In a 1994 movie, a good-natured group of troublemaking kids traveled to Los Angeles to play hockey in the Olympic Junior Goodwill Games. They were the Mighty Ducks. Under the guidance of coach Gordon Bombay and leadership of team captain Charlie Conway, the Ducks had a solid resume and came into the Goodwill Games as one of the favorites to win.
However, the Ducks ran into a problem early in the games. They were barely winning games against inferior opponents, and got crushed by teams only marginally better than them. The Ducks had no chemistry. The players weren’t responding to Coach Bombay, they were ignoring their studies and, worst of all, they let all the publicity go to their heads. They got too caught up in expectations and thought they were unbeatable. In short, the Mighty Ducks lost their identity, and their chances of winning the Goodwill Games were dwindling.
Luckily for the Ducks, a group of inner city kids challenged them to a game of street hockey. When the Ducks got pushed around by these street-smart teenagers, they started to remember what they had known for so long. They had to work together, play to their strengths and be true to themselves. They got rid of the flashy Hollywood attitude, and went on to win the Games, then sang, “We are the Champions” around the campfire.
The Bulldogs are suffering from the same thing that ailed the Ducks: an identity crisis.
When Mississippi State won 12 out of 13 games after losing to Richmond, they did it with tough defense, up-tempo transition offense and consistent three-point shooting, along with smart decision making.
Since starting 3-0 in the SEC, the Dawgs are 1-4 in conference play, due in large part to no offensive consistency. MSU averaged 78 points per game in those three opening victories. In the four losses since, they are averaging 63 points per contest. In tough SEC games, 15 points is more than enough to sway the outcome of the contest.
The problem is the Bulldogs are not making good decisions. It’s the same players out there who won nine straight games in December and scored all those points. It’s the same coach (Rick Stansbury, not Bombay) who has won so many SEC West titles, but the players have lost their identity. They seem to have become too wrapped up in being a three-point shooting team. Instead of waiting for a good shot, the first guard who gets the ball decides to send up a jumper, typically with the same result.
The result is teams just put their defense all along the perimeter to make sure every shot the Dawgs take is contested, and then block out and get the rebound.
At the end of the non-conference schedule, the Bulldogs led the SEC in 3-point shooting percentage. In the last five games, the Dawgs have shot 2-18, 5-26, 7-22, 9-34 and 8-23 from beyond the arc. That’s a combined 31-123, which is a pretty high number of treys.
For comparison, MSU shot 10-22 and 8-17 from downtown in the wins over Ole Miss and Alabama, just under 50 percent for both games.
This team is at its best when Jarvis Varnado and Barry Stewart play the brand of stingy defense they do so well – and have been doing. They click when they use their athleticism to create fast break points, mismatches and open shots. They thrive when Dee Bost turns into “Jamont Gordon junior,” driving the lane and drawing fouls on acrobatic layups that somehow find their way into the bottom of the net. They excel when Ravern Johnson waits for the right shot, when Phil Turner hits the big shot and when Kodi Augustus makes his shots. However, the trend now only features the stingy defense from the reliable seniors.
It’s easy to go ahead and declare it a lost season for the Bulldogs, but it has not reached that point. If this team can find their identity and play their brand of basketball, they can turn this slump around. Players and teams go through hot streaks and dry spells, but when the end of the season comes, the teams with talent begin to show themselves. The Dawgs have talent, and have proven they have the ability to play well and win big games. Stansbury has showed time and again he can right the ship, be it with a division title or SEC tournament championship. The end may be near, but it is not here. Give these Bulldogs a fighting chance.