Mississippi State Basketball Gets No. 16 Ranking from CBS Sports for 2018-2019
By Ethan Lee
CBS Sports New Offseason Rankings Have the Mississippi State Basketball Team at No. 16
Mississippi State basketball is receiving some love as the Bulldogs recover from the end of this season.After Villanova defeated Michigan last night in the NCAA Men’s Tournament championship, it’s naturally time for news outlets to start their offseason coverage.
That includes ranking teams for next season. As such, we’ll get folks over at CBS Sports measuring up which teams they expect to contend next year based off of who returns, who is leaving, and who is joining each team.
In those rankings done by CBS Sports’ Gary Parrish, many Bulldogs will find a pleasant surprise. Mississippi State Basketball is ranked at 16 nationally. Among SEC teams, MSU is 4th on the list. Auburn, Tennessee, and Kentucky are ranked 4th through 6th.
One reason that Mississippi State is getting this attention is the Bulldogs run through the NIT. It ended poorly, but the fact is, MSU beat Nebraska, Baylor, and Louisville in notable fashion this year. Wins like that get a ton of attention nationally.
Check out the full rankings here.
Mississippi State Basketball Shouldn’t Lose Any Contributors
On top of that, Ben Howland is bringing back every major contributor for next season. That’s barring anything unforeseen at the moment.
In addition to bringing everyone back, another year of maturity will help Mississippi State’s young players. MSU’s third leading scorer, Nick Weatherspoon, was only a freshman this season. Abdul Ado has a ton of growth still to be done, and he has a ton of potential there for him.
Quinndary Weatherspoon and Aric Holman, MSU’s leaders, are just now becoming seniors. Xavian Stapleton, also a junior, will get an offseason to get his role on this team to be more defined. Tyson Carter and Lamar Peters are both sophomores. Both contributed in major ways this year.
And of course, Mississippi State is bringing in a ton of talent to help supplement what the Bulldogs have already. When that talent arrives, MSU will certainly welcome those players with open arms.
Next: What's Next For Mississippi State?
There are reasons for MSU fans to be excited about this team. Ben Howland and the Bulldogs are trending upward. Mississippi State will make some noise next season. Here’s to hoping that the Bulldogs can compete at a high level next year.