STARKVILLE — Vic Schaefer believes in Teaira McCowan.
The Mississippi State women’s basketball coach knew when the 6-foot-7 center committed to his program that the Bulldogs landed a player who could be a dominating presence and an All-American.
McCowan has displayed flashes of that potential in her first two years in Starkville. Last season, McCowan raised her field goal shooting percentage from 49.5 to 56.9 percent, had three double-doubles against Southeastern Conference opponents, and had a career-high 26 points (12 rebounds) in a victory against Washington in the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament.
“The biggest thing for her is to get all in and stay all in and be motivated to be that All-American,” Schaefer said in September, prior to the start of practice for the 2017-18 season. “There is no more Chinwe to push you. Can you find that whatever it is that keeps you motivated and understand the importance you bring to our team. She is really important to what we do.”
The departure of seniors Ketara Chapel, Dominique Dillingham, Chinwe Okorie, and Breanna Richardson changed the landscape for McCowan. Like Schaefer said, she no longer has a 6-5 teammate (Okorie) to challenge her and to push her to get better.
McCowan’s situation changed again earlier this month when MSU apparently lost sophomore forward Ameshya Williams. Schaefer hasn’t released an official statement about the 6-2 sophomore forward from Gulfport, but his comments appear to indicate Williams won’t return to the team.
Williams’ absence has played a role in Schaefer’s decision to go with a starting lineup of McCowan and guards Morgan William, Roshunda Johnson, and Blair Schaefer and senior Victoria Vivians at power forward, or the four position.
Without another true post player in the lineup, McCowan likely will face a variety of looks from opponents. In MSU’s last game against Southern Mississippi, the Lady Eagles attempted to sandwich McCowan to deny her the ball, only until the Bulldogs started to hit outside shots. Southern Miss’ switch to player-to-player defense gave McCowan more space to operate, which she turned into a 17-point, 10-rebound, three-block effort in a 91-56 victory at Humphrey Coliseum.
Schaefer would like to see more of that at 12:30 p.m. Thursday when No. 7 MSU (3-0) takes on No. 24 Arizona (4-0) in its first of three games at the Cancun Challenge in Cancun, Mexico.
“As I have told all three of our players (McCowan, Vivians, and William) who are on the watch lists for the top player at their positions, you’re not going to win that award sitting on the bench, so go win the award. Go earn your nomination,” Schaefer said. “Don’t be satisfied with being nominated.”
McCowan doesn’t appear to be satisfied. She is averaging 14.3 points and 8.3 rebounds in 24.3 minutes. She also is shooting 62.1 percent from the field. On Tuesday, she was named the Southeastern Conference’s Player of the Week for hitting hit 9 of 10 shots against Georgia State and recording her 11th-career double-double in the win against Southern Miss.
“I think she needs to keep working, and I think she needs to understand the importance of the things we need her to do every night,” Schaefer said. “She can’t just do a couple of them. She has to be that total package night in and night out.”
Schaefer doesn’t believe McCowan has to take on new roles or to think she has to change her game. Instead, he would like to continue to see her mature and to develop more consistent habits in practice. He believes McCowan’s ability to do that will enable her to stay out of foul trouble and to play more than the 19.7 minutes she averaged last season in 39 games (six starts) and the 24.3 minutes she is averaging through three games.
Schaefer also acknowledges redshirt sophomore center Zion Campbell is going to have to step up because she is the only other true post player on the roster.
Schaefer credits associate head coach Johnnie Harris for her work with McCowan and Campbell. He said he has talked to people who have known Teaira for a long time who have been “amazed” at her development. But Schaefer knows his job is to get even more out of McCowan. He hopes McCowan sees that in herself, too, and is willing to put in the time, effort, and energy, especially when people aren’t looking, to reach that level.
“I think she gets it,” Schaefer said. “Understanding it and being able to deal with it are two different things. I think she understands it and on most days lives it. I need her to live it every day.”
If McCowan can do that, Schaefer said there is no reason she can’t average a double-double. If that sounds like a challenge, especially in the SEC, consider McCowan averaged 8.7 points and 7.1 rebounds last season. Her performance helped her win the SEC Sixth Woman of the Year award last season and earn a spot on the Lisa Leslie Award Watch List for the nation’s top center.
Schaefer said in September that he thought McCowan’s opportunity to play with USA Basketball this summer helped her and contributed to her coming back ready to go. He also reiterated the importance of McCowan staying out of foul because the Bulldogs need to have her on the floor 30 minutes a game.
So far, McCowan appears to be on track.
Follow Dispatch sports editor Adam Minichino on Twitter @ctsportseditor
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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