NFL Tickets
The Mississippi State Bulldogs finished the 2013-14 college basketball season with a 14-19 record, but only a 3-15 record in the SEC. The Bulldogs started the season on a 13-5 tear that included two good wins over the Texas A&M Aggies and the Ole Miss Rebels, but the team suddenly spiraled into a month-long 13-game losing streak that saw their promising season transform into the worst record in the SEC.
Despite such a disastrous season for Mississippi State, the Bulldogs return one of the most experienced and talented teams in the SEC, setting up the worst team in the conference from the 2013-14 season to be a lock for a 2015 NIT berth and one of the contenders for a berth in the 2015 NCAA tournament.
Don’t believe me? Take a look at their schedule.
Mississippi State boasts powerhouse college basketball teams like Western Carolina, Clayton State, (potentially) TCU, Arkansas State, McNeese State, (potentially) Bradley, USC Upstate, Missouri Valley State and Jacksonville. For those of you who don’t understand sarcasm, their “second-tier” non-conference opposition includes Oregon State, Tulane and Utah State.
The Bulldogs face only two teams that shouldn’t be “gimme” wins in their non-conference schedule, the Saint Louis Billikens in the Corpus Christi Challenge and the Florida State Seminoles. That being said, in all likelihood Mississippi State has the talent to defeat the Seminoles and at least compete against the Billikens, meaning that the Bulldogs could come into SEC play with just one loss and 12 wins.
On top of their relatively weak schedule, Mississippi State will benefit from several SEC teams taking a step backwards in the offseason. The Missouri Tigers lose most of their starters, the Tennessee Volunteers are still looking for an identity, and the LSU Tigers and Ole Miss both lost their star players. The Bulldogs will have every opportunity to defeat teams that have been in the top five or so in the SEC over the past few seasons.
However, the biggest positive moving forward for Mississippi State has to be the plethora of developing talent that remained with the program.
Craig Sword, Gavin Ware, Fred Thomas and Roquez Johnson, who were the team’s four leading scorers last season and combined for 42.7 points per game, all return (although Sword will miss 4-6 weeks with an injury). On top of these four players, Trivante Bloodman and I.J. Ready also return, meaning that only one player who averaged more than 20 minutes per game last season is no longer a part of the team. Combined, these returning six players accounted for 81 percent of the team’s scoring, 68 percent of the team’s rebounding and 84 percent of assists.
Experience is everything in college basketball and, in an SEC where experience seems to be lacking, the Bulldogs will have the upper hand on several teams, especially late in close games. Sword, Thomas, Ware and Johnson are all players who have the capability to take control of games, so teams like Kentucky and Florida must not overlook this squad of players.
All in all, Mississippi State should win around 18 games this season and sneak into the NIT as a sixth or seventh seed based on a big win over Saint Louis, Arkansas or Florida. Don’t be surprised if this team exceeds expectations and is “on the bubble” at the end of the season, but the weak non-conference schedule will hinder them greatly in the eyes of the Selection Committee.
It won’t seem like a massive improvement from last season, but expect Mississippi State’s extremely talented Juniors to return as Seniors and lead the Bulldogs to a 2016 NCAA tournament berth.
Taylor Sturm is a Columnist for www.RantSports.com. Follow him on Twitter @TSturmRS, like him on Facebook or add him to your network on Google.
Share 
