Another Hurdle To Clear
February 01, 2022 | Women's Basketball, Joel Coleman
In a season full of adversity, Denae Carter’s injury is the latest trial the Bulldogs will try to overcome.
STARKVILLE – In the back of his mind, Mississippi State interim head coach Doug Novak knew it was bad.
This past Sunday, in the middle of an eventual win over Texas A&M, Mississippi State's standout freshman center Denae Carter was in pain, lying on the floor. Her knee was obviously injured.
Novak was hoping for the best. He was longing for eventual good news. It never came. Carter's ACL was torn, she announced on Monday.
"You saw it and you kind of knew," Novak said on Tuesday, thinking back to the moment Carter went down. "Then they do some early tests and they're almost always right when the athletic trainers do those tests…Obviously, I'm hoping for a sprain. But in the back of my mind, I kind of knew it, and she kind of knew it, too – which doesn't make it any easier. It's tough because she's the only one that does what she does. She ends possessions. She's an energy-type player. She was growing in her freshman year right before our eyes. Such a great story and inspiration to everybody. She provided something for this team that no one else could. She added value in a special way."
Carter's injury is the latest bit of adversity to hit Mississippi State. There was the sudden preseason promotion of Novak to interim head coach. Then came health issues and cancellations and impromptu games like the one at top-ranked South Carolina.
There have been roster changes and more, often – if not always – leaving the Bulldogs significantly outnumbered and at a disadvantage. All that was before Carter went down.
This was the player performing more like a seasoned veteran than a first-year Dawg. Carter is the team leader in both rebounding and blocked shots. She's a two-time Southeastern Conference Freshman of the Week. She's among the nation's best freshmen in total rebounds and per-game rebounding average.
To say Carter has helped Mississippi State get to this point, where the team is in position to make a run at the NCAA Tournament, is a tremendous understatement. She hasn't just helped; she's been a vital piece. Novak says she still will be.
"My message to her as we've talked was, 'Now, you're just going to have to [help] a different way,'" Novak said. "[I told her], 'You're going to see the game a little bit of a different way. It's going to be from the bench. Your job is going to be to help those people filling in for you to build them up, the way everybody was building you up.' She's going to add value a different way, but it hurts. It still hurts."
It absolutely hurts. But again, MSU isn't in the spot it finds itself right now without Carter. The Bulldogs just have to find a way to keep surging without her on the court.
The good news is, if these Bulldogs have proven anything, it's they're elite when it comes to finding a way. Despite the roadblocks that've been in front of them all year long, Mississippi State enters Thursday night's 7 p.m. CT game at Auburn solidly on the bubble to get to March's big dance with plenty of opportunities to tip the scales in their favor down the stretch.
It's incredible really. It's almost Hollywood-esque to have a team with so many trials and tribulations be able to survive them all and be in this type of position. Only this isn't Hollywood. This is real life in Starkville. It's actually happening. How? Novak tries to explain it.
"They have been very mature," Novak said of the Bulldogs. "I guess I've been using the term, 'task at hand.' We're not going to minimize any of these [challenges we've faced]. They've all been impactful to their lives. But we have to be very defined and determined and resilient in terms of, this is the next task at hand. Now I do think we've gotten to be pretty good at that [and knowing], 'There's a time and a place for this.' So, they've been really good at being able to let go [of challenges] and then jump in and lean into the next task at hand. During times like this, you have to have that. You can't have things lingering on you. There's a time to shut it off. There's a time to put it in a compartment and we can go back to it later. But not right now. This task at hand is the most important thing that you're doing."
The task at hand now becomes finding a way to carry on without Carter. Carter has aided in lifting the Bulldogs to this juncture and now, they'll honor her by trying to tote her share of the load.
It'll take everyone. That includes the MSU supporters that've continued to stick by the team through tumultuous times.
"I have a ton of respect for them and what's happened before I even got here, but I understand it a little bit better after talking to some of the fans and you see how they stay with us," Novak said. "I hope it doesn't ever come across that we're whining or complaining or we're making excuses. We're just attacking everything that we've got. But you can feel it in the crowd, and you can feel it talking to those fans that have been here forever and supported. They want blue collar. They want toughness. We can lose, and they're still going to love us if we play hard, if we play together, if we're a team. Not every town is like that. Either you produce or you don't. These kinds of jobs, you have to produce, but deep down, the fans love the work ethic piece of that and we're putting out a team that really embodies work ethic and togetherness and toughness. So, I think it's almost a perfect marriage."
And it'll of course take the Dawgs on the court.
MSU has had heroes step up all year long. Next up on that list could be post players Raven Farley and Charlotte Kohl. Neither have played more than 22 minutes in a single game this season, but both will be counted on more than ever now. Novak thinks both are up to the task.
On Kohl: "She's ready to go and she doesn't know it, which is the case of a lot of kids," Novak said. "Sometimes, their games are ahead of their minds. She has more to give than what she's been able to give. Sometimes that's opportunity and sometimes that is, 'I didn't know I could do that.' We've seen glimpses in practice and her teammates encouraging, giving her confidence, is going to make all the difference in the world for her game moving forward."
And on Farley: "I think she's ready for it," Novak said. "She'll be sharing minutes with [Kohl]. I root for everybody, but I'm rooting for her to finish off her college career the right way. This is a really good opportunity for her to step up and do that."
Stepping up. This group has done it all year long. With Carter down, they'll have to do it again. And with all the resilience the Bulldogs have shown to this point – despite the latest punch to the gut – nobody better dare count them out.
