Tournament hopes bubbling over for Bulldogs

STARKVILLE — Fans of the Mississippi State University men’s basketball program should do two things these next two weeks: grab your television guide and set your DVR.

Bulldogs face Gamecocks in ‘must-win’ situation

STARKVILLE — Talk about a must-win game.

Everyone associated with the Mississippi State University men’s basketball team seems to understand they don’t deserve a berth in the NCAA tournament if they can’t get a victory tonight in a game versus a last-place team in Southeastern Conference.

Unhappy ending: Jackets’ season ends with thud

JACKSON — The Wayne County High School boys basketball team was simply

better than Starkville in every way possible.

Moultrie calls out MSU teammates

STARKVILLE — Frustrations are building in the Mississippi State University men’s basketball locker room.

Comments made Monday by junior power forward Arnett Moultrie showcased the emotions MSU feels after it lost its fifth-straight game Saturday, 67-50 at the University of Alabama.

MSU baseball getting contributions from young pitchers

STARKVILLE — This is the point John Cohen wanted to get with his baseball program.

The Mississippi State University baseball coach always has thought the best plan for freshmen in the Southeastern Conference is to have them sit and watch veterans while working them into the lineup.

LADY VOLS WIN STATE: Starkville Academy rallies past MRA for Class AAA state title

PELAHATCHIE — Go ahead and call Starkville Academy the comeback champions.

For the second time in as many days, the Lady Volunteers basketball team rallied from a double-digit deficit to take home the school’s first-ever Mississippi Association of Independent Schools Class AAA state championship with a 47-35 win over Madison-Ridgeland Academy Saturday afternoon at East Rankin Academy.

Aberdeen’s dream season falls short in state semifinal

JACKSON — That one fleeting moment to tie the game.

That’s all Aberdeen High School boys basketball coach Roy Hazzle thought his team needed to be playing for a Class 3A state championship gold ball trophy next week.

MSU faces critical game at Alabama

STARKVILLE — This is not the situation Rick Stansbury wanted to be in entering one of the most critical games of the season.

The Mississippi State University men’s basketball team has lost four games in a row and likely will be without freshman starter Rodney

Hood when it takes on the University of Alabama at 5 p.m. today (ESPN) in Tuscaloosa, Ala.

Newcomer Slauter ready to take control

STARKVILLE — The new leader of the Mississippi State University baseball program is a junior college transfer that just arrived on campus in August.

Mitch Slauter has earned the controls of the Bulldogs (2-1) defense and pitching staff after both starting catchers from last season graduated leaving a perceived hole in a critical element to MSU’s success under coach John Cohen.

Kidd-Gilchrist, No. 1 Kentucky rally past MSU

STARKVILLE — Three words were all Michael Kidd-Gilchrist needed to say to his coach when given the assignment of Dee Bost at halftime.

“I said you got him and he said, ‘I got it,’ ” University of Kentucky men’s basketball coach John Calipari said.

Kidd-Gilchrist’s defensive performance was part of a second-half effort that helped top-ranked Kentucky rally and pull away for a 73-64 victory against Mississippi State University on Tuesday before an announced crowd of 10,213 at Humphrey Coliseum.

Miller sparks Kentucky in second half

STARKVILLE — Another late-game situation, another missed opportunity for the Mississippi State University men’s basketball program.

The result was a a fourth-straight loss that damaged the Bulldogs’ push for a bid to the NCAA tournament.

MSU men face major challenge vs. No. 1 Kentucky

STARKVILLE — After listening to Mississippi State University men’s basketball coach Rick Stansbury talk Monday about the top-ranked opponent his team will face tonight, you would think the 14-year veteran planned to carry a slingshot and pebble in his back pocket.

Stansbury, who is from Campbellsville, Ky., knows the challenge and discussed the enormity of the task MSU will face at 8 tonight (ESPN) when it plays host to the No. 1 University of Kentucky (26-1, 12-0 Southeastern Conference) at Humphrey Coliseum.

Callaway rallies to beat Starkville

JACKSON — The Class 5A North State boys basketball championship trophy will stay in Jackson in 2012.

Even without its leading scorer Malik Newman, the Callaway High School boys basketball team used an emphatic second-half run to beat Starkville 59-48 just 10 days before both teams head to the state finals at the Mississippi Coliseum.

Starkville boys headed to the Big House

The Starkville boys basketball team have guaranteed themselves an opportunity to play for the Class 5A state championship.

After a dominating 82-67 victory over Provine High School Friday night in the Class 5A North Half semifinals at Forrest Hill High School, the Yellow Jackets avenged a regular season loss and showcased the talents of one of the state’s premier players.

New faces shine at Dudy Noble

STARKVILLE — The concern heading into the 2012 baseball campaign in Starkville was the new-look Mississippi State University hitters.

Those fears were quickly put a more of an ease during an opening night 6-2 victory over Washington State University in front of 3,449 at Dudy Noble Field Friday evening.

Bulldogs back on road for Auburn

STARKVILLE — The last thing Rick Stansbury needed was more injury questions.

The 14-year coach of Mississippi State University men’s basketball has already lost back-to-back games to average teams and is struggling to maintain much consistency entering the critical portion of the 2011-12 campaign.

Cohen tries to continue revival of MSU baseball

STARKVILLE — To his right and just above the desk in John Cohen’s office sits a picture of one of coaching idols — Hall of Fame and former University of Alabama football coach Paul W. Bryant.

It isn’t common to see a picture of a football coach in the office of most baseball coaches in America, but it helps explain the mind-set of Mississippi State University’s fourth-year baseball coach.

Starkville rolls past Lake Cormorant

STARKVILLE — The Starkville High School boys basketball team sent a message to the rest of the teams in Class 5A that the slow-down offense won’t work against it.

Starkville built a 12-0 lead in the first quarter and rolled to a 77-33 victory against Lake Cormorant on Tuesday in the first round of the Mississippi High School Activities Association Class 5A North State tournament.

Seasons end for Starkville girls, Columbus boys

The Starkville High School girls basketball season ended Tuesday with a 62-59 loss at Center Hill in the first round of the Mississippi High School Activities Association Class 5A North State tournament.

Starkville boys open with playoff game at home

STARKVILLE – Gavin Ware knows what it is like to sit on the bench and watch his teammates try to win playoff games without him.

The Starkville High senior center is using the helpless feeling he endured last year after he suffered a severe knee injury before the beginning of the Class 6A postseason.