I have no concrete proof, but last season may have been the best in Mississippi's basketball history. The state as a whole has almost no tourney experience, with one exception noted below. All of these schools, taken together, have amassed a 17-30 record in the NCAAs. To find a historical record this poor, you'd generally have to go back and re-read the teams below #30 on this list.
But last year's over-.500 statewide record gives us hope, so let's read up and guess which of these teams will make the next deep run into the Big Dance.
2008 Breakdown
State winning percentage: .575
Number of teams: 6
NCAA Tournament teams: Mississippi State, Mississippi Valley State
Conference champions: MVSU (tourney)
Most wins: Ole Miss (24)
Least wins: Alcorn State (7)
Teams with winning records: Ole Miss, Mississippi State, MVSU, Southern Miss.
Teams with single digit wins: Alcorn State
Historical breakdown
Most Memorable Team: Mississippi State 1996. The Bulldogs made it all the way to the Final Four before losing out to Jim Boeheim and the Orangemen. They took down UConn and Cincy along the way. No other team is even close.
Top Player All-Time: Brett Favre! OK, seriously... Alcorn State's Larry Smith was one hell of a rebounder, but the only Mississippi college star to make it into the basketball HOF is Mississippi State's Bailey Howell, who was a first-team All American in 1959 after averaging 27 ppg and 17 rpg over his collegiate career.
Favorite Coach: We have high hopes for this Andy Kennedy fellow at Ole Miss. He's brought in some good players in Oxford, and seems poised to get the Rebs back into the tournament, which they've been estranged from since 2002.
2008 Breakdown
State winning percentage: .575
Number of teams: 6
NCAA Tournament teams: Mississippi State, Mississippi Valley State
Conference champions: MVSU (tourney)
Most wins: Ole Miss (24)
Least wins: Alcorn State (7)
Teams with winning records: Ole Miss, Mississippi State, MVSU, Southern Miss.
Teams with single digit wins: Alcorn State
Historical breakdown
Most Memorable Team: Mississippi State 1996. The Bulldogs made it all the way to the Final Four before losing out to Jim Boeheim and the Orangemen. They took down UConn and Cincy along the way. No other team is even close.
Top Player All-Time: Brett Favre! OK, seriously... Alcorn State's Larry Smith was one hell of a rebounder, but the only Mississippi college star to make it into the basketball HOF is Mississippi State's Bailey Howell, who was a first-team All American in 1959 after averaging 27 ppg and 17 rpg over his collegiate career.
Favorite Coach: We have high hopes for this Andy Kennedy fellow at Ole Miss. He's brought in some good players in Oxford, and seems poised to get the Rebs back into the tournament, which they've been estranged from since 2002.
Best Player Name: Standford Speech, Mississippi Valley State.
Top Player 2008: Chris Warren at Mississippi is our choice. His scoring wasn't through the roof, but if you combine his respectable 15 ppg with his assists and steals, his all-around game looks pretty nice.
Best On-Campus Venue: Um... Humphrey Coliseum?
Best NCAA Venue: Another state, along with South Carolina, that is banned from hosting NCAA tourney games because of their love for the Confederate flag.
Most Prestigious Program (ESPN Style): #86 Mississippi State Bulldogs.
Best Nickname: Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils.
STF’s Favorite Program: We enjoyed Mississippi State last year, so we'll go with the Bulldogs.
[Get Acquainted with the STF State Project Concept]
See right-hand sidebar for previous entries.
Top Player 2008: Chris Warren at Mississippi is our choice. His scoring wasn't through the roof, but if you combine his respectable 15 ppg with his assists and steals, his all-around game looks pretty nice.
Best On-Campus Venue: Um... Humphrey Coliseum?
Best NCAA Venue: Another state, along with South Carolina, that is banned from hosting NCAA tourney games because of their love for the Confederate flag.
Most Prestigious Program (ESPN Style): #86 Mississippi State Bulldogs.
Best Nickname: Mississippi Valley State Delta Devils.
STF’s Favorite Program: We enjoyed Mississippi State last year, so we'll go with the Bulldogs.
[Get Acquainted with the STF State Project Concept]
See right-hand sidebar for previous entries.
2 comments:
Would his name be any funnier if it were Stanfor D. Speech?
Yeah, it actually would be. -1 to his parents for not going the extra mile.
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