There is an old Southern adage often used when all facets of a given entity are running smoothly: If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.Unfortunately for Bulldog basketball head coach Rick Stansbury, he and his team don’t really have a choice as to when they can take breaks between games.
After seizing convincing victories in their previous two games against the Alabama Crimson Tide and the Auburn Tigers, the Bulldogs (16-7, 7-2 SEC) entered a lull in the conference schedule on Wednesday by not having a mid-week game.
Although he would have preferred his team continue competing to maintain its momentum, he recognizes the value of having a break in the schedule.
“I don’t mind it this time of the year since we have seven games left,” Stansbury said Monday during a teleconference.
“Physically and mentally, it’s a good time to have it.”
The Bulldogs made good use of their time away from competitive action by preparing for the next game against the Arkansas Razorbacks (17-6, 6-3 SEC).
“It’s good to get some rest coming up on the stretch we’re about to be on,” sophomore guard Barry Stewart said.
That stretch will begin with a crucial game against the Razorbacks, which will be played Saturday at 3 p.m. at Humphrey Coliseum.
It’s described as a crucial one because of the implications for both teams in regard to the standings in the SEC Western Division.
The Razorbacks have been near the top of the division during the past month and combine with the Bulldogs to become the only teams in the division with a winning record during conference games.
If the Mississippi State squad can defeat Arkansas on Saturday, the Bulldogs will have a distinct advantage with a sizable division lead as the season begins to wind down.
But defeating the Razorbacks is a task that is far easier said than done.
Mississippi State traveled to Fayetteville on Jan. 30 for the first clash of the season between the two teams and suffered a 78-58 loss. That 20-point setback was the worst of the season for the Bulldogs.
A natural inclination would be to assume that the loss in Bud Walton Arena is a key motivational tool for the Bulldogs as they get ready to face the team again, but Stewart said that isn’t the case.
In fact, he said he’d rather not dwell on it.
“The main thing is that you can’t think about that,” the Shelbyville, Tenn. native said. “You’ve just got to go out there and play hard.”
In the previous loss, which was the team’s first 20-point loss since a game against South Carolina on February 2006, the Bulldogs took an early 11-7 lead early in the contest.
But that lead soon evaporated due to three consecutive 3-pointers from Arkansas senior forward Sonny Weems, who finished the game with a team-high 22 points.
Weems then struck again in the second half when the Bulldogs had chipped away at Arkansas’s 43-28 halftime lead and cut it down to seven points.
That is when he made his presence felt again by sinking a two-point jump shot and another 3-pointer – one of five that he scored in the contest – to end what would be Mississippi State’s last threat in the game.
Stewart acknowledged Weems’ talent and said he knows the team will have to work hard to contain him.
“He’s a good player,” he said. “He’s been hitting a lot of shots against a lot of teams lately. He can take it off the dribble, he can shoot it and he has a lot of size so he is tough to guard.”
There’s no doubt Weems and his Razorback cohorts will be hoping to emulate their victory earlier in the season.
And of course Mississippi State will also be looking for that win to widen the gap in the SEC Western Division.
But Stansbury stressed that the previous match-up between the two teams won’t be the prominent motivation for the Bulldogs.
“It won’t be a revenge factor from a margin of victory,” the tenth-year coach said. “It will just be important because it’s our next game against a very good Arkansas team.