Thomas poured in 24 points and grabbed eight rebounds to pace the Lady Bulldogs. It was her 36th straight game to score in double-digits. Junior Jennifer Fambrough also got back on track, scoring 17 points in the game. Freshman forward Seneca Anderson notched a career best with 12 while senior guard Cynthia Hall added 12. MSU had four players score in double digits for the first time this season.
Sophomore forward Keisha Stringfellow sat out the entire second half due to an upper respiratory infection. She is expected back for the next game.
"Jennifer and LaToya are in their second year of playing together," head coach Sharon Fanning said after the game. "Jennifer really needs to continue playing well if this is going to be a good basketball team."
MSU jumped out to a 19-4 lead in the game and never looked back, outscoring the Lady Jaguars 48-29 in the first half. The Lady Bulldogs shot 50.9-percent from the floor, while holding Southern to 20-percent. MSU outrebounded the Lady Jaguars 24-13.
The Lady Jaguars were led in scoring by guard Jacklyn Winfield with 14, while guard Katrina Melton pitched in with 12.
The Lady Bulldogs are riding a 19-game non-conference home winning streak. MSU has won 15 straight home openers and is now 24-3 overall in home openers.
MSU returns to action Sunday against Georgia Tech in a non-conference game at Humphrey Coliseum at 4 p.m.
Reprinted with the permission of the MSU Athletic Department
(Gene's Comments: Coach Fanning mentioned in the post-game press conference that she would really like to see the Hump packed this coming Sunday against Georgia Tech. Be there if you can.)
Thursday's meeting with Alabama A&M will mark the first of four games to be played by coach Rick Stansbury's Bulldogs during an upcoming 10-day home stretch. This Saturday (Dec. 2), State will play host to the Richmond Spiders at 1 p.m., before wrapping up its current homestand next week by welcoming Louisiana Tech and Montana State to Starkville on Tuesday (Dec. 5) and Saturday (Dec. 9), respectively.
Mississippi State brings a 2-1 record into Thursday's contest after recording a 93-58 homecourt triumph over Mississippi Valley State last Tuesday. MSU also owns an 83-74 home win over McNeese State on the young season, while having dropped its season opener at California, 83-76 in overtime, in first-round action of the TiVo Preseason NIT.
After registering the fourth-highest, single-game rebounding total in school history with 75 rebounds in last week's win over MVSU, the Bulldogs entered this week's action leading the Southeastern Conference in rebounding (54.7 rpg), rebounding margin (+19.0) and defensive rebounds (37.3/gm). As a team to start the week, MSU also rated second among the league leaders in blocks (5.3 bpg) and third in field-goal percentage defense (35.8%).
Individually, senior guard Antonio Jackson began the week ranked second in the SEC in both three-point field goal percentage (54.5%) and 3-pointers made per game (4.00/gm), along with rating as the league's No. 7 scorer (16.3 ppg). With a pair of double-double performances in his first three outings of the new campaign, junior frontcourt standout Robert Jackson rates as the SEC's second-leading rebounder (11.3 rpg), along with standing 15th among league leaders in scoring (15.7 ppg) and 10th in field-goal percentage (54.8%).
Picked in the preseason by the league's coaches to finish sixth in the Southwestern Athletic Conference race, the Bulldogs of Alabama A&M brought a 1-2 record into Tuesday's road contest against Wright State University in Dayton, Ohio. After opening the 2000-2001 season with a 74-71 home victory over Jacksonville State, A&M has since fallen to UAB, 97-62, on the road and at home to Georgia State, 82-73. Guided by 15th-year coaching veteran L. Vann Pettaway, the Alabama A&M Bulldogs were 18-10 overall last season and 14-4 in league play, though they were ineligible to compete in the SWAC Tournament a year ago after jumping from NCAA Division II status.
Reprinted with the permission of the MSU Athletic Department
11/28/00
Men's Basketball - Comcast Sports Southeast, a 24-hour, regional sports network based in Atlanta, will televise this week's Mississippi State men's basketball home games versus Alabama A&M and Richmond on Thursday and Saturday, respectively.
Thursday's home contest against Alabama A&M of the Southwestern Athletic Conference is set for a 7 p.m. tip-off, while Saturday's game versus the Richmond Spiders of the Colonial Athletic Association will begin at 1 p.m. Both contests will be played at MSU's Humphrey Coliseum.
With 1.8 million subscribers encompassing eight Southeastern states, Comcast Sports Southeast's regional coverage area extends from the Florida panhandle north to Kentucky, as well as from South Carolina west to Arkansas. Major markets outside the Magnolia State include Atlanta, Savannah and Augusta in Georgia; Huntsville and Mobile in Alabama; Knoxville and Chattanooga in Tennessee; Greenville/Spartanburg and Charleston in South Carolina; Panama City, Fla.; Little Rock, Ark.; and central Kentucky.
The Mississippi markets included in CSS's coverage area include Hattiesburg, Meridian, Tupelo, Laurel, Corinth and Fulton.
Veteran Mississippi State broadcaster Jim Ellis, general manager of Bulldog Sports Network, will handle the play-by-play duties for the upcoming basketball telecasts on CSS. Former MSU basketball standout and assistant coach Joe Dean Jr., currently the director of athletics at Birmingham-Southern College, will join Ellis on the CSS telecasts as color analyst.
Reprinted with the permission of the MSU Athletic Department
The 6-2 forward from Greenville, Miss., set the school record for points in a game with 48 against Memphis last Tuesday. The previous record was 42 set by Jennifer Fambrough against Northwestern State in December, 1998.
Thomas was named the most valuable player of the Southwest Airlines Lobo Shootout which the Lady Bulldogs won over the weekend. The award marks her third tournament MVP honor in as many tournaments, including the SEC Tournament MVP last March.
A preseason player of the year candidate, Thomas now has a 35-game double-digit scoring streak (every game she's played as a Lady Bulldog). She placed herself on MSU's all-time career scoring chart just one game into her sophomore year and now stands at 23rd with 760 career points.
Mississippi State is ranked No. 16 in the latest Associated Press and USA TODAY/ESPN Coaches polls released Monday.
MSU opens its home season Tuesday night hosting Southern University at 7 p.m. The Lady Bulldogs are 2-1 this season after losing to Memphis (88-82) to start the season and then winning back to back games over the weekend against Cal State-Northridge (75-61) and New Mexico (66-59).
Southern is also 2-1 this season having defeated Prairie View A&M (59-49) and Hampton (78-73). The Jaguars' loss came at the hands of Auburn (76-60). Leading Southern in scoring is junior Jacklyn Winfield. The 5-8 guard from Wesson, Miss., is averaging 24.6 points per game, including a 38-point performance against Hampton.
For MSU, Thomas leads the SEC in points and leads MSU in rebounds and steals. Freshman Jessica Carter is second on the team in points averaging 9.0 per game. She is second in the SEC in both three-point percentage (.636) and three-pointers made per game (2.33).
Senior Cynthia Hall is fifth in the league in assists per game (5.33) in her first few games at point guard. She is third on the team in scoring with 8.0 points per outing. Following Hall is sophomore Keisha Stringfellow with an average of 7.0 points per game. Stringfellow is second on the team in rebounding and assists averaging 5.3 boards and 3. 3 assists per contest.
State leads the series against Southern 6-0 with four wins in Starkville. The Lady Bulldogs last met the Jaguars on Feb. 1, 1994, and won 90-74 in Humphrey Coliseum.
Reprinted with the permission of the MSU Athletic Department
11/26/00
Women's Basketball - The Lady Bulldogs defeated New Mexico on its home court 66-59 tonight to win the Southwest Airlines Lobo Shootout. With the win, the Lady Bulldogs, ranked 14th nationally, moved to 2-1 on the season.
Sophomore standout Latoya Thomas was named the tournament's MVP. It marked the third time in Thomas' career that she has been awarded such an honor. She was previously named MVP of the MSU Classic last fall and the Southeastern Conference Tournament in May of this year. She led the Lady Bulldogs with 27 points and 10 rebounds. Thomas has now scored in double digits in 35 consecutive games, every game in which she has played for Mississippi State.
Mississippi State led by three at the half, 31-28 before Mew Mexico went on and 12-4 run to begin the second period. MSU responded with four consecutive points from Thomas to close the margin, and took the lead for good with 4:33 left in the contest.
"This was as big a win as we have had in this program," head coach Sharon Fanning said after the game. "We came into a hostile environment and had some of our young players step up for us."
MSU had to rely on its bench as starters got into foul trouble early. Senior guard Cynthia Hall, who played only 29 minutes because of fouls, was the Lady Bulldogs' second leading scorer with 14 points. Hall was named to the All-Tournament team allong with Thomas. Junior Jennifer Fambrough played only 23 minutes as she was charged with her fourth personal just three minutes into the second half. She finished with seven points.
"Every great team has great players," Fanning said. "I was really pleased with the leadership we showed in this tournament. We maintained our focus and played with composure in front of almost 8,000 fans."
Announced attendance was 7,861 in New Mexico's famed arena, "The Pit." The Lobos had been riding a nine-game winning streak in the tournament, not having lost in their own invitational since 1996.
Mississippi State will return to Starkville on Sunday before hosting Southern University on Tuesday in the Humphrey Coliseum. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m.
Reprinted with the permission of the MSU Athletic Department
11/26/00
Women's Basketball - The Lady Bulldogs defeated New Mexico on its home court 66-59 tonight to win the Southwest Airlines Lobo Shootout. With the win, the Lady Bulldogs, ranked 14th nationally, moved to 2-1 on the season.
Sophomore standout Latoya Thomas was named the tournament's MVP. It marked the third time in Thomas' career that she has been awarded such an honor. She was previously named MVP of the MSU Classic last fall and the Southeastern Conference Tournament in May of this year. She led the Lady Bulldogs with 27 points and 10 rebounds. Thomas has now scored in double digits in 35 consecutive games, every game in which she has played for Mississippi State.
Mississippi State led by three at the half, 31-28 before Mew Mexico went on and 12-4 run to begin the second period. MSU responded with four consecutive points from Thomas to close the margin, and took the lead for good with 4:33 left in the contest.
"This was as big a win as we have had in this program," head coach Sharon Fanning said after the game. "We came into a hostile environment and had some of our young players step up for us."
MSU had to rely on its bench as starters got into foul trouble early. Senior guard Cynthia Hall, who played only 29 minutes because of fouls, was the Lady Bulldogs' second leading scorer with 14 points. Hall was named to the All-Tournament team allong with Thomas. Junior Jennifer Fambrough played only 23 minutes as she was charged with her fourth personal just three minutes into the second half. She finished with seven points.
"Every great team has great players," Fanning said. "I was really pleased with the leadership we showed in this tournament. We maintained our focus and played with composure in front of almost 8,000 fans."
Announced attendance was 7,861 in New Mexico's famed arena, "The Pit." The Lobos had been riding a nine-game winning streak in the tournament, not having lost in their own invitational since 1996.
Mississippi State will return to Starkville on Sunday before hosting Southern University on Tuesday in the Humphrey Coliseum. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m.
Reprinted with the permission of the MSU Athletic Department
11/25/00
Women's Basketball - After a disheartening loss at Memphis Tuesday to open the season, the 14th ranked Lady Bulldogs rebounded with a 75-61 win over Cal-State Northridge in the first game of the Southwest Airlines Lobo Shootout. Coming together as a team, every State player who saw action scored.
Leading the pack was freshman Jessica Carter with 14 points, 12 from long range. Sophomores LaToya Thomas and Keisha Stringfellow each added 13 points. Thomas played the lowest minutes of her career (15) while battling a cold and foul trouble.
In the first five minutes of the game, MSU outscored the Matadors 12-2. Cal State-Northridge's only points were from free throws. CSN never came closer than six points after a 10-2 run midway through the first. The Lady Bulldogs led by as much as 21 in the second half.
MSU's starting forwards, Thomas and Jennifer Fambrough each had two fouls five minutes into the game. Freshman Lyndi Sippel was key for the Lady Bulldogs down low as the starters then rotated for each other. Thomas picked up her third foul with five minutes left in the first half and her fourth just four minutes into the second half.
"She's battling an ear infection and a sinus infection," said head coach Sharon Fanning of Thomas. "She is pushing through it and hopefully it will clear up soon. I think it was positive for the team to play without Toya. As a team, we have to learn to play together better and Toya not being out there enabled more people to see the floor in a variety of combinations."
Stringfellow tallied 11 in the first half to setting a career-high with 20 minutes remaining and leading the Lady Bulldogs to a 40-24 halftime lead.This game marked the first this season, including exhibition contests, thatMSU was not outscored in the first period of play.
"Right now Keisha is focusing on balance and footwork," said Fanning. "As those things progress, her stats will be even greater. Playing behind Nitra Perry last year, she didn¹t get the time she needed to mature, but she's playing better the more she's out there."
Ten Lady Bulldogs scored for MSU. The last time Mississippi State saw all participating players score was against Alabama State on Dec. 1, 1998. The freshmen combined for 31 points and the sophomores had a three-person total of 27 points.
"Our young kids got some confidence tonight," said Fanning. "We're hoping this team will be the most improved team in the league by January. We have to improve, but we have to be patient. We have some new people in some new roles. We have to be confident that it will come together."
The Lady Bulldogs were consistent from the floor, shooting over 50 percent for both halves. MSU was 55 percent from three-point range while holding the Matadors to only 25 percent from behind the arc. State was uncharacteristically low from behind the line shooting 45 percent. Mississippi State lost the rebounding war 38-33, but managed to force more turnovers than Cal State-Northridge (26-15).
Mississippi State will face the winner of the New Mexico vs. Nicholls State match-up at 7 p.m. Saturday in the championship game. Lady Bulldog fans can once again catch the action on WFCA 107.9 FM.
Reprinted with the permission of the MSU Athletic Department
11/22/00
Men's Basketball - Mississippi State, behind the play of Tyrus Boswell (13 pts, 15 rebounds), Robert Jackson (17 pts, 13 rebounds), and Mario Austin (10 pts, 10 rebounds), defeated the Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils 93 to 58. Boswell and Austin recorded their first career double-double. It was also Boswell's first career start as a Bulldog.
Valley, coming off a 85-70 decision at Oregon this past Friday, was led in scoring by preseason All-SWAC performer Dwayne Jefferson with 12 points.
MSU took an early 10-6 lead over Valley primarily behind Boswell's four points, both on tip-ins, and Robert Jackson's four points.
MSU would continue extending the lead and would eventually lead at halftime 41 to 18.
Leading scorers for MSU at halftime were Boswell (10 pts), Robert Jackson (9 pts) and Mario Austin (8 pts). Robert Jackson led the team at the half with 10 rebounds.
MSU Coach Rick Stansbury played thirteen players during the first half.
The Bulldogs came out in the second half even hotter, offensively, and would outscore the Delta Devils 52 to 40, to make the final 93 to 58.
MSU now has a 22-game non-SEC home winning streak.
One other player of note was transfer point guard Guy Gardner. Gardner, playing seven minutes in the first half and nine in the second, scored 10 points on 3-of-9 shooting (2-of-3 from 3-pt range) and 2-of-2 from the free throw line. He also added 3 assists, 3 steals and 4 rebounds and showed great intensity throughout the game.
Everybody on MSU's bench played at least 2 or more minutes. Newcomers Ontario Harper and Timmy Bowers received their first official playing time this season as did veteran walkon players Ward Griffith, Brandon Carr, Roy Goffer and Corey Stidham. Bowers recorded the most points among the group with 5 points.
MSU, for the game, shot 38.6% from the field and 59.5% from the free-throw line. Valley shot even worse, 27.3%, from the field. MSU outrebounded the Delta Devils 75 to 44. The Bulldogs also recorded 16 assists to the Delta Devils 7. Both teams registered 6 steals a piece.
The attendance was 2,455.
MSU's next action will be against Alabama A&M on November 30 at the Hump.
Gene's Page writeup of the game
Women's Basketball - Coach Sharon Fanning's 14th-ranked Lady Bulldog squad opened the 2000-01 regular season in Memphis with an 88-82 loss.
Sophomore LaToya Thomas led State with 48 points breaking the school record for points in a game set by Jennifer Fambrough against Northwestern State (12/19/98). She also grabbed 10 rebounds in the effort to gain her first double-double of the season.
"I'm pleased that Toya wants the ball," said Fanning. "She takes it to the hole and does what she can to keep us in the game. As a team, we just need to improve and play better. We're a young team, and we have plenty of things to learn."
Memphis gained the lead at 17:13 in the first half and never looked back, taking a 46-33 lead into the locker room at halftime.
MSU cut the Lady Tigers' lead to four with 1:15 remaining when Keisha Stringfellow stole the ball off the point and went the distance for a lay-up.
Freshman Seneca Anderson was the closest Lady Bulldog to double-digits behind Thomas, scoring eight points. Fambrough and Anderson each had six rebounds.
"There wasn't anything we didn't expect'" said Fanning. "We have a lot to learn about each other and a lot of improvements to make. We have to take from this what we can and move on to the next game. We need to get better everytime we step on the floor."
Mississippi State shot 47 percent for the game while Memphis shot 48.6 percent. The Lady Tigers shot 76.2 percent from the charity stripe while MSU shot 66.7 percent. Memphis outrebounded the Lady Bulldogs 46-32.
Tiffany Adkins had 37 points to lead Memphis.
To help get the season started, a bus with more than 40 Maroon and White clad fans made the two and a half hour trip from Starkville and joined another 40-plus MSU fans to cheer on the Lady Bulldogs.
State continues a season-opening, three-game road swing traveling to Albuquerque, N.M., on Thursday. The Lady Bulldogs play Cal State-Northridge on Friday, Nov. 24, at 6 p.m. CST to start the tournament while host New Mexico plays Nicholls State immediately following the Lady Bulldogs matchup. The consolation and championship games will be played on Saturday at 6 p.m. and 8 p.m. CST, respectively. MSU can be heard on the radio both days on West Point-based WFCA 107.9 FM.
Reprinted with the permission of the MSU Athletic Department
11/21/00
Men's Basketball - Looking to extend their 21-game homecourt winning streak against non-SEC opposition, the Mississippi State Bulldogs (1-1) play host to the Delta Devils of Mississippi Valley State (0-1) Tuesday on the MSU campus. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. at Humphrey Coliseum.
Coach Rick Stansbury's Bulldogs will bring a 1-1 record into their first-ever meeting with Valley after posting an 83-74 home win over McNeese State this past Saturday. Tuesday's MVSU contest will mark the first of two straight home tilts against Southwestern Athletic Conference competition for the Bulldogs, as they will welcome Alabama A&M to "The Hump" on Thursday, Nov. 30.
Senior guard Antonio Jackson leads a quartet of double-figure Bulldog scorers on the young season. The tri-captain from Huntsville, Ala., is averaging 21.5 points, including 12-of-19 three-point shooting (63%), 5.5 rebounds and 5.5 assists an outing through MSU's first two contests. He tied a single-game school and Preseason NIT record with eight 3-pointers at California in State's season opener.
Another of MSU's season tri-captains for the 2000-2001 campaign, junior Robert Jackson is averaging a "double-double" with 15.0 points and 10.5 rebounds a game after recording 17 points (7-7 FGs) and eight boards in Saturday's victory over McNeese State. Reigning McDonald's and Parade All-American Mario Austin is contributing 13.0 points, including 52 percent field-goal shooting and 80 percent free-throw accuracy, 3.0 assists and 2.0 blocks per contest in his initial collegiate outings. Senior forward Tang Hamilton, a starter since the beginning of his sophomore season, is adding 12.0 points on 67 percent shooting from the field along with 7.0 rebounds a game.
As a team, the Bulldogs have out-shot their first two opponents from the field 52 to 40 percent, while having out-rebounded the opposition by an average of 13 boards per outing.
Picked in the preseason by the league's coaches to finish third in the Southwestern Athletic Conference race, Mississippi Valley State returns all five starters from last year's 7-21 squad. Guided by 18th-year coaching veteran Lafayette Stribling, MVSU opened the current season by dropping an 85-70 decision at Oregon this past Friday. Expected to lead Valley this season are preseason All-SWAC senior performers Dewayne Jefferson and Henry Jordan.
Mississippi State's month-long, six-game homestand will continue into December with future home contests versus Richmond (Dec. 2), Louisiana Tech (Dec. 5) and Montana State (Dec. 9).
Reprinted with the MSU Athletic Department
The Lady Bulldogs successfully defended their home turf in two exhibition games. The most recent was a 72-65 victory over Athletes in Action on Nov. 13. State also gained a 75-65 victory over Slovan Bratislava on Nov. 2.
Against Athletes in Action, the Lady Bulldogs were led by all-American LaToya Thomas, who scored 29 points and grabbed 10 rebounds in her first action of the season. She also had six steals, one block, and one assist in the all around effort.
Forward Jennifer Fambrough is leading MSU in rebounds through the two contests, averaging 10.5 boards to go along with her 15.5 points per game.
Senior guard Meadow Overstreet has had the hot hand from the outside so far. She has made seven three-point baskets while shooting 53 percent from behind the arc. That shooting touch has helped her average 12.5 points per game.
Senior guard Cynthia Hall has also been active in the preseason, averaging 10.5 points per contest. Hall is making the transition from the shooting guard position to the point guard position due to the loss of four-year starter Angela Harris.
The Lady Bulldogs have also gotten significant contributions from sophomore guard Keisha Stringfellow, who made her first start in the Maroon and White against AIA. She scored 10 points and played a game-high 38 minutes.
Freshmen Lyndi Sippel, Jessica Carter, Seneca Anderson and Dana Benemon have shown talent in the preseason. Sippel scored nine points and grabbed nine rebounds in the two games while Carter had nine points all from threes. Benemon and Anderson chipped in a combined 10 points for the exhibition season.
Conference-USA member Memphis will look to gain its second win against an SEC school as the Lady Tigers defeated Arkansas 66-58 in Memphis Saturday. Coach Joye Lee McNeilis¹ Lady Tigers made 56 percent of their shots in their exhibition season and shot 39 percent against the Lady Razorbacks.
Tiffany Adkins led Memphis against Arkansas with 17 points and 10 rebounds to go with three steals, two blocks and two assists. Shannon Hamp, who shot at a 68 percent clip for the two exhibition games, scored 14 points for the Lady Tigers against the Lady ŒBacks Saturday.
Traditionally, Mississippi State has struggled in Memphis. The Lady Tigers own a 13-1 mark at home and a 17-9 series record.
After the game against Memphis, Mississippi State will continue its three-game road swing to start the season traveling to Albuquerque, N.M., for the New Mexico Tournament. The Lady Bulldogs play Cal State Northridge on Friday, Nov. 24 at 5 p.m. MST. The consolation and championship games are schedule for 5 and 7 p.m., respectively on Saturday. Rounding out the field of four is Nicholls State who will play New Mexico in the first round following MSU on Friday.
"Doceide is an excellent athlete," said MSU head coach Sharon Fanning. "She is very quick, smart and an aggressive defensive player who can control the offense. She pushes the ball down the floor on offense, has excellent vision of her teammates and can penetrate to the rim or pull up outside."
Last year, Warren dished out assists at a rate of 6.8 per game and showed her ability to score by averaging 17.8 points per contest. She also grabbed 5.9 rebounds and 4.2 steals per outing. These statistics helped her earn MVP of her district, first team all-district, and MVP of the Arlington-Bowie and Kaufman tournaments.
Warren led Coach Patrice Gillenwataer's Mesquite High School Lady Tigers in points, assists, and steals per game. The Lady Skeeters won the district title last season, finishing with a 27-5 overall record.
"Doceide Warren is a gifted athlete with a desire to win like no other athlete that I have ever coached," said Coach Gillenwataer. "She has all the skills needed at the point position. I have had the honor of coaching her for four years. Everyone notices the great athlete Doceide is, but few know that she is a rare person whose spirit as a human being is better than her athletic ability."
A member of the Texas Junior Olympic Team, Warren has also been projected as one of the top 5 point guards in Texas for the 2000-01 season.
"She is a winner, a team player and will make a difference at Mississippi State as a freshman," said Fanning. "She is a really good person and a gym rat. Doceide will work to win."
Ferguson was recently selected to the 2000-01 Birmingham Super Select Senior Team.
Along with a variety of all-tournament team awards, Fergusonhe garnered all-state honors as a junior as well as all-county and all-area MVP. Last season she also won the state of Alabama three-point shooter competition.
"Ebonie is a tremendous shooter and will most likely play the shooting guard position for the Lady Bulldogs," Fanning said. "She is an excellent athlete with good instincts on the floor. She loves defense, listens well and is a very hard worker so she should learn our system quickly. We believe she will make an immediate contribution to our basketball team."
Reprinted with the MSU Athletic Department
11/19/00 - Mississippi State (1-1) used a stingy defense and timely shooting to overcome deficits in each half as the Bulldogs evened up their record with a 83-74 victory over McNeese State (0-1) Saturday evening in Humphrey Coliseum.
Antonio Jackson and Robert Jackson each tallied 17 points to lead a quartet of Bulldogs in double figures, with Tang Hamilton and Mario Austin contributing with 13 and 10 points respectively. Chauncey Bryant led McNeese State with a game-high 21 points.
State pushed its non-conference home winning streak to 21 games with the victory over the Cowboys. Antonio Jackson continued his dominance of three-point land, shooting 4-6 from beyond the arch to push his two-game total to 12-19 (.632). The senior tri-captain has now scored 43 points in two games this season.
"I think it is very obvious that we weren't very sharp," said Mississippi State head coach Rick Stansbury. "I had that feeling before the game. Mentally, we were not where we were supposed to be, especially in the first five minutes.
"What our guys don't understand is that it does not matter whose name is on the front of the jersey, you still have to come out and play with a lot of effort. Any team that can shoot the ball the way that they do can score a lot of points. We were a step behind all night. Give McNeese State credit, they are a good basketball team. But, we did not play them well when we needed to."
Mississippi State pushed its lead to as much as 12 on a dunk by Mario Austin with 17:09 remaining in the second half, before McNeese State used hot shooting to slowly chip away at its deficit. Eldrid Lewis' jumper at the 9:36 mark tied the game for the first time, before Tierre Brown's jumper 76 seconds later gave the Cowboys a 60-58 lead.
Antonio and Robert Jackson keyed a run that gave the Bulldogs an eight-point lead, 73-65, with just more than three minutes remaining before State tightened up on defense. McNeese cut its deficit to six twice down the stretch, but could not get any closer.
McNeese State came out of the gates with hot hands, scoring the game's first four points to key a 18-8 run to open the game for the Cowboys. The Cowboys controlled the tempo for much of the next eight minutes of play before State regained its composure and balance. Antonio Jackson's trey at the 6:45 mark of the opening stanza gave State its first lead of the game, 33-31, and the Bulldogs went into the intermission with a 40-35 cushion.
Mississippi State will again be in action on Tuesday when they entertain Mississippi Valley State at 7 p.m. in Humphrey Coliseum.
MCNEESE STATE (74)
Miller 2-4 5-6 9, 1-3 0-0 2, Brown 8-20 1-4 21, Bryant 1-1 0-0 3, Mallet 6-17 2-2 18, Lewis 2-4 2-3 6, Johnson 5-10 0-0 10, Perkins 0-1 0-0 0, Coleman 2-13 0-0 5, Beik 0-2 0-0 0, Brewer 0-1 0-0 0. Totals 27-76 10-15 74.
MISSISSIPPI STATE (83)
Hamilton 5-7 3-4 13, Austin 4-7 2-3 10, R. Jackson 7-7 3-4 17, A. Jackson 6-8 1-2 17, Zimmerman 1-5 0-0 2, Billups 1-2 1-2 3, Gardner 1-2 2-3 4, Gholar 0-1 1-2 1, Patterson 2-3 0-1 5, Boswell 2-5 2-4 7, Q. Smith 2-3 0-0 4. Totals 31-50 15-25 83.
Halftime - Mississippi State 40, McNeese State 35. Fouled Out - None. Rebounds - Miss. State 43 (R. Jackson 8), McNeese 33 (Brown 5). Assists - Miss. State 18 (A. Jackson 6), McNeese 10 (Bryant 3). Total Fouls - McNeese 24, Miss. State 17. A - 2,553.
Reprinted with the permission of the MSU Athletic Department
11/15/00
Women's Basketball - For those of you who didn't know it, MSU basketball player LaToya Thomas will be doing a weekly diary for ESPN this season.
Click here to read the first entry in her ESPN diary.
11/14/00
Men's Basketball - Behind the outstanding play of freshman Mario Austin, junior Robert Jackson and senior Antonio Jackson, the visiting MSU basketball team took an outstanding California basketball team into overtime before losing 83-76. As MSU continues to play together, look for them to get better and better.
The Lady Bulldogs were led by sophomore forward LaToya Thomas who registered a double-double with 29 points and 10 rebounds. Thomas, who garnered a number of preseason all-America all-SEC honors, also had a team-high six steals.
Junior forward Jennifer Fambrough just missed a double-double with 12 points and nine rebounds. Both Thomas and Fambrough shot over 50 percent from the field while Thomas was perfect (eight-of-eight) from the charity stripe.
Senior guard Meadow Overstreet celebrated her 22nd birthday with 11 points, including a team-high three, three-pointers. Sophomore Keisha Stringfellow, who started for the first time in the Maroon and White and played a team-high 38 minutes, chipped in 10 points as well.
After shooting a dismal 36 percent from the field in the first half, State came out and shot 58-percent in the second half. MSU outscored AIA 39-33 in the second period, extending a 33-32 halftime margin. The Lady Bulldogs outrebounded AIA 42-29.
"We have got to be able to go harder," said Lady Bulldog head coach Sharon Fanning. "We have to take control on defense so that we control a team, right now we're not. We have to become more consistent, but that will come with time."
For Athletes in Action, forward Karyn Karlin and guard Crystal Carpenter each scored 18 points, while Karlin led the team with 12 rebounds.
Mississippi State will open the regular season Tuesday, Nov. 21, at Memphis at 7 p.m. The Lady Bulldogs will continue their three-game road swing in Albuquerque, N.M., playing in a two-day tournament at New Mexico on Nov. 24-25.
Reprinted with the permission of the MSU Athletic Department
11/13/00
Men's Basketball - Don't forget that the men's team plays California tonight. Gametime is set for 11 p.m. CDT. The game will be shown on ESPN2.
California returns its top nine scorers from last year's 18-15 team.
In their first contest of the season, the Lady Bulldogs were led by veterans Jennifer Fambrough, Cynthia Hall, and Meadow Overstreet. Fambrough grabbed 12 rebounds to go along with her 19 points to garner MSU¹s first double-double of the season. Hall and Overstreet each chipped in 14 points.
Playing for the first time in the Maroon and White against Slovan Bratislava were freshmen Dana Benemon, Lyndi Sippel, Seneca Anderson, and Jessica Carter. All saw significant playing time. Carter led the first year players with nine points on three, three-pointers. Sippel and Benemon each scored seven points, while Anderson contributed two points.
The game against Athletes in Action will feature a reunion of sorts. Four of their players played against Mississippi State during their collegiate careers. Shayla Franklin played at Southern Mississippi, Caritas Henry at LSU, and Christy Smith and Karyn Karlin are both former Lady Razorbacks. The team has several players that also play professionally, including Smith who played two seasons for the WNBA¹s Charlotte Sting.
AIA attempts to use basketball as a mission to show their love for Jesus Christ.
All Bulldog fans are encouraged to come support Coach Sharon Fanning's squad. Admission to all exhibition games is free.
Reprinted with the permission of the MSU Athletic Department
11/11/00 - Basketball News:
Robert Jackson and Quentin Smith led a quartet of Bulldog players with double digits with 13 points apiece, with Smith recording a double-double, collecting 14 total rebounds. Slovenia's Simon Finzgar led all scorers with 15 points.
"We did not anticipate them playing zone, but I'm glad they did," said Mississippi State head coach Rick Stansbury. "We really haven't played against zone defense at all this year and we basically put in our zone offense this week. That was very apparent. I don't think we attacked it as well as we should have. I don't think we shot the ball very well tonight. I think we're a better shooting team than that."
After exiting the halftime break with a sizable lead, Boswell gave State a 31-point lead with 12:49 remaining before State hit cruise control. Antonio Jackson's jumper with 6:17 remaining in the second period gave State its largest lead of the game, 77-39, before Slovenia got the hot hand from beyond the arch enabling them to slowly chip away at its deficit.
Slovenia cut the deficit to 28 points at the 2:12 mark, but could not get any closer before Mississippi State, which played most of its entire bench, slammed the door closed.
State took early control of the game, scoring the contest's first six points before Slovenia finally got on the scoreboard with a jumper at the 16:23 mark. A dunk by Michael Gholar with 11:39 remaining in the opening stanza gave MSU a double-digit lead, 20-9, before State pushed its lead to 20 on a layup by Gholar with just more than five minutes remaining.
Mario Austin's jumper with more than four minutes remaining gave the Bulldogs a 24-point lead before Slovenia chipped at its deficit, cutting the State lead to 17 before the Bulldogs responded with a scoring spurt that gave them the same 24-point lead at intermission.
Mississippi State will open its 2000-2001 regular season on Monday evening in the first round of the TiVo Preseason NIT. State will travel to Berkeley, Calif., to take on the California Golden Bears of the Pac-10 Conference in opening-round tournament action. Tip-off is set for 11 p.m. CT and the game is slated to be nationally televised by ESPN2.
BC FLOWTEX- SLOVENIA (57)
Finzgar 5-11 1-2 15, Zagorac 3-7 1-2 7, Delezan 2-5 6-6 11, Drazovac 1-6 0-0 2, Vidic 4-9, 2-2 10, Marincic 0-0 0-0 0, Fon 0-3 0-0 0, Sager 4-7 0-0 11, Dokic 0-2 0-0 0, Mesic 0-1 0-0 0, Vidmar 0-1 1-2 1. Totals 19-52 11-15 57.
MISSISSIPPI STATE (91)
Hamilton 5-8 0-0 10, Austin 4-5 1-2 9, R. Jackson 6-8 1-1 13, A. Jackson 1-7 3-4 5, Zimmerman 1-4 0-0 2, Billups 0-1 0-0 0, Goffer 0-0 0-0 0, Griffith 0-0 2-2 2, Gardner 2-5 0-0 4, Bowers 2-4 0-2 4, Gholar 4-7 0-2 8, Patterson 4-9 0-0 9, Boswell 5-7 2-6 12, Harper 0-0 0-0 0, Q. Smith 4-8 5-6 13. Totals 38-73 14-21 91.
Halftime - Mississippi State 47, Slovenia 23. Fouled Out - None. Rebounds - Slovenia 24 (Finzgar 6), Mississippi State 49 (Q. Smith 14). Assists - Slovenia 10 (Four Players 2), Mississippi State 13 (Austin, Patterson 2). Total Fouls - Slovenia 20, Mississippi State 17. A - 2,578.
Reprinted with the permission of the MSU Athletic Department
11/10/00 - Coach Rick Stansbury's Mississippi State Bulldogs conclude preseason exhibition competition Friday night by playing host to BC Flowtex of Slovenia. Tip-off for MSU's second and final preseason tune-up is set for 7 p.m. at Humphrey Coliseum, and admission will be free of charge.
The Bulldogs made their 2000-01 preseason debut last Saturday at home by knocking off the Grand Rapids Hoops of the Continental Basketball Association (CBA), 86-84, on senior tri-captain Antonio Jackson's game-winning three-pointer at the buzzer.
Hailing from the city of Bezigrad, Slovenia, BC Flowtex is in the midst of a six-game, 10-day tour of NCAA Division I institutions. The all-Slovenian squad opened its current tour by dropping decisions to SEC members South Carolina (92-63) and Tennessee (106-60) this past Saturday and Monday, respectively. BC Flowtex plays at Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wis., on Thursday night before heading to Starkville. The team will conclude its American tour by taking on Saint Louis University and Murray State University on Saturday and Monday, respectively.
Marking their earliest basketball season opener in school history, the Bulldogs will tip off their 89th season of basketball competition this coming Monday (Nov. 13), when they make their first-ever appearance in the TiVo Preseason NIT on the road against the California Golden Bears of the Pac-10 Conference. MSU's first-round tournament contest at Cal's Haas Pavilion in Berkeley will be televised live by ESPN2 beginning at 9 p.m. PT (11 p.m. CT).
The MSU-Cal winner will advance to meet the winner of the Texas/Navy contest on Wednesday, Nov. 15, at a campus site to be determined. The semifinals and finals of the 2000 TiVo Preseason NIT will take place on Nov. 22 and 24, respectively, at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
The Bulldogs enter the 2000-01 campaign with 10 returning lettermen, including four starters, from last year's 14-16 squad. MSU's expected starting lineup for its regular-season opener looks to consist of senior Tang Hamilton and freshman Mario Austin at the forward spots, reigning all-SEC center Robert Jackson in the post, along with senior Antonio Jackson and sophomore Derrick Zimmerman at the guard positions.
Returning 10 lettermen and their top nine scorers from last year's 18-15 team, which advanced to the quarterfinals of the National Invitation Tournament, the Golden Bears of California are slated to start senior Sean Lampley and sophomore Joe Shipp at forward, junior Solomon Hughes in the pivot position, as well as sophomore Shantay Legans and junior Dennis Gates at the guard spots. Guided by fifth-year head coach Ben Braun, Cal is picked by most preseason publications to finish in the middle of the Pac-10 race and predicted to earn its first NCAA Tournament berth since 1997.
Having begun in 1985, the Preseason NIT, now sponsored by TiVo, is comprised of 16 teams with NCAA legislation allowing for only one team from a conference to participate in a given year. Legislation also states that a team may only participate once every four years. MSU will become the 10th current SEC member to participate in the Preseason NIT. The Florida Gators won the 1987 Preseason NIT team title.
One needs only to look at the preseason polls to realize that Sharon Fanning has brought the program to a higher level. You'll find the Lady Bulldogs in every preseason Top-25. At the recent SEC Media Days in Birmingham, Ala., the Lady Bulldogs were tabbed to finish fourth by the media, the highest preseason ranking in school history.
State is ranked No. 16 in the country in the USA Today/ESPN preseason poll. MSU was picked ahead of perennial powerhouses Auburn, Vanderbilt, Oklahoma, North Carolina State and North Carolina.
Mississippi State is No. 17 as selected by a panel of AP voters in the preseason Top 25. Just like in the coaches poll, the Lady Bulldogs are picked fourth among SEC schools, behind No. 2 Tennessee, No. 3 Georgia and No. 7 LSU.
State has afforded Top-25 consideration by other national publications as well, such as Sports Illustrated for Women which has the Lady Bulldogs at No. 16 as does Preview Sports. WomensCollegeHoops.com and Athlon Sports both have State ranked 18th nationally.
Basketball News rated the Lady Bulldogs highest, notching them ninth, just behind No. 8 LSU while the Women's Basketball News Service selected State 14th in the country. Gballmag.com, a website that focuses on women's basketball, has State on its list of teams that have a shot to appear in the Top-10.
But Fanning will tell you that preseason prognostications are for the birds. They bring your team respect, but they also have no bearing on where your team will actually finish when the season is over. The rest is up to the players.
"The players realize they have a target on their backs now," said Fanning. "It gets bigger as you become more successful."
Fanning, who is entering her sixth season at the helm, has steadily brought MSU to the forefront of women's basketball in the SEC. But success didn't happen instantly. In fact, Fanning's squads failed to crack the .500 mark during her first three seasons. But a 17-11 mark and an appearance in the NCAA Tournament in 1998-99 brought respect to the program for the first time.
Last season saw the Lady Bulldogs enter the national scene with a 74-72 upset win over then-No. 2 Louisiana Tech in its second game of the season. State went on to win its first 11 games, including road stints on the west coast versus Pepperdine and Cal State-Northridge. Mississippi State entered the SEC race and was poised to threaten for the title before Tennessee escaped Starkville with a thrilling, come from behind win in the final seconds.
State continued to surprise everyone in the SEC Tournament, defeating Mississippi, Auburn and Georgia before falling again to Tennessee in the championship game. A loss to UAB in the second round of the NCAA Tournament prevented MSU from reaching the Sweet 16.
"This team has what it takes to win," said Fanning. " We will have a challenge replacing the key ingredients of chemistry that we lost but if we focus on developing the identity of this team and we develop the needed chemistry, we could be one of the best teams ever at Mississippi State."
Losing is no longer accepted, winning is expected and opponents will prepare for a tough challenge when facing Mississippi State.
Reprinted with the permission of the MSU Athletic Department
11/09/00 - MSU basketball news and comments.
Mississippi State University has signed 7-footers Marcus Campbell of Albany, Ga., and Wesley Morgan of Gallatin, Tenn., along with swing-position standout Winsome Frazier of Miami, Fla., to national letters of intent, as announced Wednesday by MSU head basketball coach Rick Stansbury.
Campbell, 7-1, 250 pounds, averaged 12 points and 10 rebounds per game as a junior in helping lead coach Willie Boston's Westover High School team to a 22-8 record and "Sweet 16" finish in the Georgia Class AAA State Tournament. He opened state tournament play with a 21-point, 13-rebound performance against Thomson High School.
Selected to The Albany Herald's "Super Six" team and Georgia Varsity Sports Vent's All-State First Team this preseason, Campbell is presently rated as the No. 17 high school senior and fourth-best post player in the nation by RecruitingUSA.com. With five Class AAA state championships since 1990, the 2000-01 Westover High School Patriots are ranked 22nd nationally in the preseason by Rivals.com.
Frazier, a 6-5, 180-pound guard/forward from Miami's Northwestern High School, averaged 22.6 points, eight rebounds and three assists an outing a year ago in helping lead coach Barry Terry's team to the semifinals of Florida's Class 6A State Tournament. Rated by The Hoop Scoop as the nation's 30th-best prep senior this preseason, Frazier was named to The Miami Herald's 1999-2000 Class 6A-5A Boys' Basketball First Team.
This past summer at the 2000 Nike Invitational Peach Jam in North Augusta, S.C., Frazier averaged 15.8 points and a tournament-best 2.0 steals per game for his Coast to Coast squad. His 34-point performance against the Georgia Elite contingent tied for the best single-game scoring effort during the prestigious four-day tournament.
At 7-2, 230 pounds, Morgan averaged six points, six rebounds and four blocks per contest for Gallatin High School last season on coach Bobby Luna's senior-dominated Green Wave ballclub, which posted a 30-5 record and advanced to the semifinals of the Tennessee Class AAA State Tournament. Having shot 58 percent from the field and 77 percent from the line as a junior, Morgan was voted the team's most improved player, in addition to earning All-District 9-3A and All-Region 4-3A Tournament recognition.
An honors student, Morgan helped pace Gallatin High School to a third-place team finish at the prestigious 80-team Steamboat Classic in Murray, Ky., this past summer.
Reprinted with the permission of the MSU Athletic Department
Gallatin High School is seeded third in the Huntsville Times Classic Basketball Tournament at Huntsville High School in Huntsville, ALabama and will play their first game at 6:00 P.M. on Wednesday, December 27, 2000. Gates will open at 5:00 P.M. with the admission price of $4.00 for the night session. If Gallatin wins or loses they will play at 1:30 P.M. on Thursday, December 28, 2000.
Local youngsters will be given the chance to be selected as honorary ball boys and ball girls for the game. One hundred kids will be selected from the local schools to get into the game free, receive a free souvenir tee shirt, and four names will be drawn from this group prior to the game to serve as honorary ball boys and ball girls for the game.
11/08/00 - According to several sources, MSU will sign two top-30 players today and one other who has great potential. Top 5 center and top 25 player 7-0 Marcus Campbell, top 30 player 6-5 wing guard Winsome Frazier and 7-2 center/forward Wesley Morgan will all sign with MSU today.
11/07/00 - The MSU women's basketball team starts the season off ranked number 16 in the pre-season poll. Click here to view the poll.....
11/06/00 - For those of you who have asked, the reason that Michael Gholar did not play in the basketball game Saturday night was due to a foot infection. He should be back playing soon.
11/05/00
Men's Basketball - Senior Antonio Jackson's three-pointer at the buzzer gave State its second lead of the half and lifted the Bulldogs to a thrilling 86-84 victory over the CBA's Grand Rapids Hoops in exhibition play Saturday night in Humphrey Coliseum.
Antonio Jackson's 18 points led a trio of State players in double figures. Robert Jackson netted 16 points while collecting 10 rebounds to record a double-double, while newcomer Mario Austin recorded 15 points in his collegiate debut. Former Michigan State standout Antonio Smith scored 18 to pace the Hoops.
"When we set this exhibition up to play it, we talked about trying to make our team better," said Mississippi State head coach Rick Stansbury. "I think there's no question, playing the competition we played, there are a lot of things we can learn from this game that maybe we couldn't have learned from some other teams.
"There are still a lot of areas we have to work on, but I was very pleased with some things about the team. I think you can see our team does have some depth. We played a lot of guys a lot of different minutes. There's just a lot of little things we have to put together as a team. Our kids have tremendous attitudes and are working very hard for us."
Despite a 45-41 halftime deficit, the Hoops took a 55-53 just less than four minutes into the second stanza on a dunk by Eric Riley, then took the largest lead of the game, 66-56, at the 12:35 mark on another dunk by Darrin Hancock. State cut the lead to one with just less than seven and a half minutes remaining, but Grand Rapids pushed its lead out to six 34 seconds later on a pair of free throws by former Duke standout Antonio Lang.
Tang Hamilton's jumper with 42 ticks left brought Mississippi State back to within one, 84-83, before Sean Colson, who had moments earlier Tang Hamilton grabbed the defensive rebound to initiate State's game-winning play.
Grand Rapids scored the first seven points of the game to take a quick lead, before State responded with a run of its own that gave the home-standing Bulldogs a 12-11 lead at the 14:52 mark on the shoulders of a Tyrus Boswell jumper. State controlled much of the next eight minutes before the lead changed hands three times between the 5:41 and the 4:13 mark of the opening stanza.
State twice pushed its lead to seven down the stretch, but a three-point play by Antonio Lang in the closing seconds brought Grand Rapids to within four at the intermission.
Mississippi State will again be in action on November 10 when they close out exhibition play against BC Flowtex of Slovenia at 7 p.m. in Humphrey Coliseum. MSU will open its regular season on November 13 when they travel to Berkeley, Calif., to take on California in the opening round of the TiVo Preseason NIT.
GRAND RAPIDS HOOPS (84)
B. Smith 4-10 1-2 9, A. Smith 8-17 2-2 18, Riley 2-3 0-0 4, Hancock 2-5 1-2 5, Colson 6-15 0-0 16, Griffin 1-5 0-0 3, Lang 1-2 5-5 7, Beck 2-5 4-6 9, Jefferson 0-1 0-0 0, Lauderdale 2-3 2-2 6. Totals 30-67 17-23 84.
MISSISSIPPI STATE (86)
Hamilton 4-10 1-2 9, Austin 4-5 7-8 15, R. Jackson 7-14 2-3 16, A. Jackson 6-10 2-2 18, Zimmerman 1-6 0-4 2, Billups 0-3 2-2 2, Gardner 1-3 0-0 2, Bowers 1-4 0-0 3, Patterson 2-2 2-2 8, Boswell 4-10 0-1 9, Q. Smith 1-3 0-2 2. Totals 31-70 16-26 86.
Halftime - Mississippi State 45, Grand Rapids Hoops 41. Fouled Out - None. Rebounds - Grand Rapids Hoops 34 (A. Smith 7), Mississippi State 48 (R. Jackson 10). Assists - Grand Rapids Hoops 12 (Colson 5), Mississippi State 14 (Zimmerman 5). Total Fouls - Grand Rapids Hoops 21, Mississippi State 19. Technical Fouls - Grand Rapids Hoops 3 (A. Smith, Bench, Beck), Mississippi State 0. A - 1,158.
Reprinted with the permission of the MSU Athletic Department
11/03/00
Women's Basketball - The Lady Bulldog basketball team was selected fourth in the Southeastern Conference's preseason media poll as reported by the league Thursday. Tennessee received 14 first place votes, while Georgia received three. LSU was in the third slot and Vanderbilt rounded out the top five.
The remaining teams were selected in the following order: Florida, Auburn, Arkansas, Alabama, South Carolina, Kentucky and Mississippi.
The media candidates for preseason player of the year included the Lady Vols' Tamika Catchings with 11 votes, Mississippi State's LaToya Thomas and Georgia's Kelly Miller with two votes each and LSU's Marie Ferdinand and Georgia's Coco Miller with one apiece.
Thomas, a 6-0 sophomore from Greenville, Miss., was selected to the media's second team preseason all-SEC.
The Lady Bulldogs hosted its first opponent of the 2000-01 season when Slovan Bratislava visited Humphrey Coliseum in an exhibition game Thursday night. MSU defeated its visitors 75-65.
State used a 21-5 run to begin the second half en route to outscoring the visitors by 20 points in the final period. Sophomore forward Jennifer Fambrough had game highs with 19 points and 12 rebounds. Senior guards Cynthia Hall and Meadow Overstreet both added 14 for the Lady Bulldogs.
Dagmar Imbergerova led the visitors with 15 points before fouling out of the contest with 6:25 left in the contest.
"We did a better job on defense and on taking the ball to the rim in the second half," head coach Sharon Fanning said. "We didn't want to be in that position. I thought we improved in the second half."
The Lady Bulldogs were forced to come from behind following a sloppy first half in which MSU committed 13 turnovers and connected on just 38 percent from the field. The visiting squad shot 47 percent in the first half en route to building a 10-point halftime lead. Overstreet led all scorers in the opening period, scoring 14 points and connecting on 4 of 5 three-pointers. Imbergerova scored 12 in the first frame.
Freshman Lyndi Sippel and Jessica Carter both played well for MSU in their first collegiate action. Sippel scored seven points, grabbed seven rebounds and had a game-high five assists. Carter made three three-pointers during State's second-half run and finished the contest with nine points and two assists.
Mississippi State played without two regular players, Thomas and Courtney Graham. Thomas was suspended for a violation of team rules, while Graham missed the exhibition due to a subluxed patella.
The Lady Bulldogs return to the Hump on Nov. 13 in its final exhibition appearance, hosting Athletes in Action at 7 p.m. Admission is free.
Men's Basketball - Continuing preparations for their earliest season opener in school history, the Mississippi State Bulldogs are set to play host to the Grand Rapids (Mich.) Hoops of the Continental Basketball Association in preseason exhibition basketball action Saturday evening on the MSU campus. Tip-off is scheduled for 7 p.m. at Humphrey Coliseum, and admission will be free of charge.
The Hoops, along with the defending CBA-champion Yakima (Wash.) Sun Kings, will play a combined nine exhibition games on the campuses of NCAA Division I institutions during the the first two weeks of November, starting with Thursday night's (Nov. 2) Sun Kings' game at the University of Idaho.
The longest running professional basketball league in the United States (since 1946), the CBA has served as the Official Developmental League of the NBA (National Basketball Association) for the past 20 seasons. With a total of 538 CBA-to-NBA player call-ups since 1978 (24 last season), a total of 97 NBA roster spots were held by former CBA players during the 1999-2000 season, including 60 players appearing on NBA season-ending rosters. For the second consecutive year, a total of 56 former CBA players were listed on opening-night NBA rosters earlier this week.
Guided by fifth-year head coach and former Michigan standout Mark Hughes, the Hoops begin their five-game college tour Saturday night in Starkville. The Grand Rapids team will then head to the University of Michigan to take on Hughes' alma mater next Tuesday (Nov. 7). From Ann Arbor, the Hoops are slated to meet Duke (Nov. 11), South Florida (Nov. 13) and Eastern Michigan (Nov. 15).
As of Thursday, the Hoops' season-opening, 11-man roster listed four players with Southeastern Conference connections. Forwards Bryant Smith and Alvin Jefferson starred at Auburn, while guards Artie Griffin and Corey Beck competed at Alabama and Arkansas, respectively. Smith was named to the CBA's 1999-2000 All-Rookie Team after averaging 10.7 points, 3.0 rebounds and 2.0 assists per contest for the Sioux Falls Skyforce.
Other key members of Grand Rapids' 2000-01 squad include guard Sean Colson (UNC Charlotte), forward Antonio Lang (Duke) and swing-position player Darrin Hancock (Kansas). A third-year Hoops veteran, Colson ranked among the league's Top 10 leaders in assists (4th; 5.7 apg), three-point field goal percentage (4th; 37.9%) and free-throw percentage (3rd; 88.8%) a season ago in helping Grand Rapids to a 29-27 record and a berth in the CBA playoffs. With two NBA call-ups to his credit last season (Philadelphia 76ers and Toronto Raptors), Lang averaged 13.1 points and 4.9 rebounds per game for the 1999-2000 Fort Wayne Fury squad. Having also starred for the Fury a year ago, Hancock ranked 11th among the CBA's scoring leaders (15.8 ppg), along with standing second in the league in three-point accuracy (46.3%).
The current Hoops roster is also comprised of a trio of 7-footers in Priest Lauderdale (Central State-Ohio), Eric Riley (Michigan) and Lorenzo Coleman (Tennessee Tech), and is rounded out by former Michigan State standout Antonio Smith.
Guided by third-year head basketball coach Rick Stansbury, the 2000-01 Bulldogs return 10 lettermen, including four starters, from last year's 14-16 team. Included on MSU's 18-man preseason roster are 12 upperclassmen, headed by seniors Antonio Jackson and Tang Hamilton and reigning all-SEC junior Robert Jackson.
Mississippi State will conclude preseason exhibition competition by playing host to BC Flowtex of Slovenia on Friday, Nov. 10. Tip-off at MSU's Humphrey Coliseum is scheduled for 7 p.m., and admission will again be free of charge. The Bulldogs open the 2000-01 regular season by heading to Berkeley, Calif., to take on the Cal Golden Bears of the Pacific-10 Conference in first-round action of the TiVo Preseason NIT on Monday, Nov. 13. The State-California contest will be televised live by ESPN2 beginning at 11 p.m. CT.
Picked by the media to finish third in the SEC's Western Division in a poll conducted during this week's SEC Basketball Media Days in Birmingham, the Bulldogs will tip off their 2000-01 home schedule by welcoming McNeese State to Starkville on Saturday, Nov. 18.
Reprinted with the permission of the MSU Athletic Department
11/02/00 - Mississippi State Lady Bulldog basketball team makes its first competitive appearance in an exhibition game Thursday at 7:00 p.m. in the Humprey Coliseum against the Slovan Bratislova.
This year's squad includes several experienced veterans and some highly recruited newcomers. Among the returners are Kodak all-American LaToya Thomas, all-SEC forward Jennifer Fambrough, three-point sharpshooter Cynthia Hall, and guard Meadow Overstreet.
Playing for the first time in a Lady Bulldog uniform will be former Yazoo County star Seneca Anderson, who led her team to a 39-0 record and a 3-A state championship during her senior year. Her final high school campaign also earned her all-state accolades for the third consecutive year. A very versatile player, Anderson averaged 16 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists last season.
Joining the Lady Bulldogs from the state of Georgia is Dana Benemon. She was an all-state performer her senior year while averaging 18 points per contest. The 6-2 forward led her team to a sub-region championship.
Also hailing from Georgia is freshman forward Lyndi Sippel. She averaged 13.6 points per game her senior year leading to a host of prep awards. These awards included being named all-state for the third consecutive year and being named honorable mention all-American for the second consecutive year.
Also set to begin her Lady Bulldog career is 5-7 guard Jessica Carter. She was an offensive force in high school averaging 23 points per game. This led to Carter being selected as an Arkansas all-state performer her junior and senior years.
Others making their season debut for the Lady Bulldogs will be sophomores Courtney Graham, Keisha Stingfellow, and Randi Williams. All are expected to see an increase in playing time this season.
This will be the Lady Bulldogs' first game action since advancing to the second round of the 2000 NCAA Tournament. Admission to the game is free.
Reprinted with the permission of the MSU Athletic Department
11/01/00 - Player Comments, questions and answers from yesterday's MSU men's preseason press conference. (Complete info on the premium site)
Coach Rick Stansbury comments:
Lincoln Smith will be redshirted. It was something that we would have liked to have done last year but we just didn't have the opportunity to. We lost Jonathan (Bender), then Quentin got hurt. Right now, because we have some depth, we want to do what is good for Lincoln and what helps us in the long run. We still believe in Lincoln. He has made tremendous progress.
Talk about trying to schedule so-called big-named basketball teams, such as Indiana, UCLA, North Carolina and others, to come play in Starkville?
Coach Stansbury: We would love to get those kind of teams in here but they have nothing to gain by coming here. We had a game worked out with Vegas (UNLV) where we would go to Vegas for a tournament game. But we couldn't get it worked out due to the Arizona game. We are going to Vegas next year and they will return a game here. That is the only way we can get a team of that caliber to come to Starkville. I don't always like to do it that way but that is OK. I am willing to do that to get them in this place. It is impossible to get them to come in here first. They don't need an away game at our place. It is not to their advantage for an Indiana, UCLA or a North Carolina to come to our place when they can play a home game. They can control their entire schedule due to the money that they can make with their home games.
Louisville is a team that we have tried to get to come play in Starkville. They don't want to start off a series with us right now. And Louisville is one of those teams that has been willing to travel. Arizona is another one. The problem is they have nothing to gain by coming here to play us. We would love the opportunity to have those teams come to Starkville. But put yourself in their shoes, what do they have to gain by coming here and playing us? I can understand that. We will even go there first to get a game with them but even that is difficult to do because they have to return a game here. They would just as soon play a home game and not return a game.
Are you continuing to look for top teams to do that with?
Coach Stansbury: Always. We've tried to get Memphis over the years. We've even offered to go there first with no success. Even though I know they are doing it up the road (Ole Miss), we've never been able to get it worked out here.
With Mario Austin playing center, that will allow you to go back to playing forward. Are you happy about that?
Robert Jackson: A four and five are the same, offensively, but they may have me on the stronger five guys in the league.
What do you think about this team so far?
Robert Jackson: I think that we have a chance to be real good this year. We have more depth this year with the big men and Guy Gardner and Timmy Bowers. Mario Austin is going to help us out a lot.
What do you like about Mario Austin's play?
Robert Jackson: Mario is very unselfish. He looks to pass first, shoot second.
Have you adjusted to his passing?
Robert Jackson: I am adjusted to it after two weeks of practice. I didn't know at first that was how he played the game. I am getting pretty used to it now.
What is the biggest improvement in your game?
Robert Jackson: The biggest improvement in my game is I have my strength up this year. I am quicker this year.
Talk about what you like about this team?
Antonio Jackson: There are a lot of hardworking guys. We have a lot of depth on the team.
What do you think about fellow Alabamian Mario Austin?
Antonio Jackson: He has great passing skills. He can get the ball to you when you are cutting. Just make sure you are ready or the ball will hit you in the face. (Laughed when he said that last sentence.)
Has that happened to you?
Antonio Jackson: No, not hit in the face but he has hit me in the chest. It slipped through my hands because I wasn't ready for it.
Talk about playing the point guard position?
Antonio Jackson: I have a lot of size over most point guards. I'm used to running it and can handle it.
This team seems to be full of a lot of guys who appear to really like each other. Do you think that will help the chemistry of the team?
Antonio Jackson: I think that we will have real good chemistry. Everybody laughs and jokes with each other and hang out together.
Last season you went through a period where you weren't hitting your shots on a consistent basis. How about talking about that?
Antonio Jackson: My knee was hurt and I couldn't jump the way that I was used to. That frustrated me a lot last season.
Talk about point guard Guy Gardner?
Antonio Jackson: Guy is a great ball handler and great shooter. He is smart with the ball and makes great decisions.
Did the crowd help your play last season?
Derrick Zimmerman: Yes, it did. I wasn't expecting to be one of crowd favorites. Knowing you have the crowd behind you gives you the will to keep going.
Talk about the improvements that you have seen in this team through the first few weeks of practice?
Derrick Zimmerman: The biggest improvement is depth, something that we didn't have last year. Now, we can go eight, nine, ten deep starting off the season. Some games last year we had T.J. Billups and Michael Gholar playing the four. That showed that we didn't have depth up front. We have ten lettermen returning. That is a lot for any team.
Everybody is committed to winning this year. Not trying to knock the football team, but we are tired of the football team getting all the publicity. They flash their rings in our faces all the time. It is time for the basketball team to get back on the map.
Talking from the viewpoint of another guard, what is your impression of freshman guard Timmy Bowers?
Derrick Zimmerman: He is very calm out on the court. You can't tell what is getting to him. Tim has showed a lot, although a lot of people didn't expect a whole lot from him at first. He is not real big, kind of like me, but Tim has impressed a lot of people.
What has been your biggest improvement since last season?
Derrick Zimmerman: One of my biggest improvements is my defense. I have improved a lot with my strength. I came in here weighing 173 to 175 and now weigh 185. I give all the credit to Coach Akins. He does a real good job.
How has your strength helped you during practice?
Derrick Zimmerman: I cam run off a screen better. I can box out better. I can use my body a little better. Going against guys like Michael Gholar and T. J. Billups everyday you have to get stronger. They are two of the strongest players on the team and you have to be strong going against them.
If you had the chance to tell the MSU fans why they should come out and watch this team what would you say to them?
Derrick Zimmerman: Everything is there to have a great team. As an example, last year LSU came out of nowhere. Nobody expected anything from LSU. They went from 6th in the SEC West to a top ten team in the nation. We finished like 5th or 6th last year. Everybody knows it was a trying time for us last year but this year people should come watch us play because we are going to be exciting; we have a lot of guys returning. This is the year, this is our year. We have too much talent to sit around and win just 14 games.