Mississippi State
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Detroit Mercy
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Bulldog Backcourt Pushes State to 3-0
November 17, 2021 | Men's Basketball, Joel Coleman
Guards Iverson Molinar and Shakeel Moore continue to shine in win over Detroit Mercy.
STARKVILLE – One's in year three as a Bulldog. One's only just completed game three. Yet veteran Mississippi State guard Iverson Molinar and sophomore transfer Shakeel Moore are headlining an MSU backcourt that looks like it's been playing together for years, with the latest example of that coming on Wednesday.
Molinar and Moore each scored 19 points to lead the Bulldogs to a 77-64 win over Detroit Mercy. It was a fantastic showing from the duo as they helped MSU move to a perfect 3-0 start to the year, while displaying the type of chemistry that seems to foreshadow even better things to come.
"We're practicing with each other every day, and it's just building up from there," Moore said. "Iron sharpens iron. When we play these games, we're coming out and executing."
For Molinar, he's increased his production across each of Mississippi State's first three contests of the year. The most experienced Bulldog in the backcourt scored 13 in the opener against North Alabama, tallied 16 against Montana, then added his 19 on Wednesday. Oh, and don't forget the assists. Molinar is now averaging five of those a night after getting six against Detroit Mercy.
It's tempting to put a lot of focus on all the new pieces the Bulldogs have added this season, but lest anyone overlook Molinar and his production. Oh, and don't forget about his ability to defend. Molinar's head coach certainly isn't.
"We're asking a lot out of him," Ben Howland said of Molinar. "We're putting him on [the opponents'] best wing – whoever it is, the one or the two – in these first three games. Not only is he running our offense, he's guarding the best player between the one and the two in every game."
In many ways, like he did a year ago, Molinar is setting the tone for State. He certainly laid Wednesday's foundation. Molinar scored 11 of MSU's first 14 points helping the Bulldogs build an early 14-8 lead. Molinar went on to tally 13 first-half points.
It was the type of early showing you'd expect from a leader. And while Molinar is certainly that, he insists he's not feeling any extra pressure to do more than he's capable of. Why would he with the weapons that surround him?
"I started playing basketball because I loved it and was having fun with it," Molinar said. "That's still what I do. I just have fun with it. I'm out there with a smile on my face, playing hard and just playing with my teammates."
The play of Moore certainly was enough to help Molinar flash a grin or two on Wednesday. What Molinar was for State in the first half, Moore was in the second. Moore posted 16 of his 19 points after halftime to help the Bulldogs fend off a scrappy Titans team – a bunch that was within five points with just under nine minutes to play.
"Give them credit," Howland said. "This was a good game for us. It wasn't a blowout. We had to win a game we had to fight for, and that's important for us as we're moving forward here."
Moore's play helped ensure the Bulldogs emerged from the battle victoriously. He saw Molinar's huge first half and felt inspired to try and match or better it over the final 20 minutes.
"We're a 1-2 punch," Moore said of himself and Molinar.
They certainly were against Detroit Mercy and have been since the season tipped off. And here's perhaps the most exciting news of all – State's backcourt is quickly becoming a 1-2-3-4 punch.
Freshman guard Cam Carter has already been impressing this season. He racked up 19 points over the year's first two games. He didn't score on Wednesday, but he was a huge factor on the defensive end.
"Cam Carter might be our best defensive guard of all of all four of our guards," Howland said. "Especially on the ball. He might not be as good off the ball as Iverson, in terms of help, but on the ball, he's as good as we've got."
The fourth member of the quartet emerged for the first time this year on Wednesday. Junior transfer Rocket Watts made his Bulldog debut after missing the season's initial two games as he recovered from offseason surgery. Watts slowly began to work his way back into the mix as he saw eight minutes of action, scored two points and got an assist.
"He's going to be fine," Howland said. "I'm looking forward to him getting more minutes [in Sunday's upcoming game against Morehead State]."
So the question is, what is the ceiling for this backcourt? With Molinar and Moore excelling, Carter blossoming, and Watts now joining the party, how good can this group be?
"It can be tremendous," Molinar said.
It's certainly well on its way.
