Sunday will mark four weeks since Mississippi State last faced a team from the SWAC, but the painful memory will remain with the Bulldogs for the rest of the season and likely beyond.

MSU’s loss to Southern on Dec. 3 — a game in which head coach Chris Jans’ team led by 11 points with four and a half minutes remaining, only to never score again — is an unshakable blemish on an otherwise strong non-conference resume. The Bulldogs (10-2), who have won four straight games since that debacle, will face their final non-conference opponent Sunday as another SWAC foe, Bethune-Cookman, visits Humphrey Coliseum.

The two programs have faced each other just once before, a 67-51 MSU victory in November of 2009. While the Bulldogs will have a full week off coming into Sunday’s game, the Wildcats played Friday night at UCF and carried a 5-6 record into the matchup with the Knights. UCF and the Bulldogs are Bethune-Cookman’s first high-major conference opponents since the Wildcats’ season opener, which they lost 80-60 at Minnesota.

Star post player Tolu Smith, who has been out all season with a foot injury, was cleared to practice on Dec. 15, and if he is ready to play, Sunday would be a good opportunity to ease him back before the gauntlet that is the Southeastern Conference schedule.

Here are three keys to victory for MSU as the Bulldogs look to close out non-conference play strong.

Start fast and leave no doubt

MSU needed to rally from early double-digit deficits in wins over Northwestern and North Texas, and the longer the Bulldogs let the Wildcats hang around, the more Bethune-Cookman’s confidence will grow regarding the possibility of an upset.

The Wildcats do have three players averaging at least 13 points per game in wing Jakobi Heady and guards Zion Harmon and Dhashon Dyson. Harmon is second in the SWAC in both assists and steals — with teammate Damani McEntire, who has come off the bench in all 11 games, leading the conference with 3.1 steals per game. Taking care of the ball will be a must for MSU.

Avoid second-half complacency

After the Bulldogs’ collapse against Southern, forward Cameron Matthews said MSU was “stagnant and tentative” and looked like they “didn’t know what (they) were doing.” Ten days later, the Bulldogs blew another big second-half lead and needed a final-minute rally to beat Murray State at home.

Even if MSU gets out to a big lead, the Bulldogs will need to continue limiting turnovers, looking for high-percentage shots and playing their signature brand of defense all the way through the final buzzer.

Get to the basket, early and often

Thanks mostly to freshman Josh Hubbard, MSU is no longer the worst 3-point shooting team in the nation, as it was last year, but the Bulldogs are still at their best when they attack the rim and don’t settle for outside shots. That goes for just about everyone in Jans’ rotation except Hubbard — Matthews, Dashawn Davis, D.J. Jeffries and more.

Bethune-Cookman does have 7-footer Elijah Hulsewe starting at center, but especially if Smith returns, MSU should still have the edge in the post. Even if Smith remains out, Jimmy Bell Jr. has proven himself more than capable of controlling the interior on both ends of the floor.

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