Mississippi State women continue preparing for upcoming SEC games

The Bulldogs have just three nonconference games before conference games start with Alabama State coming to Starkville next.

Mississippi State Center Rocío Jiménez (#13), Mississippi State Forward Favour Nwaedozi (#25) and Mississippi State Forward Nataliyah Gray (#22) during the game between the Southern Miss Golden Eagles and the Mississippi State Bulldogs at Humphrey Coliseum in Starkville, MS. | Mississippi State Athletics

The start of SEC women’s basketball games is coming up in a little more than two weeks. That means some of the best teams in the nation are going to faceoff.

Also, teams trying to fight their way into upper tier of college teams will be facing those teams.

Mississippi State falls into the category of teams fighting to move up.

“When you start predicting what's to come in the SEC this year, I think it's going to be the hardest year in the league,” Bulldogs’ coach Sam Purcell said Tuesday. “Worst team in the SEC right now has three losses. I was just looking at the net rankings before I came down here. All 16 of us are in the top 100 in net rankings. So, you're looking at games night-in and night-out. They're going to be five-point games in absolute battles.”

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The Bulldogs won their 10th game of the season, and sixth-straight, Sunday against Southern Miss. But they remain unranked in the latest AP top 25 rankings. However, they would be in the NCAA Tournament if the field was set today.

In the latest NCAA women’s bracketology by ESPN’s Charlie Creme, the Bulldogs were a No. 9-seed in the Sacramento Region and one of 11 SEC teams in the tournament. Based on this bracket, Mississippi State would face Stanford in a first round tournament game.

The Bulldogs will have their opportunities to join the top 25 rankings and move up in the tournament seeding soon. They have just three games left before starting SEC play against Auburn on January 1.

“If you control the boards and you limit turnovers, you're going to have a fighter's chance,” Purcell said. “So that's what I'm trying to really hone in on these three games that we have so it can get us ready come opening day against Auburn.”

First up will be a matchup against Alabama State on Wednesday. Here’s everything to know to follow all the action:

How to Watch: Alabama State at Mississippi State

• Who: Alabama State Hornets (3-6) at Mississippi State Bulldogs (10-1)
• When: 6:30 p.m., Wednesday
• Where: Humphrey Coliseum, Starkville, Miss.
• TV: SECN+
• Radio: Live Radio
• Stats: Live Stats
• Series History: Mississippi State leads the all-time series 7-0
• Last Meeting: Mississippi State 83, Alabama State 29 (2024)
• Last time out, Bulldogs: def. Southern Miss, 87-64
• Last time out, Hornets: def. South Carolina State, 59-53