Mississippi State women enter Christmas break surging toward March

Mississippi State women are 12-1 and rolling into conference play. A closer look at what’s worked so far.

Mississippi State Forward Madison Francis (#40) and Mississippi State Guard Destiney McPhaul (#2) during the game between the La Salle Explorers and the Mississippi State Bulldogs at John E. Glaser Arena in Philadelphia, PA. | Mississippi State Athletics

The Christmas break most college basketball teams are taking this week is a good time for everyone to take a step back and take stock of the season, so far.

For Mississippi State, that process is probably more enjoyable for the women’s team than it is the men’s team.

Mississippi State women are 12-1 and on an eight-game win streak headed into their Christmas break. The men’s team is 7-5, but will head into the break with some positive vibes thanks to a three-game win streak.

Let’s take a look at each team and where they stand, starting with the Mississippi State women’s team.

Big Picture

The Bulldogs are in a good spot, as far as postseason goals are concerned. They’re firmly within the field of 68 teams for the NCAA Tournament.

“I've had several fans either grab me at the grocery store or email me, saying they're enjoying watching team basketball, not just one individual going one-on-one,” Bulldogs’ coach Sam Purcell said after last week's win against Alabama State. “That's what I'm trying to tell my young women, that you got an opportunity here to put on a show with a fan base that will support you like no other come SEC play.”

Mississippi State is ranked No. 36 in the NCAA Women’s Basketball NET Rankings. Here’s the Bulldogs NET ranking breakdown:

• Overall: 12-1
• Road: 1-1
• Neutral: 2-0
• Home: 9-0
• Q1: 0-1
• Q2: 1-0
• Q3: 0-0
• Q4: 11-0

Easy Schedule

The Bulldogs only loss was on the road against Texas Tech, 69-62. The biggest problem with that loss is it’s the only school that plays in a Power 4 conference. Their two closest games were in the season-opener against Davidson (66-57) and Louisiana-Monroe (66-54).

Mississippi State hasn’t had the toughest schedule, but that’ll change soon when SEC play starts on January 1. But if you consider only two current players were on last season’s roster, the Bulldogs needed that time to gel.

There have been some great revelations and players beginning to make a name for themselves.

Player Highlights

Favour Nwaedozi is the leader of that group. The first-year Bulldog from Nishinomiya, Japan is averaging a double-double, so far, with 13.5 points per game and 10.8 rebounds per game.

Another highlight is freshman Madison Francis with a nation’s best 41 blocks, along with 12.4 ppg and 6.4 rpg.

The two returning Bulldogs are also playing big roles this season. Destiney McPhaul is averaging almost 30 minutes a game and is averaging 12.4 ppg and 3.6 assists per game. Chandler Prater is close to averaging a double-double with 10.5 ppg and 7.0 rpg.

Next Up

After the Christmas break, the Bulldogs will have just one more non-conference game before facing Auburn on New Year’s Day. That final non-conference game will be against Samford at 2 p.m. Sunday on SECN+.