STARKVILLE – Rick Ray wasn’t shy about making his goals known entering his third year as Mississippi State’s men’s basketball coach.
“I think, first and foremost, we need to be in the conversation for postseason basketball,” said Ray prior to MSU’s season opener. “Whether it’s NCAA Tournament or NIT, we need to be in that mix.”
For that to happen, opportunity will knock for the Bulldogs starting on Saturday with a visit to Tulane.
Six games into the season, the Bulldogs are right on schedule. One month in, the Bulldogs are 5-1 with a pair of wins over RPI Top 100 teams – Utah State and St. Louis. But if Ray’s goals are to become reality, the next two weekends, which include trips to play road games at Tulane and at Oregon State, will be critical.
“This is a big weekend for us,” said Ray, whose team split a pair of games at the Corpus Christi Coastal Challenge in Corpus Christi, Texas last week. “We are currently sitting at No. 43 in RPI. As we know, the RPI is the biggest determining factor in whether a team makes the postseason. We wanted to make sure we are in serious conversation for the postseason, and a huge factor in that is winning on the road. We are in a good spot, and we need to make sure we boost that RPI in the next two weeks with these road games.”
MSU’s first opportunity at an RPI-boosting win will come this Saturday in a 1 p.m. game at Tulane, MSU’s first trip to face the Green Wave since 2001.
“They are a really good team, a perimeter-oriented team,” said Ray of Tulane. “We are in a good spot, even with our loss last week. Tulane just had a great road win at Loyola-Chicago, and for us it would be a big deal to go down to New Orleans and get a win.”
For the Bulldogs, Saturday’s visit to Tulane will be an opportunity to rebound from the season’s first loss, a 61-52 setback to unbeaten TCU in the championship game in Corpus Christi.
For the Bulldogs, the game at Tulane is more than just a chance at an RPI-building win. It’s also the next step in the maturation of Ray’s program, a team that is attempting to turn the corner from a 24-41 start through Ray’s first two seasons.
To turn that corner, MSU must first snap a 17-game road losing streak.
“If you have a team that can win on the road, you’ve got a chance to have a pretty good basketball team,” said Ray. “One thing we say when talking about playing on the road is that defense travels. If you’re affected by a road crowd, then you’re not a good basketball player. Your defense should stay the same wherever you play and if you take care of the basketball, you can win on the road. That’s our next step.”
Tulane, at 6-1, has won five straight since its lone loss, a 71-49 defeat at the hands of Wake Forest.
The Green Wave employs a three-guard starting lineup and is led in scoring by Louis Dabney, who averages 12.6 points per game.
The Bulldogs, meanwhile, are led by a frontcourt consisting of senior Roquez Johnson and junior Gavin Ware.
Ware averages a team-best 13.8 points and seven rebounds per game, while Johnson scores 12.2 points per game.
For MSU, the trip to Tulane will be the first true road game of the season after a pair of neutral site games in Texas. For players like freshman Demetrius Houston, the initial challenge of playing on the road will be MSU’s ability to adapt to new surroundings.
“The biggest thing is getting used to the environment and atmosphere,” said Houston. “I’m expecting to come out and play my normal game and get a win.”
Sword easing back
MSU junior guard Craig Sword, the team’s leading scorer from last season, missed MSU’s first four games of the season due to his recovery from back surgery after suffering a herniated disc in the offseason.
Sword played in both games at the Coastal Challenge, coming off the bench both times and playing limited minutes. Sword did not score in either game, and his continued progress back from the injury will be key for the Bulldogs going forward.
“To be fair, (Sword) has had two practices with the team and then he goes out and plays a game,” said Ray. “He’s not caught up to speed as far as where he needs to be. Everybody else has been practicing for a few months. He will get there.”
Follow Dispatch sports writer Brandon Walker on Twitter @BWonStateBeat
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