Mississippi State men's and women's basketball notes
Basketball season is right around the corner. On Monday and Tuesday, several items of note came down surrounding the Mississippi State men's and women's hoops teams. Here's a quick look.
Bulldogs projected to finish 5th in SEC
Despite being the nation's No. 6 team according to the Associated Press Preseason Top 25 poll, Mississippi State's women's team was predicted to finish towards the middle of the pack in the Southeastern Conference according to league coaches. On Tuesday, the SEC released its predicted order of finish and the Bulldogs were pegged fifth behind South Carolina, Kentucky, Texas A&M and Arkansas. South Carolina was predicted to be this year's league champion. Here is the full projected order of finish:
1. South Carolina
2. Kentucky
3. Texas A&M
4. Arkansas
5. Mississippi State
6. Tennessee
7. LSU
8. Alabama
9. Georgia
10. Missouri
11. Ole Miss
12. Florida
13. Vanderbilt
14. Auburn
Jackson, Carter picked to All-SEC teams
The coaches honored a couple of Bulldogs with All-SEC team selections. Rickea Jackson was tabbed as a First Team selection. Jessika Carter was placed on the Second Team.
Jackson led the Bulldogs in scoring (15.1 ppg) and ranked third in rebounding (5.1 rpg) as a freshman in 2019-20. The Detroit, Michigan, native ranked fifth among all players during conference play with 16.5 points per game and eighth in field goal percentage (.480).
Carter led State in rebounding (8.7 rpg), blocks (1.8 bpg), field goal percentage (.585) and double-doubles (11) and was second on the team in scoring (13.0 ppg) as a sophomore in 2019-20. She ranked 13th in Division I in field goal percentage (.585) and 28th in offensive rebounds per game (3.8).
Both Jackson and Carter were also named National Player of the Year candidates for both the Naismith Trophy and the Wade Trophy on Tuesday.
State men's team on TV
The Mississippi State men’s basketball program had two of its non-conference home games picked up by the SEC Network it was announced Tuesday.
The Bulldogs home opener versus Texas State (Nov. 30 – 7 p.m. CT) in addition to the Jackson State matchup (Dec. 8 – 8 p.m. CT) will be carried by SEC Network from Humphrey Coliseum.
Mississippi State’s two remaining home games against North Texas (Dec. 4 – 7 p.m. CT) and Central Arkansas (Dec. 16 – 7 p.m. CT) will be streamed courtesy of SEC Network+.
Humphrey Coliseum capacity set
All men's and women's games at the Humphrey Coliseum this season will allow just 25 percent fan capacity, it was announced on Monday.
All fans will be required to wear a face covering, face shield or mask over the nose and mouth during all times except when eating or drinking while inside Humphrey Coliseum. MSU also plans to implement other physical distancing requirements on the court to create separation between the court area and fans.
There will be a temporary reseating of the arena for the upcoming season. The MSU ticket office is currently working on assigning seats in Bulldog Club rank order.
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