Sometimes, things just don’t go as planned.
Rick Stansbury and the Dawgs had to have envisioned things going differently when this season’s schedule was finalized. The team was planning on surviving the early portion of the schedule until the arrival of Renardo Sidney and the return of Dee Bost.
In order to get both players back in time for important games, the Dawgs created a schedule that raised eyebrows to say the least.
The Bulldogs seemed to be handling the absence of their star players well. Through the first five games, the Dawgs were 4-1 and saw excellent play from senior forward Ravern Johnson and the supporting cast.
The next part of the schedule featured a stretch that saw the Bulldogs take to the court for five games in five days. During the marathon the Dawgs dropped the opener but rallied to end up with a 7-2 record on the season before hitting the craziest part of the campaign.
The next stretch of schedule became a trip with which only a Griswold could sympathize. From free throws to fistfights, this trip would have it all.
It started with a few days at Paradise Island in the Bahamas where the Bulldogs began to struggle.
A Dec. 18 showdown with Virginia Tech would be the long-awaited MSU debut for Renardo Sidney. The day ended in disappointment for the Maroon and White as the Hokies from Virginia Tech cruised to a 31-point victory. It was the first setback in a trip that would only get worse for the Dawgs.
From the Bahamas the team hopped on a plane to Hawaii for the next leg of a seemingly never-ending journey. The Bulldogs faced stiff competition in the Diamond Head Classic Tournament and came out with a 1-2 record, losing to Washington State and Hawaii.
The lone bright spot was a victory over San Diego in which the Dawgs held the Toreros to 52 points.
While in Hawaii, things really went south for the Dawgs off the court as well, as Rick Stansbury handed out three player suspensions.
The first went to Renardo Sidney, who after playing in his first game a few days earlier, had an “outburst” at practice and was forced to sit the next game.
The next off-the-court issue occurred Dec. 23 after the win against San Diego. This incident, however, was a bit more high profile, as Sidney and Elgin Bailey got into a fight while watching another game in the stands at the tournament. To add to the problem was the fact that the entire altercation was caught on video by ESPNand became the leading topic on “Sportscenter” the next morning.
Both players were sent home from Hawaii and suspended indefinitely.
In the aftermath of the brawl, the team limped into its final game of the road trip: a matchup with St. Mary’s in Las Vegas.
The Dawgs were short handed after the suspensions of two post players and were overmatched by the Gaels by a score of 94-72.
After returning from the odyssey, there were decisions to be made by the coaching staff about the future of Sidney and  Bailey.
In the end, Bailey decided to leave the program, while Sidney was immediately reinstated.
A few days later the news came out that junior guard Twany Beckham would also be leaving the program.
To recap, the non-conference schedule for the Bulldogs brought about an 8-6 record and the transfer of two players.
Rick Stansbury and the Dawgs have made the best of these situations before and will be forced to play nearly flawless basketball the rest of the season in order to have a shot at the NCAA tournament.
If things go less than great and the Bulldogs don’t get a shot at March Madness, the hype surrounding this basketball team could have all been for naught.
As for the rest of the season, we will just have to wait and see, because to quote Clark Griswold, “Getting there is half the fun.”