STARKVILLE — I.J. Ready doesn’t care who plays for the Mississippi State men’s basketball team this season because they better be ready to win.
The junior point guard scored 17 points in a 95-56 victory against Fort Valley State 95-56 last week in an exhibition game. MSU won going away without freshman guard Malik Newman, who was sidelined with a turf toe injury.
“We know how Malik is, and we know he can fill it up on the scoreboard, but we all get better every day,” Ready said. “We have a lot of seniors and we are expected to win. Us going out there and executing, that’s what we expect.”
MSU could be without Newman at 8 tonight (SEC Network) in its season opener against Eastern Washington at Humphrey Coliseum.
MSU coach Ben Howland will make his debut after replacing Rick Ray, who was let go in March after three losing seasons. Howland came in and made an immediate impact by signing Newman, one of the nation’s top players. Big things are expected from Newman this season, so Howland doesn’t want to take any chances with him.
“To throw him out there for any kind of major minutes would be inappropriate and reckless on our part,” Howland said. “My biggest concern is the big picture of this season. I don’t want to rush him back and have him re-injure his toe and now he’s out for a month.”
Howland said Newman’s cast came off Tuesday and he hasn’t practiced in two weeks. He expects Newman to be 100 percent after next week’s Puerto Rico Tip-Off.
MSU has proven it can win without Newman. It has five seniors, including three who have contributed since they were freshmen, and Ready on the roster.
Howland said Ready tweaked his hip in practice after the exhibition game, but results from an MRI came back Monday and they were negative. He has practiced with the Bulldogs since Tuesday.
Although MSU was successful without Newman in the exhibition, Eastern Washington poses a different problem. It defeated Montana 69-65 in the Big Sky Conference tournament championship game last season, winning the title for the first time since 2004. The victory secured a trip to the NCAA tournament, where Eastern Washington (26-9) lost to Georgetown 84-74 in the second round.
Eastern Washington, returns one starter — senior forward Venky Jois — and four other letterwinners from last year’s squad. Jois averaged 16.7 points, 7.7 rebounds, and 2.2 blocked shots per game last season.
“They really have my attention big time,” Howland said. “We knew that when we signed the contract to play them. There was no good choice of who we were going to open up our first game with this year.”
Ready has been really impressed what he has seen on film of the Eagles, but that wouldn’t change his or his team’s approach.
“They’re pretty well-rounded, and they’re bigs are pretty good, too,” Ready said. “We’re not taking anybody lightly. We have a point to prove. We haven’t been very successful in the last two years, so every team we play, we’re looking at them as a great team.”
n In related news, the Southeastern Conference coaches named senior guard Craig Sword and Newman second-team All-SEC on Thursday.
Sword was named to the SEC All-Freshman team after the 2013 season. He was named second-team All-SEC this past March. The Montgomery, Alabama, native has led MSU in scoring in each of the last three seasons.
Newman was a McDonald’s All-American and won four state championships with Callaway High School.
n Howland said Thursday on a teleconference for the Puerto Rico Tip-Off that MSU has received four National Letters of Intent from players in the 2016 recruiting class. The signed letters were from five-star small forward Mario Kegler, four-star center Schnider Herard, four-star shooting guard Tyson Carter, and four-star shooting guard Eli Wright. Four-star guard Lamar Peters, who has given a verbal commitment to MSU, is expected to sign before the early signing period ends next Wednesday.
Kegler, a Jackson native who is playing for Oak Hill Academy in Mouth of Wilson, Virginia, picked MSU over Indiana.
“He’s an excellent shooter, very, very good, strong athlete that can attack the glass, has had a good handle, a good passer, a good rebounder, and a good competitor,” Howland said.
Howland says Herard and Wright will bring a lot to the team next year.
Carter, a standout for the Starkville High School, will follow in his father’s footsteps.
“He may be the best shooter I saw all summer anywhere in the country and has great point guard skills,” Howland said.
Follow Dispatch sports writer Ben Wait on Twitter @bcwait
Ben Wait reports on Mississippi State University sports for The Dispatch.
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