STARKVILLE — The Mississippi State men’s basketball team had chances to secure a victory down the stretch in three of its four losses.
MSU missed a couple of free throws in the final minutes in a 76-72 loss to Southern on Nov. 16. In a 74-72 loss to Texas Tech on Nov. 20 in Puerto Rico, MSU held a four-point lead late. MSU led Missouri-Kansas City by three points in the last three minutes, but lost 72-67 on the road.
“The biggest thing is we have to do a better job defensively,” MSU coach Ben Howland said. “We took bad shots down the stretch with the lead or with the game tied.”
Howland hopes to see a different result in the next close game. MSU (4-4) might get its chance to correct those mistakes at 8 tonight (ESPN2) when it faces Florida State (6-2) at the Donald L. Tucker Center.
Other than a 105-79 loss to Miami in Puerto Rico, MSU has been in every game. The Bulldogs believe they have to stay the course to find the winning formula late in games.
“We just need to keep fighting, evaluating film, and just get better as a team,” MSU freshman guard Malik Newman said. “I think we still have a lot of growing up to do.”
Howland, who reviewed the UMKC film four times, has taken a lot of the blame and said there were things he could have done differently down the stretch to help ensure a win. Senior guard Fred Thomas and freshman guard Quinndary Weatherspoon have been good options coming off the bench. Weatherspoon is averaging eight points, while Thomas is one of the team’s best defensive players. The Jackson native is averaging four points in a reserve role.
“I have to do a better job utilizing our bench,” Howland said. “I thought I did a bad job of not using Quinndary and Fred more.”
Senior center Gavin Ware leads the team with 19 points per game. The former Starkville High School standout also is averaging a team-high 7.8 rebounds per game. Senior guard Craig Sword and junior guard I.J. Ready are averaging 12.4 ppg. Ready (turf toe) is uncertain for tonight’s game. Howland said Ready will get a steel insole to go in the bottom of his shoe, but the decision whether he plays tonight will be made prior to tipoff. Newman is averaging 12 ppg., but he scored a career-high 18 points against the Kangaroos.
Howland also said senior forward Travis Daniels has a concussion and he won’t play tonight. His status for the team’s game against Tulane on Saturday at Humphrey Coliseum is unclear.
With Daniels out, Howland will look to senior forward Johnny Zuppardo and sophomore forward Fallou Ndoye. Zuppardo is averaging 4.4 ppg., while Ndoye has only scored two points. He hasn’t played in the last two games.
Without Daniels, the pressure on Ware’s shoulders will increase.
“We need Gavin to be successful every night,” Howland said. “It starts with him.”
Florida State has won four of its last five, including a 75-58 victory against Southeastern Louisiana on Sunday.
Freshman guard Malik Beasley (18.3 ppg.) leads the Seminoles. Freshman guard Dwayne Bacon is averaging 15.8 ppg., while sophomore guard Xavier Rathan-Mayes is averaging 11.9 ppg.
“They’re probably one of the best transition teams we will play this year,” Newman said. “They’re a great team when it comes to playing in transition. If we can stop them in transition, I think we have a good chance of winning.”
Follow Dispatch sports writer Ben Wait on Twitter @bcwait
Ben Wait reports on Mississippi State University sports for The Dispatch.
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