It has not been pretty, but Rick Stansbury finds his club 3-0 in SEC play and 15-3 overall going into Saturday’s game against an Alabama team which has lost three consecutive games.
Saturday, the Bulldogs erased a 13-point deficit in the last five minutes of play to beat Georgia by 2, and last Thursday they nearly blew a 19-point lead against Arkansas.
MSU moved back into the Associated Press Top 25 this week for the first time since losing the season-opener to Rider. The Bulldogs are ranked no. 23 in the poll, but Jarvis Varnado said the team performs better when left on the outside.
“I kinda wish we weren’t ranked, because every time we get ranked we always lose,” Varnado said. “It’s a huge accomplishment but we can’t be getting too caught up in that.”
The Crimson Tide is 11-7 on the season, and have a quality non-conference win over Michigan, but have been struggling lately. After routing LSU to start the SEC schedule, Alabama has lost three games in a row to Vanderbilt, Arkansas and Tennessee.
Sophomore point guard Dee Bost is averaging 20 points, 6.3 assists and 4.3 rebounds in three SEC games. Bost said the week off was important as the team prepares for the final 13 SEC games.
“That break did me some good,” Bost said. “Probably won’t have another one of those for the rest of the year. Everybody is resting their bodies trying to get ready to play Saturday.”
Jarvis Varnado was named SEC player of the week on Monday after averaging 15.5 points, 13 rebounds and 8 blocks in the wins over Arkansas and Georgia.
Saturday’s trip to Tuscaloosa will be the Bulldogs’ first road trip since they traveled north and defeated Ole Miss Jan. 9.
Despite Alabama’s 1-4 SEC record, Varnado said he does not look at Saturday’s game as an easy win.
“It’s always hard to win at Alabama, so you gotta come out ready to play and focused,” he said.
The Crimson Tide is led offensively by senior guard Mikhail Torrance and sophomore forward JaMychal Green. Torrance averages 15.9 points per game, while Green is one behind at 14.9 points per game. Stansbury said he expects Green to be a major threat on both ends.
“Green is a load,” Stansbury said. “He’s big and strong, can really score around that block, but he can also step out and shoot the ball.”
Alabama head coach Anthony Grant spoke about MSU on Monday’s SEC Coaches Teleconference, and said he was impressed with the team Stansbury has put together.
“I think they’re explosive on the offensive end, and then you look from a defensive standpoint they have a game changer in Varnado,” Grant said. “Very athletic, very deep team.”
Saturday’s game will tip off at 11 a.m. and will be televised on CBS.
If the Bulldogs win, it will be only their third 4-0 start to SEC play since divisional play started in the 1991-1992 season.