STARKVILLE — Mississippi State’s season opener promises to be a fast-paced affair.
When the Bulldogs begin the 2019-2020 men’s basketball season hosting Florida International at 7 p.m. Tuesday in the Humphrey Coliseum, they’ll clash with the team that played at the fastest adjusted tempo in the nation a season ago, according to KenPom.com.
“We’ve been doing a lot of running,” MSU sophomore forward Robert Woodard II said of the team’s preparation. “There’s a lot of transition defense and a lot of transition work we’ve been doing. We’re just preparing for an up and down pace.”
In FIU coach Jeremy Ballad’s first season in 2018-2019, the Panthers went 20-14. Redshirt senior Devon Andrews was named to the All-Conference USA preseason team after leading the team in scoring with 15.3 points per game while grabbing 5.1 rebounds a night in his junior season. FIU was picked to finish 10th in Conference USA in the league’s preseason poll.
“It’s not an easy opener,” MSU coach Ben Howland said. “They’re a very difficult team to play. They force a lot of turnovers with their style of play.”
The Panthers like to employ small lineups, sometimes rolling with four to five guards at a time. This could bode well for the Bulldogs considering their frontcourt depth, but Howland and company are wary of the speed of FIU.
“They set a lot of trail ball screens, so we’re emphasizing guarding that,” MSU forward Prince Oduro said. “We’ve been doing a lot of running the past few practices because they get up and down a lot. We should be able to compete with them at their level.”
MSU’s fifth-year coach wouldn’t reveal if D.J. Stewart or Iverson Molinar will start at the two guard Tuesday with Nick Weatherspoon beginning his 10-game suspension, forcing Tyson Carter to point guard. But he acknowledged both Molinar and Stewart need to be ready to play meaningful minutes.
“We don’t have a lot of experience there,” Howland said. “This is their first college game coming up. That’s why the exhibitions have been so beneficial. There’s no question we’ll miss Nick, he’s one of the most experienced guys we have in the program.”
After opening against the Panthers Tuesday, MSU will host Sam Houston State at 7 p.m. Friday.
What KenPom rankings say
According to KenPom.com, Mississippi State is projected to beat FIU 87-70. The basketball analytics website gives the Bulldogs a 94 percent chance of taking home a victory.
KenPom.com lists MSU as the 53rd best team in the nation entering Tuesday, while FIU is ranked 204th out of 353 Division I schools. While FIU plays at the highest tempo in the nation, MSU ranked 161st in that category a year ago.
Hodge is the former sports editor for The Dispatch.
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