STARKVILLE — If Makayla Epps says the Kentucky women’s basketball team remains a “work in progress,” you could argue MSU has even more work to do with three regular-season games remaining.
Epps made her comment Thursday following No. 16 Kentucky’s 83-60 demolition of No. 14 MSU at Humphrey Coliseum. The 23-point loss was the Bulldogs’ worst in Starkville since a 63-41 loss to LSU on Feb. 17, 2013, Vic Schaefer’s first season as head coach at MSU.
MSU hasn’t had to bounce back from many double-digits losses since that season, when it went 13-17. The Bulldogs responded with 22- and 27-win seasons the next two years to put them on a fast track to the top 10 in both national polls. But that climb hit a very big pothole on a night the Bulldogs were outplayed in every facet of the game.
MSU (21-6, 8-5 Southeastern Conference) will try to get back on track at 4 p.m. today (ESPN2) when it takes on Ole Miss (10-16, 2-11) at The Pavilion at Ole Miss.
Schaefer and juniors Dominique Dillingham and Breanna Richardson had a lot of questions to answer following the loss to Kentucky. It was easy to see the disappointment in their body language and to hear it as they discussed the reasons behind an atypical lackluster effort in a big game before their home fans.
“When we do come out dead, some people have to step up,” Richardson said. “Some people might not like to hear it, but I think we have to actually start getting into each other, like pushing each other to play harder because if you’re not playing hard, the results like this show. We just have to make a change, and when we see it, we have to make a change sooner.”
MSU can’t afford to waste any time implementing changes. Its latest loss dropped it into a tie with Auburn and Florida for third place in the league standings. It holds tiebreakers against both teams thanks to victories earlier in the season, so wins in the final three games will help it secure a coveted double bye in the SEC tournament, which begins March 2 in Jacksonville, Florida.
But another loss would complicate matters. Georgia, Kentucky, Missouri, and Tennessee are tied at 7-6 in the SEC. The Bulldogs would like to avoid falling into a multiple-team tie that would come down to a tiebreaker that would decide seeding for the SEC tournament. To do that, they will have to improve in a number of areas, including effort and intensity and execution on the offensive and defensive ends.
MSU hurt itself against Kentucky by shooting 35.4 percent (23 of 65) from the field. While the Bulldogs appeared to regain some momentum in the second quarter by going 6 of 11 (54.5 percent), they erased that progress in the third quarter, going 4 of 19 (21.1). Kentucky capitalized to turn a seven-point halftime lead into a 19-point cushion.
Nearly all of the Bulldogs contributed to the shooting percentage. Richardson (5 of 7 from the field in 28 minutes, which matched a season high) and Kayla Nevitt (4 of 10 in a career-high 28 minutes) had the best showings of any Bulldogs, but they couldn’t overcome the fact that leading scorer Victoria Vivians was 3 of 11 from the field or post players Chinwe Okorie, Teaira McCowan, and Sherise Williams combined to go 3 of 12 from the field. Addressing the shooting percentage of the centers was one of the questions Schaefer answered after the game against Kentucky.
“Just like you ask your guards to get in the gym, those bigs need to get in the gym, too,” Schaefer said. “That was a focal point going into tonight. We wanted to get the ball down there. Three-for-12 for 25 percent when you’re shooting the ball at the cup is not good. Those bigs have got to be better.”
Schaefer also said Vivians has to recognize she is getting guarded harder than any player in the country and take better shots. Even though her 16.6 points per game is third among SEC players in scoring in league games, Vivians is shooting 37.2 percent from the field.
“The kid is trying to do too much,” Schaefer said. “You try to teach that kid over and over you don’t have to shoot it every time. If you are covered up that much, pass on it. Kayla Nevitt comes off the bench in the first half and goes 3-for-5. It is the same position and the same plays. She lets the game come to her. Victoria is so used to having to carry her high school team over and over and over; I am still trying to get some of that out of her. She doesn’t have to do that for us, although she got a bunch of good looks tonight and they just didn’t go in.”
MSU has followed a similar pattern in the last two seasons. In its last 14 games of 2013-14, MSU shot 40.3 percent or higher only five times and scored 70 or more points only six times. Last season, in a program-record 27-win season, the Bulldogs shot 40.5 percent or higher only three times in their final 10 games and scored 70 or more points only twice.
Prior to the game against Kentucky, MSU’s shooting percentages offered a telling example. In non-conference play, the Bulldogs shot 42.8 percent from the field. In SEC action, they were shooting 36.7 percent, a drop of 6.1 percent. MSU’s drop in shooting percentage was the third largest of any SEC team (Missouri, 7.7; Vanderbilt, 7.2).
Most teams are going to have lower shooting percentages in conference play because opponents know each other so much better. But MSU hasn’t been able to shoot better than 45 percent — let alone 40 — from the field on a consistent basis in the last three seasons. The performance against Kentucky was MSU’s third game in a row it shot under 36 percent from the field.
MSU has countered its shooting percentages with a defense that was allowing 53.3 ppg. prior to the game against Kentucky. The Bulldogs also have shown any uncanny knack for winning when they shoot in the 30-percent range from the field. This season, MSU has won games in the SEC in which it shot 32.7, 32.9, and 33.3 percent from the field.
MSU usually has a chance to overcome those percentages because it plays with determination and focus on defense. On nights like Thursday, the Bulldogs’ deficiencies are even more glaring, which makes finding answers a pressing matter.
“I don’t want to coach your heart. I want to coach your mind,” Schaefer said after the game against Kentucky. “There was a lot of energy being used on the sideline by my staff and myself coaching peoples’ hearts. This is what happens when you deal with young people every day. It is my responsibility as a head coach. I will wear it, and I will fix it.”
Follow Dispatch sports editor Adam Minichino on Twitter @ctsportseditor
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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