(Editor's note: Mississippi State sophomore LaToya Thomas, who led the SEC in scoring last season en route to landing a spot on the Kodak All-American team, will share a weekly diary with ESPN.com throughout the season.)

Nov. 14, 2000

	Thomas

I am excited to be writing for ESPN.com this season. And I am even more excited for the season to start. I am anxious to get out on the court. I absolutely love the game of basketball and my favorite part is playing the games with my team.

We have been practicing for almost a month now and I am ready to get out on the floor in front of our fans. We have a lot of fans who are excited about our season this year and I am looking forward to getting it started.

One of the things I like about playing basketball in college is all the traveling we do. I enjoy playing cards with my teammate Keisha "Pooky" Stringfellow on the bus. So I am looking forward to starting the regular season next week at Memphis and then traveling to New Mexico for Thanksgiving.

This summer, I stayed in Starkville to go to summer school. I really enjoyed being here. We lifted everyday and I played pick-up at the Sanderson Center which is Mississippi State's student rec center. I went home every weekend in the summer, mostly because I don't get a chance to go home during the season.

I was glad when fall finally got here because football and the other fall sports started. My teammates and I go to all of the home football games. It has been an exciting year for the Bulldogs in football. They are ranked in the top-15 nationally. There are a bunch of guys that are from the Mississippi Delta like me. Ellis Wyms, Dorrsett Davis, Toby Golliday, Derrick Thompson and Michael Fair are some of the regulars on the team who come from my part of the state. Kenric Fairchild is another starter from the Delta and he is actually from my hometown. It is fun to watch people who come from the same background as me.

We went to a lot of soccer and volleyball games, too. We go to support the other athletes and to have fun and cheer. We try to get to a lot of the men's basketball games, as well, but that is harder depending on our schedule. We even go to the track meets and stuff in the spring.

The one part I don't like about the fall is how busy I have become. Monday, Wednesday, Friday, I go to class from 8 a.m. until noon. I have to pick up my lunch before my 11 and then eat it on the way to practice because we have to be on the floor ready to go at 12:30 most days.

I like Tuesdays and Thursdays because I get to sleep in until 10 a.m. because my first class isn't until 11. I still have to pick up my lunch before that and eat it on the way to practice, though.

We still lift two days a week as well. Richard Akins is our strength and conditioning coach and is real tough. He's like your mamma and daddy put together. He hardly ever gives us a break but that's good because you need the discipline later in life.

That's one of the differences between playing basketball in high school and college. I enjoyed playing in high school because I just played. College is more intense, especially playing in the SEC. I still enjoy it and look forward to playing every game.

This year has been a little easier than last year because I know what to expect. Being back in school is easier than last year because I know what to do and where to go. Basketball has been easier, too, because there aren't any surprises. I know what it takes to play on a team in the SEC and how much hard work is involved.

This year's team is a great team, but we are young. We lost a lot of veterans and a lot of leadership from last year. We are working together well now, but we'll see where we stand when we start playing the regular season.

Peace - Toya