCAA tournament team come March.

52 teams to go….59 days until Selection Sunday!

I wrote recently that Mississippi State has some real concerns following Monday’s 55-52 loss to Western Kentucky, concerns that must be addressed by Saturday when the Bulldogs open SEC play at No. 14 Ole Miss (12-2).

But let’s look at the flip side of this situation. Suppose this game was no more than an anomaly. An aberration. Just a bad night.

MSU (12-3) struggled in several categories in which it has normally excelled this season, both as a team and individually. Let’s examine some of them, looking at the season averages going into Monday’s game compared to what the Bulldogs did against WKU.

Season – Monday

Team

–FTs: 69.8 percent – 51.9 percent (season low)

–3FGs: 41.9 percent – 21.1 percent (season low)

–Turnovers: 13.3 – 18 (tied season high)

–Steals: 5.6 – 4

–Points: 76.4 – 52 (season low)

–Bench points: 17.4 – 2 (season low)

Individual

–Ravern Johnson 3FGs: 49.5 percent – 33.0 percent (2 of 6)

–Phil Turner FTs: 94.7 percent – 33.0 percent (2 of 6, season low)

–Kodi Augustus FGs: 45.5 percent – 20.0 percent (1 of 5, tied season low)

–Barry Stewart TOs: 1.1 (16 total) – 5 (tied season high)

–Jarvis Varnado blocks: 5.1 – 3

You could argue it was the perfect storm of statistical deviations. In other words, a lot of guys had an off night at the same time. MSU is normally good enough to overcome a bad night by a couple of guys, but this was a team-wide thing, except for Varnado (pictured above). He was solid.

Now, if this happens again, then we can start calling it a developing trend, and then you can start being really concerned.

Twenty-seven seconds. About the time it takes to beat the first boss in "Mega Man X" on Sega Genesis. Or just enough time to go viral.

To really put into perspective how much freshman center John Riek saw the floor in Mississippi State's 80-69 victory over Wright State on Wednesday, consider this: had you had changed the channel to catch the latest Lost trailer, by the time you switched back you would have missed Riek's much-ballyhooed debut, following a nine-game suspension.

This was supposed to be it. One half of the freshman frontcourt duo that was supposed help the Bulldogs reach the next level.

If you're coach Rick Stansbury, what better time to test drive your newest weapon than on the autobahn that is Wright State, which has no player taller than 6-foot-9 senior Ronnie Thomas.

Instead, Riek watched as his teammates launched 25 three-pointers, and only managed to outrebound the Raiders by six boards.

Stansbury rationalized Riek's benching by pointing out that exposing him to the Raiders smaller, quicker lineup was counterintuitive. Wright State hoisted 36 shots from three-point range, connecting on 14.

"There couldn't have been a worse team in America for him to try to step in (against)," Stansbury said, adding "I wasn't going to put him in that situation. I got him in just to let the crowd acknowledge him."

Hyperbole aside, to Stanbury's decision to sit Riek isn't exactly a vote of confidence in the young freshman.

Riek's sinewy 7-foot-2 frame, and a wingspan longer than the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge , make him a disruptive force in the paint against any team. He demonstrated this at the LeBron James Skills Academy, where he dominated top-flight competition from around the nation.

This leads me to believe that pairing Riek with the efficacious Jarvis Varnado would produce a precipitous drop in opponent's field goal percentage from a 15-foot radius.

Maybe I'm missing something here. After all, most of the hype around Riek is largely speculative. The only conclusion one can draw from watching his pre-draft film is that he can, in fact, dunk. Hard. Sometimes even in traffic.

Perhaps his conditioning is a concern. Or maybe Riek simply still isn't comfortable in Stansbury's system.

But, he's already at a disadvantage after being sidelined for nine games to start the season.

Inserting him into the lineup against an overmatched Wright State team to get a feel for the game speed, physicality of play in the paint and, most importantly, playing with his new teammates, would accelerate his development for when Bulldogs open conference play Jan. 9 at Ole Miss.

Then the question remains: why not play him now?

The Bulldogs' next opponent is a Houston team that only has one true center on its roster; Nick Mosley who, coincidentally, is listed at 6-foot-9.