Starting With One
January 12, 2024 | Men's Basketball, Joel Coleman
Win over No. 5 Tennessee gives State a huge spark as SEC play ramps up.
STARKVILLE – Humphrey Coliseum had finally stopped shaking on Wednesday night.
Mississippi State had just knocked off No. 5 Tennessee for the Bulldogs' first victory over a top-five team in 22 years.
One of the heroes of the evening, Tolu Smith III, sat courtside for a postgame interview. Was the All-Southeastern Conference center thrilled? Absolutely. But was he satisfied? Not in the least.
"It's no highs [and] no lows," Smith said. "We've got to stay levelheaded. Our plan is to keep winning and keep winning. We've got to start with one."
Every ascent has to begin somewhere. Time will tell, but it certainly seemed like climbing to the summit of good ol' Rocky Top on Wednesday was indeed the start of something special.
Or perhaps more accurately, it was the confirmation this is a special group equipped to do special things. After all, they'd already won 11 of their first 14 games this season coming into Wednesday.
But, at least on the outside, a loss at South Carolina to open the SEC slate last weekend put a damper on things. A spark was needed. The Bulldogs themselves felt it headed into the Tennessee game.
"With the goals that we have, we felt like [Wednesday] was a huge opportunity for us," head coach Chris Jans said. "We needed to get [that] win for our team this year and for our program. We didn't want to have that feeling again like we did last year where we're playing uphill from the jump with the conference season unfolding."
Smith even took things a step further regarding the importance of the Tennessee contest.
"It was a must-win for us," Smith explained.
That's likely a stretch. There are very few, if any, must-win games in early January. But it does illustrate the hunger and urgency that permeates the Bulldog locker room.
These guys are driven, and they're perhaps uniquely built to capitalize on that drive and make another run towards March Madness.
They have guys like Smith, who can take over any game like he did against the Vols.
"Just off the top of my head – and I asked a couple of the coaches about it in the coach's locker room…I don't remember a game where he played any better," Jans said of Smith. "If he did, it wasn't by much.
"He had a look about him [Wednesday]. He wanted to win that game."
There's the young gun, Josh Hubbard, who is playing nothing like a true freshman. His team-leading 25 points against Tennessee was just the latest highlight in a stellar debut season.
"The guys have learned to trust him and understand that he's a weapon for us," Jans said of Hubbard. "He just gets in those zones…He's a tough guard. We see it in practice sometimes. He's got such a stoic demeanor. He never gets too high or too low, and he handles himself way beyond his years."
While it's easy to focus on Smith and Hubbard given the point totals they put up on Wednesday, the win over the Vols also showed how much of a true team Mississippi State really is. It's just a bunch of guys that want success.
They're unselfish. Case in point: Jimmy Bell Jr.
The big man started the year's first 14 games and was brilliant as Smith missed contests and worked his way back to the starting role he resumed on Wednesday. But there was no sulking from Bell about being used off the bench.
"There wasn't a fiber in my body worried about Jimmy or how he'd accept [Smith starting]," Jans said. "He's just a veteran."
Aside from the team's selfless nature, everyone also remains committed to just doing their jobs – even when it doesn't show up in one of the more prominent spots on a box score.
No Bulldogs other than Smith or Hubbard scored in double figures on Wednesday, but everyone in Maroon and White did their part.
D.J. Jeffries played his customary stout defense, getting five steals, blocking a shot and bringing down six defensive rebounds. Shawn Jones Jr. only scored six points, but his overall play led to great things happening for the Dawgs as he led State in the plus-minus category at +16 – meaning when he was in the game, MSU outscored Tennessee by 16.
What more can even be said about Cameron Matthews at this point in his career? Numbers or not, he's such a vital Bulldog night in and night out.
"He's our emotional leader [and] our vocal leader," Jans said of Matthews. "He does so much for our basketball team."
None of this is to even mention how guys like Shakeel Moore, Dashawn Davis or Trey Fort can take on a starring role in any given game.
It's a group effort and when it's all clicking, these Dawgs can take down anyone, just as they did on Wednesday.
Yes, it was just one win, but it might end up being so much more.
As Smith said, you've got to start with one. And the Dawgs now have that big one in their bag to draw from as they move forward to face Alabama at 7:30 p.m. inside The Hump on Saturday.
"To be a part of something like [beating a top-five team] is legendary," Smith said. "To be a part of it with these guys and Coach Jans is even more of a blessing. It's a surreal feeling. I'm happy that we did it. Now it's on to the next one."
