STARKVILLE — Denim DeShields knew moving to the Southeastern Conference would mean shouldering less of the scoring burden. But Mississippi State’s junior point guard is playing her best offensive basketball of the season as the Bulldogs move into the second half of SEC play.
As a sophomore at Alabama-Birmingham, DeShields averaged 13.4 points and 5.3 assists per game. She was second on the Blazers in scoring; she is currently sixth on MSU despite playing the fourth-most minutes per game on the team. After cracking double figures just once in her first 20 games as a Bulldog, though, DeShields scored 13 points in a win over Auburn on Jan. 23, then had 12 Monday night in a loss at Missouri.
And DeShields has not sacrificed ball-handling for scoring — she has a combined 11 assists over her last two games with just two turnovers.
“We knew she had that capability,” MSU head coach Sam Purcell said. “Credit to her, because coming in (she was) trying to please everybody else, get a feel for everybody else. But she realized there were parts of her game where she needed to be more aggressive.”
Purcell said DeShields has worked daily after practice with assistant coach Tony Dukes, the only assistant still around from last year’s coaching staff. Turnovers have been the Bulldogs’ biggest issue all season, and DeShields, as the starting point guard, bears some responsibility for that — she has nine games with at least four turnovers. But her offense is trending up recently, and she can be a force on defense as well with five steals in a big win over Oklahoma.
DeShields had more on her plate than usual against Missouri with sixth woman Destiney McPhaul out due to an illness. McPhaul returned to practice Thursday, Purcell said, and should be ready to play Sunday when MSU (16-6, 3-5 SEC) visits No. 7 LSU.
“There’s no secret to success. It’s hard work,” Purcell said. “(DeShields) is working extremely hard behind the scenes and after practice, and that’s why she’s having the results that we’re seeing here lately.”
Scouting LSU
The Tigers (22-1, 7-1) are again one of the most dominant teams in the country, winning their first 20 games before falling at South Carolina on Jan. 24. LSU is fourth nationally in scoring offense, putting up 88.7 points per game. Led by the nation’s leading rebounder in Aneesah Morrow, the Tigers are second nationally in boards and third in offensive rebounding.
Flau’Jae Johnson averages 20 points to lead LSU’s offense, with Morrow putting up 18.7 points and 14 rebounds per game. Sharpshooter Mikaylah Williams is scoring 16.8 points per contest while shooting 38.2% from 3-point range, and sixth woman Kailyn Gilbert is averaging double-digit scoring as well.
Williams aside, LSU is not an especially proficient 3-point shooting team, but the Tigers were 12-for-16 from deep Thursday night in a 107-100 shootout win against No. 13 Oklahoma.
“They have a lot of talent,” Purcell said. “They obviously play really well at home, and it’s going to be an absolute war.”
As is typically the case for a Kim Mulkey-coached team, LSU gets to the foul line often — the Tigers’ 22.3 free throw attempts per game are second in the conference. LSU’s defense is solidly middle-of-the-pack overall but excellent on the perimeter, as only Tennessee allows a lower 3-point percentage among SEC teams.
The Tigers also have a familiar face to Purcell and the Bulldogs in sophomore guard Mjracle Sheppard, who transferred to Baton Rouge from MSU last spring. Sheppard had six steals to help the Bulldogs upset LSU in Starkville last season.
“It’s just about finishing and having a dog mentality,” Purcell said. “Our best basketball is ahead of us as we continue to gel. We have to ride the wave and we have to believe, so that’s been my focus with them and that’s the energy they’ve been giving me every single day.”
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