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| INSIDE THE NUMBERS |
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2000-01 record: 27-8;
10-6 in SEC
(2nd/West)
Postseason: Lost to Texas 68-64 in second round of NCAA Midwest Region.
RETURNING LEADERS
Points: Austin 16.0
Rebs: Austin 7.6
Assists: Zimmerman 6.0
FG: Austin 55.7%
3pt: Harper 45.0%
FT: Ignerski 70.5%
01-02 Stats:
Mississippi State | SEC
KEY LOSSES
Mar. Patterson | 12.3 ppg
Michael Gholar | 6.2 ppg
PROJECTED STARTERS
G | D. Zimmerman | Senior
G | Timmy Bowers | Junior
F | Ontario Harper | Soph
F | M. Ignerski | Senior
C | Mario Austin | Junior
Player to Watch
Mario Austin
Junior Forward
Introduced himself to the nation last year by scoring 32 in Bulldogs' victory over Kentucky.
DATE TO REMEMBER
After opening with six scrub opponents, the schedule gets serious. The highlight is this date with Oklahoma in the Sugar Bowl Classic in New Orleans. That should tell the Bulldogs where they stand.
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MISSISSIPPI STATE
BULLDOGS
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The Bulldogs are looking to capitalize on their closing surge of last year, when they rose from obscurity to pile up nine straight victories and win the SEC tournament championship before losing in the NCAA second round to Texas. They have the personnel on hand for an even better run this year. If Erwin Dudley and Mo Williams are the league's best post-point combination down in 'Bama, well Mario Austin and Derrick Zimmerman are right behind. Austin remade his body last year and became the interior force he was expected to be out of high school, averaging 16.1 points and 7.6 rebounds. Zimmerman, perhaps the most underrated player in the SEC, led the league in assists (6.0) and was third in steals (2.1). State's extremely athletic bunch of wing players has been thinned out by the loss of seniors Marckell Patterson and Michael Gholar, but explosive sixth man Timmy Bowers is back after twice leading the Bulldogs in scoring in postseason games. Michael Ignerski, a 6-10 senior, is on hand to help Austin with the interior chores, though he's been a better shooter (37 percent from three-point range) than rebounder (3.6) and could be challenged for playing time by junior-college transfer Branden Vincent.
TOUGH ENOUGH..............................
State had a low profile last year, but unimpeachable statistics. Nobody in the SEC made more two-point field goals (943) or shot a higher percentage from two-point range (.480). State also could not be beaten on the glass (a league-high plus-6.6 rebounding margin) or from 3-point range (opponents shot just 30 percent beyond the arc).
TOUGH ENOUGH?..............................
Without the good hands of Zimmerman, this team is lost. He's the only player on the roster who had more assists than turnovers last year. Clearly, keeping him healthy and out of foul trouble will be a year-long priority. That said, Zimmerman must improve his foul shooting in order to take charge in the closing minutes of close games. Last year he shot just 57.6 percent from the stripe.
BOTTOM LINE..............................
This team now knows how to win at the highest level and brings back a solid nucleus capable of repeating last year's success - and perhaps building upon it. If this group can replicate the defense State played down the stretch last year, holding six of its last eight opponents to less than 60 points, they'll be very tough to beat.
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