Monday, November 30
Starkville
7:00 PM
Mississippi State
vs
Texas State
Gameday: Five Things to Know about MSU-Texas State
November 29, 2020 | Men's Basketball
by Matt Dunaway, Associate Director/Communications
STARKVILLE – Mississippi State will look to rely on its homecourt success under head coach Ben Howland as the Bulldogs play host to Texas State for its 2020-21 home opener on Monday at Humphrey Coliseum.
The Bulldogs have secured a 67-19 home record and won 37 of their 41 non-conference home decisions during Howland's five seasons at Mississippi State.
MSU-TEXAS STATE HARDWOOD SERIES
Monday's meeting is the first between Mississippi State and Texas State on the hardwood. The Bulldogs have posted a 64-12 overall record against current Sun Belt opponents.
Last season, Mississippi State dialed up an 81-56 victory over Coastal Carolina from the Sun Belt. Tyson Carter (19 PTS, 10 ASST), Reggie Perry (16 PTS, 6 ASST) and D.J. Stewart Jr. (11 PTS, 2 BLK) led the way for the Bulldogs.
The Matchup: Mississippi State (0-2, 0-0 SEC) vs. Texas State (2-0, 0-0 Sun Belt)
Where: Starkville, Mississippi – Humphrey Coliseum
When: Monday, November 30, 7:00 p.m. CT
Live Stats: StatBroadcast (https://hailst.at/MBKLiveStats)
TV: SEC Network
Talent: Richard Cross, Mark Wise
DirecTV: Ch. 611, Dish: Ch. 404/408, AT&T U-Verse: Ch. 1607, MaxxSouth: Ch. 1026, C Spire: Ch. 220
Online: Watch ESPN app & Watch ESPN online (Cable Subscription Required)
(https://hailst.at/TxStvsMSU113020)
Radio: Mississippi State Sports Network – Powered by Learfield IMG College
Talent: Neil Price
Affiliates: WKBB-FM 100.9 Starkville/West Point (Full List: https://hailst.at/MBKAffiliates)
Free Online Audio: Hail State Plus (https://hailst.at/MBKListen); Tune-In Radio App (https://hailst.at/MBKTuneIn)
Sirius/XM: Ch. 191 (Sirius/XM), Ch. 962 (Internet)
MASKS/METAL DETECTORS/CLEAR BAGS
Mississippi State Athletics has received capacity guidelines and designed a socially distanced seating plan to host fans in the healthiest manner possible for the 2020-21 season.
The plan is focused on the recommended health and safety protocols put in place by health officials from the Mississippi State Department of Health, Mississippi State University, the city of Starkville, the Southeastern Conference and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention to protect the well-being of all student-athletes, fans and staff.
Capacity at Humphrey Coliseum for the 2020-21 season will be 25 percent as determined by the Governor's most recent Executive Order.
All fans will be required to wear a face covering, face shield or mask, over the nose and mouth during all times except when eating or drinking while inside Humphrey Coliseum.
In an effort to continue Mississippi State's long-standing commitment to provide a safe and secure environment for all fans, coaches and student-athletes, walk-through metal detectors have been implemented at all entrances of Humphrey Coliseum on basketball gamedays.
Fans will be asked to follow the instructions of the security screening staff and place large metal objects such as phones, keys and cameras in containers or in their clear bag on screening tables before passing through the walk-through metal detectors.
Fans will not be required to remove belts, watches, wallets, jewelry, shoes, jackets, coins or other small objects. The metal detectors and clear bag policies provide a safer atmosphere and speed up the entry process into The Hump.
For more gameday information, visit https://hailst.at/MBKGameday
FIVE THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT MISSISSIPPI STATE
1. Mississippi State has piled up three consecutive 20-plus win seasons and 68 total victories since the start of 2017-18. All five occurrences where the Bulldogs have posted three straight seasons of 20-plus wins have come during the 2000s. The 68 wins are tied with LSU for the fourth-highest total in the SEC and only trains Auburn, Kentucky and Tennessee since 2017-18. The 68 victories also are the fourth-most in program history during a three-year span.
Mississippi State's coaching staff led by Ben Howland along with assistant coaches George Brooks, Korey McCray and Ernie Zeigler are in their sixth season together in Starkville during the 2020-21 season. Howland is one victory shy of 500 career wins and two wins away from 100 victories at Mississippi State. The Bulldogs coaching quartet is one of eight current coaching staffs in the country to remain together at the same school for at least six seasons. The other staffs include Michigan State (11th) led by Tom Izzo, West Virginia (9th) led by Bob Huggins, UAlbany (9th) led by Will Brown, Kansas (7th) led by Bill Self, Oregon (7th) led by Dana Altman, Vermont (7th) led by John Becker and Bradley (6th) led by Brian Wardle.
2. Iverson Molinar, Tolu Smith and D.J. Stewart Jr. are ready to etch their names among the notable freshmen-to-sophomore jumps at Mississippi State under Ben Howland. Stewart Jr. (16.0 PPG, 4.5 RPG, 3.0 APG, 1.0 SPG) and Smith (16.0 PPG, 8.5 RPG, 2.0 BPG, 1.0 APG) are coming off 20-point efforts against Liberty. The pair of redshirt sophomore are one of nine MSU combos to score 20 points in a game as freshmen or sophomore since 1986-87. Four of the nine combos have come during the Ben Howland era, most recently Reggie Perry (24 PTS) and Stewart Jr. (20 PTS) versus Tennessee on Feb. 1, 2020.
Smith became the ninth player at Mississippi State to record a double-double during his MSU debut dating back to 1972-73 when freshmen became eligible to play college basketball. He amassed 16 points and 12 rebounds versus Clemson on 11/25. Smith is the fourth player in the 2000s to accomplish the feat joining a list that features former All-SEC performers and NBA alumni in Lawrence Roberts (2003-04) and Arnett Moultrie (2011-12).
3. Abdul Ado (7.0 PPG, 6.0 RPG, 1.0 APG), one of the SEC's top shot blockers, will anchor Mississippi State's defense once again in 2020-21. He is slated to become the eighth MSU player to make his 100th career start during Monday's home opener against Texas State going back to the 1986-87 season. The last MSU player to reach 100 career starts was his former teammate and San Antonio Spurs product Quinndary Weatherspoon in 2018-19.
Ado, the SEC's active leader in rebounds and blocks, has ranked among the SEC's top 10 in blocks shots during each of his first three seasons headed by 1.9 blocks per game and a fourth-place finish last season. Overall, Ado has piled up 183 career blocks, which ranks tied for fifth in program history with Kalpatrick Wells (1980-81-82-83). His 1.83 career blocks per game is third in program history only behind NCAA all-time leader Jarvis Varnado and Erick Dampier.
4. Mississippi State's roster features a talented group of newcomers. The freshmen class is ignited by Deivon Smith (6.0 PPG, 4.5 RPG, 3.0 APG, 1.5 SPG) and Cameron Matthews (5.0 PPG, 3.5 RPG, 2.0 SPG, 1.0 APG), who became the first freshmen tandem to start the season opener since Tyson Carter and Mario Kegler during the 2016-17 season.
Smith, the eighth ESPN top 100 signee to play with the Bulldogs under head coach Ben Howland, tallied a solid all-around effort with 10 points, five assists and two steals during the Liberty game (11/26). Matthews filled the box score with eight points, five rebounds and three steals versus Clemson (11/25). MSU's freshmen class also features Keondre Montgomery and Derek Fountain, who coupled with Matthews are the state of Mississippi's top three prospects for the Class of 2020.
5. Mississippi State has added a pair of experienced transfers in Javian Davis and Jalen Johnson. Johnson piled up 1,061 points and 495 rebounds between his three seasons at Saint Louis and Louisiana-Lafayette. He has collected 50 career outings of 10-plus points and 11 outings of 20-plus points. Johnson (6.0 PPG, 3.0 RPG, 1.5 APG) has been MSU's top bench player to start 2020-21. He chipped in seven points, four rebounds and two assists against Liberty (11/26).
Davis posted 6.0 points and 3.8 rebounds per game over his 31 appearances as a redshirt freshmen at Alabama in 2019-20. His top Bama performance was a 20-point, 10-rebound effort against South Carolina (02/29/2020). Davis managed three points, seven rebounds and a steal versus Clemson (11/25).
FROM THE LOCKER ROOM
HEAD COACH BEN HOWLAND
"We've got a tough game coming up on Monday against Texas State. They won 23 games last year and have eight of their top 10 players from last year. We scheduled a very difficult schedule this year. We have to grow up here in a hurry. We've got to bounce back. We've watched film and practiced over the last two days in preparation for Monday's game."
"We're obviously growing. We've got to get a lot better at every pass. We've got to get better, number one, defensively. We've got to get better at our ball screen defense. We've got to be able to change it up and play ball screens different ways. I think it's hard for us at times when we're having to match up with teams that play small ball, because you're asking Tolu [Smith] to get out and guard perimeter guys. I think we're going to continue to develop against our inside game, but we've got to get better shooting the ball. We were 4-for-10 from the three-point line [against Liberty], which was okay. I think Iverson [Molinar] will really help us with that [when he get back] because he's one of our two best offensive players."
FORWARD TOLU SMITH
"We need to work on meshing. I feel like we played two tough teams [Clemson and Liberty] and real experienced teams. We're young, so it's just having to develop being a young team and being able to mesh better. You play games, and you learn. I feel like in time, we'll be okay. We just have to go back to the drawing board and be more productive."
KNOW YOUR OPPONENT
Texas State has collected convincing victories over Mary Hardin-Baylor (98-59) and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (75-63) to start the season. The Bobcats have posted back-to-back 20-plus win campaigns and have piled up at least 20-plus wins during three of the last five seasons.
Texas State is averaging 86.5 points and compiled a 53.8 field goal percentage on offense. Defensively, the Bobcats have limited the opposition to 61.0 points and a 34.9 percent shooting clip. Texas State has led its conference in scoring defense during each of the last four seasons and in six of the last seven seasons.
Mason Harrell (16.5 PPG, 3.5 APG, 1.5 SPG), Caleb Asberry (11.0 PPG, 5.5 RPG, 1.5 SPG) and Alonzo Sule (11.0 PPG) have averaged double figures for the Bobcats. Harrell is coming off an 18-point, 2-steal performance at Texas A&M Corpus Christi.
Six additional Texas State players have garnered between six and eight points per game, sparked by Isiah Small (8.5 PPG, 7.0 RPG, 2.0 APG, 1.0 BPG, 1.0 SPG). He has hit on eight of his 11 shot attempts on the young season.
UP NEXT
Mississippi State continues a three-game homestand and faces North Texas, the defending Conference USA regular season champions, on Friday. Tip time is on-tap for 7 p.m. CT and will be carried online only by SEC Network+.
Visit www.HailState.com for the latest news and information on the men's basketball program. Fans also can follow the program on its social media outlets by searching 'HailStateMBK' on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
STARKVILLE – Mississippi State will look to rely on its homecourt success under head coach Ben Howland as the Bulldogs play host to Texas State for its 2020-21 home opener on Monday at Humphrey Coliseum.
The Bulldogs have secured a 67-19 home record and won 37 of their 41 non-conference home decisions during Howland's five seasons at Mississippi State.
MSU-TEXAS STATE HARDWOOD SERIES
Monday's meeting is the first between Mississippi State and Texas State on the hardwood. The Bulldogs have posted a 64-12 overall record against current Sun Belt opponents.
Last season, Mississippi State dialed up an 81-56 victory over Coastal Carolina from the Sun Belt. Tyson Carter (19 PTS, 10 ASST), Reggie Perry (16 PTS, 6 ASST) and D.J. Stewart Jr. (11 PTS, 2 BLK) led the way for the Bulldogs.
The Matchup: Mississippi State (0-2, 0-0 SEC) vs. Texas State (2-0, 0-0 Sun Belt)
Where: Starkville, Mississippi – Humphrey Coliseum
When: Monday, November 30, 7:00 p.m. CT
Live Stats: StatBroadcast (https://hailst.at/MBKLiveStats)
TV: SEC Network
Talent: Richard Cross, Mark Wise
DirecTV: Ch. 611, Dish: Ch. 404/408, AT&T U-Verse: Ch. 1607, MaxxSouth: Ch. 1026, C Spire: Ch. 220
Online: Watch ESPN app & Watch ESPN online (Cable Subscription Required)
(https://hailst.at/TxStvsMSU113020)
Radio: Mississippi State Sports Network – Powered by Learfield IMG College
Talent: Neil Price
Affiliates: WKBB-FM 100.9 Starkville/West Point (Full List: https://hailst.at/MBKAffiliates)
Free Online Audio: Hail State Plus (https://hailst.at/MBKListen); Tune-In Radio App (https://hailst.at/MBKTuneIn)
Sirius/XM: Ch. 191 (Sirius/XM), Ch. 962 (Internet)
MASKS/METAL DETECTORS/CLEAR BAGS
Mississippi State Athletics has received capacity guidelines and designed a socially distanced seating plan to host fans in the healthiest manner possible for the 2020-21 season.
The plan is focused on the recommended health and safety protocols put in place by health officials from the Mississippi State Department of Health, Mississippi State University, the city of Starkville, the Southeastern Conference and the Center for Disease Control and Prevention to protect the well-being of all student-athletes, fans and staff.
Capacity at Humphrey Coliseum for the 2020-21 season will be 25 percent as determined by the Governor's most recent Executive Order.
All fans will be required to wear a face covering, face shield or mask, over the nose and mouth during all times except when eating or drinking while inside Humphrey Coliseum.
In an effort to continue Mississippi State's long-standing commitment to provide a safe and secure environment for all fans, coaches and student-athletes, walk-through metal detectors have been implemented at all entrances of Humphrey Coliseum on basketball gamedays.
Fans will be asked to follow the instructions of the security screening staff and place large metal objects such as phones, keys and cameras in containers or in their clear bag on screening tables before passing through the walk-through metal detectors.
Fans will not be required to remove belts, watches, wallets, jewelry, shoes, jackets, coins or other small objects. The metal detectors and clear bag policies provide a safer atmosphere and speed up the entry process into The Hump.
For more gameday information, visit https://hailst.at/MBKGameday
FIVE THINGS TO KNOW ABOUT MISSISSIPPI STATE
1. Mississippi State has piled up three consecutive 20-plus win seasons and 68 total victories since the start of 2017-18. All five occurrences where the Bulldogs have posted three straight seasons of 20-plus wins have come during the 2000s. The 68 wins are tied with LSU for the fourth-highest total in the SEC and only trains Auburn, Kentucky and Tennessee since 2017-18. The 68 victories also are the fourth-most in program history during a three-year span.
Mississippi State's coaching staff led by Ben Howland along with assistant coaches George Brooks, Korey McCray and Ernie Zeigler are in their sixth season together in Starkville during the 2020-21 season. Howland is one victory shy of 500 career wins and two wins away from 100 victories at Mississippi State. The Bulldogs coaching quartet is one of eight current coaching staffs in the country to remain together at the same school for at least six seasons. The other staffs include Michigan State (11th) led by Tom Izzo, West Virginia (9th) led by Bob Huggins, UAlbany (9th) led by Will Brown, Kansas (7th) led by Bill Self, Oregon (7th) led by Dana Altman, Vermont (7th) led by John Becker and Bradley (6th) led by Brian Wardle.
2. Iverson Molinar, Tolu Smith and D.J. Stewart Jr. are ready to etch their names among the notable freshmen-to-sophomore jumps at Mississippi State under Ben Howland. Stewart Jr. (16.0 PPG, 4.5 RPG, 3.0 APG, 1.0 SPG) and Smith (16.0 PPG, 8.5 RPG, 2.0 BPG, 1.0 APG) are coming off 20-point efforts against Liberty. The pair of redshirt sophomore are one of nine MSU combos to score 20 points in a game as freshmen or sophomore since 1986-87. Four of the nine combos have come during the Ben Howland era, most recently Reggie Perry (24 PTS) and Stewart Jr. (20 PTS) versus Tennessee on Feb. 1, 2020.
Smith became the ninth player at Mississippi State to record a double-double during his MSU debut dating back to 1972-73 when freshmen became eligible to play college basketball. He amassed 16 points and 12 rebounds versus Clemson on 11/25. Smith is the fourth player in the 2000s to accomplish the feat joining a list that features former All-SEC performers and NBA alumni in Lawrence Roberts (2003-04) and Arnett Moultrie (2011-12).
3. Abdul Ado (7.0 PPG, 6.0 RPG, 1.0 APG), one of the SEC's top shot blockers, will anchor Mississippi State's defense once again in 2020-21. He is slated to become the eighth MSU player to make his 100th career start during Monday's home opener against Texas State going back to the 1986-87 season. The last MSU player to reach 100 career starts was his former teammate and San Antonio Spurs product Quinndary Weatherspoon in 2018-19.
Ado, the SEC's active leader in rebounds and blocks, has ranked among the SEC's top 10 in blocks shots during each of his first three seasons headed by 1.9 blocks per game and a fourth-place finish last season. Overall, Ado has piled up 183 career blocks, which ranks tied for fifth in program history with Kalpatrick Wells (1980-81-82-83). His 1.83 career blocks per game is third in program history only behind NCAA all-time leader Jarvis Varnado and Erick Dampier.
4. Mississippi State's roster features a talented group of newcomers. The freshmen class is ignited by Deivon Smith (6.0 PPG, 4.5 RPG, 3.0 APG, 1.5 SPG) and Cameron Matthews (5.0 PPG, 3.5 RPG, 2.0 SPG, 1.0 APG), who became the first freshmen tandem to start the season opener since Tyson Carter and Mario Kegler during the 2016-17 season.
Smith, the eighth ESPN top 100 signee to play with the Bulldogs under head coach Ben Howland, tallied a solid all-around effort with 10 points, five assists and two steals during the Liberty game (11/26). Matthews filled the box score with eight points, five rebounds and three steals versus Clemson (11/25). MSU's freshmen class also features Keondre Montgomery and Derek Fountain, who coupled with Matthews are the state of Mississippi's top three prospects for the Class of 2020.
5. Mississippi State has added a pair of experienced transfers in Javian Davis and Jalen Johnson. Johnson piled up 1,061 points and 495 rebounds between his three seasons at Saint Louis and Louisiana-Lafayette. He has collected 50 career outings of 10-plus points and 11 outings of 20-plus points. Johnson (6.0 PPG, 3.0 RPG, 1.5 APG) has been MSU's top bench player to start 2020-21. He chipped in seven points, four rebounds and two assists against Liberty (11/26).
Davis posted 6.0 points and 3.8 rebounds per game over his 31 appearances as a redshirt freshmen at Alabama in 2019-20. His top Bama performance was a 20-point, 10-rebound effort against South Carolina (02/29/2020). Davis managed three points, seven rebounds and a steal versus Clemson (11/25).
FROM THE LOCKER ROOM
HEAD COACH BEN HOWLAND
"We've got a tough game coming up on Monday against Texas State. They won 23 games last year and have eight of their top 10 players from last year. We scheduled a very difficult schedule this year. We have to grow up here in a hurry. We've got to bounce back. We've watched film and practiced over the last two days in preparation for Monday's game."
"We're obviously growing. We've got to get a lot better at every pass. We've got to get better, number one, defensively. We've got to get better at our ball screen defense. We've got to be able to change it up and play ball screens different ways. I think it's hard for us at times when we're having to match up with teams that play small ball, because you're asking Tolu [Smith] to get out and guard perimeter guys. I think we're going to continue to develop against our inside game, but we've got to get better shooting the ball. We were 4-for-10 from the three-point line [against Liberty], which was okay. I think Iverson [Molinar] will really help us with that [when he get back] because he's one of our two best offensive players."
FORWARD TOLU SMITH
"We need to work on meshing. I feel like we played two tough teams [Clemson and Liberty] and real experienced teams. We're young, so it's just having to develop being a young team and being able to mesh better. You play games, and you learn. I feel like in time, we'll be okay. We just have to go back to the drawing board and be more productive."
KNOW YOUR OPPONENT
Texas State has collected convincing victories over Mary Hardin-Baylor (98-59) and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi (75-63) to start the season. The Bobcats have posted back-to-back 20-plus win campaigns and have piled up at least 20-plus wins during three of the last five seasons.
Texas State is averaging 86.5 points and compiled a 53.8 field goal percentage on offense. Defensively, the Bobcats have limited the opposition to 61.0 points and a 34.9 percent shooting clip. Texas State has led its conference in scoring defense during each of the last four seasons and in six of the last seven seasons.
Mason Harrell (16.5 PPG, 3.5 APG, 1.5 SPG), Caleb Asberry (11.0 PPG, 5.5 RPG, 1.5 SPG) and Alonzo Sule (11.0 PPG) have averaged double figures for the Bobcats. Harrell is coming off an 18-point, 2-steal performance at Texas A&M Corpus Christi.
Six additional Texas State players have garnered between six and eight points per game, sparked by Isiah Small (8.5 PPG, 7.0 RPG, 2.0 APG, 1.0 BPG, 1.0 SPG). He has hit on eight of his 11 shot attempts on the young season.
UP NEXT
Mississippi State continues a three-game homestand and faces North Texas, the defending Conference USA regular season champions, on Friday. Tip time is on-tap for 7 p.m. CT and will be carried online only by SEC Network+.
Visit www.HailState.com for the latest news and information on the men's basketball program. Fans also can follow the program on its social media outlets by searching 'HailStateMBK' on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
Players Mentioned
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