Looking For A Bulldog Holiday Boost
December 20, 2021 | Men's Basketball, Joel Coleman
Ben Howland wants a Tuesday win and a healthy Tolu Smith for Christmas.
STARKVILLE – He didn't have it written down in front of him, but Mississippi State head coach Ben Howland gave a glimpse at a couple of items on his personal Christmas list on Monday.
The Bulldogs are heading to the Mississippi Coliseum in Jackson for a 6 p.m. CT game against Winthrop on Tuesday, so item No. 1 for Howland…He wants a win.
"It's very important for us," Howland said of State's contest against the Eagles. "We want to go into Christmas with a good feeling and have those three days off feeling good about ourselves."
A Tuesday night victory would indeed be a much-needed holiday boost for the Bulldogs. MSU has battled health issues over the season's first stanza. There's been a speed bump or two. Still, a win on Tuesday would give State a 9-3 overall mark headed into Southeastern Conference play next week.
A triumph would also keep the Bulldogs marching down a path to reach their NCAA Tournament goal. Make no mistake, earlier missed opportunities aside, Mississippi State still very much has everything it wants to achieve in front of it.
"I think we're in a good place," Howland said.
As of Monday, the Bulldogs sit at No. 47 in the NCAA's NET rankings. MSU will have chance after chance to boost its resume over the upcoming weeks as the team goes through the SEC gauntlet. There'll be Quad 1 and Quad 2 games aplenty.
The Bulldogs will be better equipped to find success in their journey if Howland can get another of his Christmas wishes granted. He wants a certain junior forward who led the SEC in rebounding last year back in the mix.
Tolu Smith missed the first four games of this season recovering from offseason foot surgery, then came back and suffered a broken pinky toe on the opposite foot. The Bulldogs shut Smith down after the Minnesota game on Dec. 5, so he hasn't seen action in over two weeks.
"The bottom line is I really want to get Tolu back out there," Howland said. "We're hoping he can rejoin practice here when we come back from Christmas break. I don't think his foot is going to be 100 percent, but I think it'll be a lot better than when we shut him down. Then we'll just have to see how it goes. Obviously, going into the season, he was always a huge piece in terms of what we expected and planned for this year."
If there's any consolation in Smith's injury, as well as with other ailments State players have dealt with this season, it's that the Bulldogs have been able to strengthen from a depth standpoint.
Forward Derek Fountain has started the last two games. He just missed a double-double back on Dec. 14 against Georgia State when he scored 10 points and gathered in nine rebounds.
Freshman guard Cam Carter has seen his minutes pick up of late as fellow guard Rocket Watts, who missed Friday's victory over Furman, deals with a hip issue. Carter has helped absorb the blow by playing strong defense and tallying nine points and three assists over 26 total minutes off the bench the last two games.
Other reserves have stepped up, too. Javian Davis has averaged nearly eight points a game over the last three contests. Andersson Garcia has 11 total rebounds, eight assists and five points scored in the last two games.
"I think it helps them, no question," Howland said of guys being forced into more playing time. "I think it helps our depth. It helps my confidence I can play those guys because they've played well and done a good job for us."
But still…
"There's no question Tolu is one of our top two players and we need him back," Howland said.
One present at a time though. There'll be no opening them all at once.
Smith's return is seemingly imminent. Before then, there's Tuesday and the one last non-conference tune-up before Arkansas comes to the Humphrey Coliseum to open league play on Dec. 29.
"We need to finish strong against a very tough opponent in Winthrop," Howland said.
It'd certainly be a start to a very merry Christmas for the Bulldogs.
