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Post by Wolf on Dec 13, 2009 19:13:10 GMT -5
 vs  Wright State @ Mississippi State
Wednesday Dec. 16, 2009
Starkville, MS 7:00 PM ET Rider 74-88 L SE Louisiana 82-67 W Bethune-Cookman 67-51 W Texas Pan Amer. 75-50 W Richmond 62-63 L Old Dominion 69-55 W St. Bonaventure 105-53 W DePaul 76-45 W UCLA 72-54 W Roster:1 Renardo Sidney F 6-10 260 Fr. HS Jackson, MS (Fairfax [CA] HS) 2 Ravern Johnson G 6-7 175 Jr. 2L Lyon, MS (Coahoma County HS) 3 Dee Bost G 6-2 170 So. 1L Concord, NC (Hargrave Military Academy) 4 Twany Beckham G 6-5 190 So. 1L Louisville, KY (New Hampton [NH] School) 5 Romero Osby F 6-8 230 So. 1L Meridian, MS (Northeast Lauderdale HS) 10 Shaunessy Smith G 6-6 195 Fr. HS Macon, MS (Noxubee County HS) 12 Charles Parker G 5-10 154 Fr. HS McKinney, TX (McKinney HS) 15 Riley Benock G 6-4 180 Jr. 2L Battletown, KY (Meade County HS) 20 Taylor Luczak F 6-8 220 So. 1L Glen Falls, NY (Glen Falls HS) 21 Baxter Price G 5-9 145 Fr. HS Brandon, MS (Northwest Rankin HS) 22 Barry Stewart G 6-3 170 Sr. 3L Shelbyville, TN (Shelbyville Central HS) 24 Kodi Augustus F 6-8 220 Jr. 2L Baton Rouge, LA (Maine Central Institute) 25 Phil Turner G 6-3 170 Jr. 2L Grenada, MS (Grenada HS) 30 Wendell Lewis C 6-8 240 Fr. HS Selma, AL (Selma HS) 32 Jarvis Varnado F 6-9 230 Sr. 3L Brownsville, TN (Haywood HS) 33 Brandon Bolen G 6-3 195 Jr. 2L Madison, MS (Madison-Ridgeland Academy) 45 Elgin Bailey F 6-8 265 Jr. 2L New Orleans, LA (Belaire HS) 50 John Riek F 7-1 242 Fr. HS Khartoum, Sudan (IMG Academy [FL]) www.mstateathletics.com/SportSelect.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=16800&KEY=&SPID=10994&SPSID=90867Stats:www.mstateathletics.com/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=16800&KEY=&ATCLID=944273&SPID=10994&SPSID=90868Athletic Website:www.mstateathletics.com/SportSelect.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=16800&SPID=10994&SPSID=90865Message Board:mississippistate.rivals.com/forum.asp?sid=909&fid=67 |
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Post by Wolf on Dec 13, 2009 19:14:07 GMT -5
Mississippi State Basketball PreviewOverall Rank: #24 Conference Rank: #3 Southeastern Conference 2008-09: 23-13, 9-7 2008-09 postseason: NCAA Coach: Gregg Marshall (Rick Stansbury 231-128 at Mississippi State, 231-128 overall) Mississippi State has been relatively consistent, but this year the Bulldogs have much, much bigger goals. With just about everybody returning, Coach Rick Stansbury hopes to turn his NCAA Tournament team of a year ago into a team that can win the SEC and make a deep tournament run in March. Key Losses: F Brian Johnson Key Newcomers: Renardo Sidney and the Bulldogs have some issues to overcome before he will be suiting up for MSU, but if Sidney does play, he will step right into the starting lineup and probably play for one year before he bolts for the NBA. The 6-10, 260 pound power forward is a superb athlete who can turn this team into a legitimate contender to knock off Kentucky and Tennessee atop of the Southeastern Conference pecking order. Wendell Lewis and John Riek will add more depth up front. Riek, if he can overcome injury issues, is the most intriguing option. The 7-1 center is a project, but he could end up being really good by the end of the season. Shaun Smith, a 6-6 wing, rounds out this solid class. Backcourt: Smith might have some trouble finding minutes with Barry Stewart and Phil Turner on the wings. Stewart averaged 12.4 points per game and will now need to become even more of a leader on the floor. Stewart is a prolific outside shooter, but he will also use his 6-3 frame to finish around the basket and that is what makes him such a dangerous scorer. Turner is a good shooter too, but it is his ability to hit the glass that makes him so valuable to this team. He ranked second on the team with 5.5 rebounds per game last year. At 6-7, Ravern Johnson usually manned the four spot on this undersized team. He is an accurate and prolific three-point shooter who needs to be more physical under the basket if this team wants to avoid being outrebounded on a consistent basis. Frontcourt: Ideally, Mississippi State would move Johnson to the wing, but that means they need to find a consistent power forward. If it is not Sidney, it will have to be Kodi Augustus, Romero Osby or Elgin Bailey. Those three all averaged less than 14 minutes per game last year, but Augustus averaged a steady 6.2 points and 3.4 rebounds last year and Bailey has potential if he can overcome a foot injury that sidelined him late last season. But no matter who starts at the four spot, Jarvis Varnardo is the star of the frontcourt and this team. Varnado was known as simply a shot blocker a couple of years ago, but on top of his incredible 4.7 blocks per game last year, he added team highs with 12.9 points and 8.8 rebounds. Who to Watch: The big question heading into the 2008-2009 campaign was at the point. Dee Bost put those concerns to rest pretty early. As a freshman he averaged 10.9 points and 4.3 assists and started every single game for MSU. The numbers are very impressive, but what is even more impressive was his consistency day in and day out. Unlike many freshman point guards, Bost was steady and very rarely had a bad day. Expect those days to be even better as a sophomore. Final Projection: There is nothing this team lacks. They have a proven point guard, one of the best shot blockers to ever play the game and enough weapons on the wing to put up a bunch of points in a hurry. The only issue is on the glass and that is why the Sidney question is so important. But even if Sidney does not play, this team can get some quality minutes from Augustus, Osby and Bailey and not be forced to play small in situations where it does not make sense to play small. Either way, the Bulldogs will be back in the NCAA Tournament and looking for a win or two this time around. Projected Post-season Tournament: NCAA Projected Starting Five: Dee Bost, Sophomore, Guard, 10.9 points per game Barry Stewart, Senior, Guard, 12.4 points per game Phil Turner, Junior, Guard, 8.5 points per game Ravern Johnson, Junior, Guard, 12.1 points per game Jarvis Varnado, Senior, Forward, 12.9 points per game www.collegehoopsnet.com/mississippi-state-basketball-preview-24-167304
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Post by Class of '83 on Dec 13, 2009 19:57:44 GMT -5
If we don't step it up on both ends of the court, this one could get ugly.
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Post by Raider Fanatic on Dec 13, 2009 20:09:43 GMT -5
This game is on ESPN2.
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Post by Bomber on Dec 13, 2009 22:35:33 GMT -5
We really need a healthy Evans for this game. I don't like having to play Vaughn at PG. He is a much better SG.
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Post by OG Raiderfan on Dec 14, 2009 13:45:47 GMT -5
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Post by riceownz2 on Dec 14, 2009 15:23:40 GMT -5
Ever since VD has come back, Todd has lacked that fire to drive to the basket. Those first few games he was taking the ball to the basket like a man and finishing. It seems now with VD back in the lineup, everyone is now content to just shoot the 3 while VD takes it to the basket.
I am hoping we get out of this funk we in. I know we can play wayyy better basketball. I really would have only expected us to have 1 loss right now. 3 is not terrible but my expectations were much higher
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Post by bballraider on Dec 14, 2009 23:33:42 GMT -5
Stansbury, Players: On UCLA, Wright State, Hot Shootingby bradlocke Inside Mississippi State SportsMississippi State is back home after criss-crossing the country last week. The Bulldogs (7-2) pounded DePaul in Tampa, Fla., on Thursday, then thumped UCLA in Anaheim, Calif., on Saturday. The latter game was a bit surreal for the players. “It was real, like, ’We’re playing UCLA in California,’” senior center Jarvis Varnado said during today’s media gathering at Humphrey Coliseum. Whatever awe MSU had about its opponent obviously didn’t affect its play. The Bruins were never really in the game, a 72-54 final. “I thought our guys, considering the quick turnaround, flying coast to coast, did a great job getting themselves prepared,” coach Rick Stansbury said. “I thought defense was the difference in the game again. Our ability to defend what they wanted to do in those sets, that was kind of the key.” It was the fourth consecutive win for State, which now turns its attention to Wright State on Wednesday (6 p.m., ESPN2). “Wright State’s one of the better teams we’ve played all season long,” Stansbury said. The Raiders are currently 6-3 overall and 2-0 in Horizon League play. The two losses came against Washington, 74-69, and and Miami (Ohio), 56-55.
They’ve got a lot of shooters and can spread you out. “This is their Super Bowl game coming in here, so they’re going to be pumped, and we need to match their intensity,” junior guard Phil Turner said.MSU’s got some shooters, too, notably Ravern Johnson, who was named the SEC Player of the Week today after his performance last week. He had a career-high 29 points against UCLA and is shooting 48.2 percent from 3-point range this season. “My shot’s been feeling right in rhythm,” he said. “I just felt like I couldn’t miss.” • SIZING UP RIEK: I had a good interview today with John Riek, the 7-foot-1 freshman who’ll be making his collegiate debut on Wednesday after serving a nine-game suspension for accepting improper benefits before arriving at State. Nobody is sure just what to expect of Riek or how much he’ll play, except for this: He’ll go full speed. “He’s not going to take plays off, and you can count on him going for every rebound and running the floor as hard as he can every play,” Turner said. “So I don’t think he’ll hurt us much.” At the very least, Riek’s presence will give Varnado a chance to catch his breath. I’ll have more on Riek in Wednesday’s Journal. • BAILEY UPDATE: Stansbury said today that junior forward/center Elgin Bailey is real close to being shut down for the season and applying for a medical redshirt. He’s been unable to return to 100 percent from his ankle injury and is averaging just 4.3 minutes per game. “Maybe now with another body (Riek), maybe we’re at that point. We’ll see,” Stansbury said. Bailey can apply for the medical exception as long as he doesn’t play in more than 30 percent of MSU’s regular-season games and does not play past the halfway point of the season. Bailey has so far played in four games. nems360.com/pages/insidemississippistatesports_full/push?blog-entry-Stansbury-+Players-+On+UCLA-+Wright+State-+Hot+Shooting%20&id=5144496-Stansbury-+Players-+On+UCLA-+Wright+State-+Hot+Shooting&instance=mississippistate
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Post by Nutt House on Dec 15, 2009 7:07:34 GMT -5
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Post by Raider Rowdies on Dec 15, 2009 19:52:17 GMT -5
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Post by Raider Alumni on Dec 15, 2009 19:56:11 GMT -5
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Post by Raider Rowdies on Dec 16, 2009 7:26:02 GMT -5
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Post by Raider Rowdies on Dec 16, 2009 7:27:08 GMT -5
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Post by bballraider on Dec 16, 2009 18:32:47 GMT -5
I just read that we will probably not see much of MSU's 7-1 center Riek tonight unless they get a large lead. Riek was just granted NCAA eligibility after sitting out 9 games, and is available for his first game tonight. Riek has a 7'8" wingspan and can touch the rim without jumping. He is not very mobile though.
MSU's coaches do not think that he is able/ready to play on the perimeter against a screening team like Wright State who has their post players play away from the blocks.
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Post by Raider Grad on Dec 16, 2009 19:09:09 GMT -5
10-4 MSU. We can't buy a bucket.
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