STARKVILLE — The mood amongst Mississippi State men’s basketball the past week has become much more tense, but through the chaos of it all, the Bulldogs sit a perfect 11-0.
MSU is one of just five undefeated Division 1 teams left in the country and despite close wins against Jackson State on Wednesday and Nicholls on Saturday, they’ve withstood the onslaught and Monday’s AP Poll rewarded them for it.
Now, the Bulldogs have moved up two spots to No. 15 heading into what is arguably their toughest test of the year, a neutral-site game on Tuesday afternoon against Missouri Valley Conference power Drake.
It’s been a quick turnaround from Saturday, but it’s all hands on deck for Lincoln, Neb. and the final non-conference game of MSU’s slate this season.
“[Drake] has played a challenging schedule,” Mississippi State head coach Chris Jans said. “They just got done playing at Richmond and at Saint Louis. Those are tough places to play, so we’re going to get them when they’re going to be in a foul mood. They’re going to want this game going into the break, stop their skid and get right before conference play begins.”
Since Drake head coach Darian DeVries came to Des Moines in March 2018, the Bulldogs (8-3) have posted four-consecutive 20+ win seasons, a trip to the NCAA Tournament in 2021 as an at-large team, and a regular season conference championship in the 2018-19 season.
After a 25-11 season last year that saw Drake fall in the MVC Tournament Championship game to Loyola Chicago, this team, returning four of five starters from last season, are ready to spoil the party.
Jans talked about MSU being prepared for the task following Saturday’s 68-66 win over Nicholls and reiterated the same sentiment on Monday.
“It’s pretty obvious that we’re not playing our best recently,” Jans said. “We found a way to win. That’s the silver lining, but we’re just not playing as well as we were. If I knew the answer to it, I would fix it. I’m searching for it, we’re all searching for it. We got one more crack at it before SEC play begins and this will be tough. These games are always tough.”
“We’ll have our hands full…We’re going to be up against it and we’ll have to create our own energy.”
With the holiday break fast-approaching, plans have been made by many, adding more baggage onto preparations for the game itself.
Tuesday’s matchup, a battle of the Bulldogs, will be as important as any to get Mississippi State in the right mindset heading into SEC play because right out of the gates, the Bulldogs host No. 9 Alabama.
That game is nearly a week away and will be an immediate gut check for MSU, who hasn’t had many during non-conference play.
Facing a player like Drake guard Tucker DeVries, last season’s MVC Freshman of the Year and someone currently averaging 18.8 PPG this season, will definitely help ease the Bulldogs into an intense conference slate.
That’s only going to happen if Mississippi State can get things going from the jump, offensively, something that’s caused near-disasters in the last two games. Forward Tolu Smith will factor massively into that, and his second half start against Nicholls is promising for the future.
“He wasn’t playing that much differently,” Jans said. “He was just rushing himself when he got the ball. He was in a hurry to make decisions and force the issue. I think it becomes frustrating at times for him because there’s not many games for us where we can just throw it inside and he’s going to play 1-on-1.”
“…But, he’s been good. Today and yesterday, his spirits were great, his focus was great, he was showing some leadership qualities the last couple of days that were really good to see.”
Smith scored 10 of his team-high 15 points on Saturday in the first 4:30 of the second half, providing a much-needed spark in a game that came down to the final possession.
Mississippi State continues to have the target on its back grow as it moves up the AP Poll, but the Bulldogs are well-aware of it and the added pressure. Tuesday gives them another shot to defend that ranking and succeed under pressure in a uniquely hostile ‘road’ environment.
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