College basketball season is right around the corner, and the Mississippi State University men’s basketball team has officially begun preparing for the season as the team started practicing last Monday. But before the season has gotten underway, the team already has seen some controversy. 
Senior guard Jalen Steele opted to leave the program because he needed another year to recover from injury, and there will not be any scholarships available for him next season. But more disappointing, and perhaps an even bigger blow to what the Bulldogs hope to accomplish this season, senior center Wendell Lewis was dismissed from the team last Thursday due to conduct detrimental to the team. This is not a good sign for the Dogs in the aftermath of last season where some players were suspended throughout the year for various team infractions. 
Lewis’s dismissal from the team leaves the Bulldogs thin on the front line. Sophomore Gavin Ware will now be the only true big man on the Bulldogs’ roster this season. After Ware, the only other front line options are combo forwards Colin Borchert and Roquez Johnson. 
The good news for MSU is it had to go through a similar situation last season when Lewis missed the majority of the year due to injury. Ware saw plenty of action last season, averaging 8.4 points and 6.4 rebounds per game and earning SEC All-Freshman team honors.  
Ware said experience from last season and improved conditioning has better prepared him to deal with the challenge of a thin frontcourt this season. 
“It’s the same as last year. We just have to work with what we got. It’s nothing new,” Ware said. “The number one thing I’ve been working on this offseason is my conditioning. Last season, there was speculation that Gavin had to play himself into shape, so this season I wanted to come into the year ready to give my team 100 percent every 40 minutes.” 
Even with the absence of Lewis, head coach Rick Ray said he is confident in his team’s ability to manage in-game situations. 
“It’s a situation where those guys (Ware, Borchert and Johnson) are going to have to man most of the minutes. In most situations, teams typically have three guys manning those two spots,” Ray said. “Our problem would be either, A. if those guys get injured or B. if they get into foul trouble. That’s when you get concerned with what’s behind them. Now, if those guys stay healthy and stay out of foul trouble, then I have every confidence those three guys can man those two spots.” 
One of the biggest positives for MSU as it enters its season are all the healthy bodies available to the team. The Bulldogs have 14 players currently on the roster, which means they will have more depth available to them than last season, where some games they had as few as eight players available to play. 
Sophomore guard Craig Sword said having a deeper roster will help the progress through its  stretch of games. 
“One of the biggest differences in practice this year is that we have more players and that we can practice against each other and make each other better,” Sword said. “Our depth this year means we will have more subs because fatigue and foul trouble was a big issue for us last year.” 
The Bulldogs face another potentially challenging season, but at least this year they will be able to do so with a full roster. The team is still young and many flaws still remain -— most notably in the front court, where there is no player over 6’9”. 
There is plenty of depth, however, on the perimeter, and that could be a strength for the Dogs this season. The MSU men’s basketball team will begin its season in an exhibition game against Auburn-Montgomery on Nov. 3 at 3 p.m. in the Humphrey Coliseum.  
 

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Emma Katherine Hutto

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