STARKVILLE — Jazzmun Holmes doesn’t make it a habit to spout bad words at practice.
But it is illuminating to hear Holmes used several “bad words” last week to chastise a teammate for not being in the right position or for not knowing who she was supposed to be guarding because a year ago she admitted she cried during the Mississippi State women’s basketball team’s first practice. Holmes said later in the first month of her freshman season that she “got over it, put on my big-girl pants and went with it.”
Holmes’ ability to find a louder voice might be one of the biggest differences for the MSU women’s team as it continues to prepare for the start of the 2016-17 season. That is good news for fifth-year coach Vic Schaefer because the Bulldogs face numerous top-10 preseason rankings and have been picked second in the Southeastern Conference preseason poll following a program-record 28-win season and a trip to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament.
“I was really excited to see her show some emotion in trying to lead her team,” Schafer said.
Holmes didn’t remember when last week she said she got mad and yelled at a teammate. After practice, Holmes said she reviewed tape of the practice with assistant coach Dionnah Jackson and saw it wasn’t her teammate’s fault for what she thought she saw. She admitted she kind of felt bad about it, but then again she didn’t because she saw her teammate didn’t guard the same player every time, which she said upset her.
For a player who referred to herself as a “quiet mouse,” Holmes said a reaction like that wouldn’t have happened last season.
“I kind of still am (a quiet mouse), but I am trying to come out of that,” Holmes said.
Holmes refers to herself as a “quiet mouse” because she feels she wasn’t as talkative as she should have been last season. She said she is trying to be more of a point guard “like a point guard should be,” which means she is loud and in charge at all times when she is on the court leading the team.
Even if Holmes feels she needs to be more vocal, the Bulldogs have noticed a change in Holmes, as has Schaefer.
“She has responded in a very positive way,” Schaefer said. “(Junior point guard) Morgan (William) is back. She is back to her old self. She is fast, quick, and explosive. Jazz is fast, quick, and explosive, so I think the verbal piece Jazz is learning to provide (will be valuable).
“We need both of those kids ready to play and doing their job. I feel real good about that right now. I would love to leave Ro(shunda) Johnson at the two. I don’t want to put her in a position where she has to learn the one and the two.”
Holmes said playing point guard in college is a huge change from her days as a point guard at Harrison Central High School, where she was a two-time All-State selection and twice named to The Clarion-Ledger Dandy Dozen.
Last season, Holmes averaged 1.9 points, 1.0 rebounds, and 2.2 assists per game in nine minutes per game (33 games). Holmes was second on the team in steals (71).
This season, Holmes hopes to use her emerging voice to be more assertive. William’s absence for much of the offseason due to leg surgery gave Holmes a chance to take over the team and gain confidence. She feels the added time to learn from her mistakes and to build relationships with players will help her have an even better second season.
“I feel like I am more comfortable now and I know what coach Schaefer is expecting from me and what my teammates are expecting from me,” Holmes said.
Last week, though, Holmes wasn’t sure. She said she thought she was going to get into trouble after yelling a few bad words at her teammate in practice. Instead, Schaefer said he “hugged Holmes’ neck” and appreciated her efforts to be accountable and to hold her teammates accountable.
Holmes said participating in The Program, a two-day team-building exercise led by two Marines, helped her understand what she needs to do in a leadership role. She said there were times when she felt uncomfortable and unsure if she could assume a leadership role in the activities the team did with The Program. She came away from the experience believing in herself and her teammates even more.
Schaefer hopes that is the case, too, because he knows a healthy and explosive William and a more confident Holmes leading the team is a potent one-two punch.
The first test will come at 6 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 3, when MSU plays host to Arkansas-Fort Smith in an exhibition game at Humphrey Coliseum. That will be MSU’s final dress rehearsal for its season opener against Villanova at 6:30 p.m. Friday, Nov. 11, in the first round of the Maine Tipoff Tournament.
If things go like Holmes plans, she will play a key role and use a louder voice to make sure her teammates are in the right places and doing what they’re supposed to be doing. She will play that role in the calmest, most positive way she can.
“Coach depends on us to make sure everybody is in their right spots at the right time and doing everything right because I got chewed out last year for not getting up in two defense or not being in the right spot or telling people what to do,” Holmes said.
Follow Dispatch sports editor Adam Minichino on Twitter @ctsportseditor
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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