Josh Hubbard continues to be scoring threat for Chris Jans, Mississippi State basketball

Josh Hubbard is in the midst of a thrilling freshman season. While the Mississippi State men's basketball team hasn't brought him into the starting lineup yet, head coach Chris Jans views Hubbard as a vital part of this roster.

And for good reason! Hubbard is one of the leading scorers from the Bulldogs and he's a consistent threat. Even if he isn't the most efficient scorer ever, Hubbard has been solid for the Bulldogs. In Mississippi State's loss to the Florida Gators, Hubbard led all scorers in the game with 26 points.

And Jans is no longer looking at the freshman as if he's just a freshman. Hubbard has shown he's ready to perform at a high level on a regular basis.

Josh Hubbard takes reins as reliable scoring threat for Chris Jans and Mississippi State basketball

Following the loss to the Florida Gators, when Jans was asked about how Hubbard was performing, Jans made it clear the young guard is now bringing what is essentially a veteran presence to his Mississippi State basketball team.

“Yeah, we don’t look at him like a freshman anymore," Jans said. "We rely on him at this point. He had 26 [points], but he had to take a lot of shots to get there. We were in a position where him taking a contested three is maybe our best option at times."

Jans has made it clear that Hubbard become a leader for the Bulldogs. And even if his 5-for-17 shooting from behind the three point line wasn't anywhere near as efficient as anyone wanted, it's clear that Hubbard can still be a spark for this team.

"It’s no fault of his where he was put in a position where we were trying to get him to get shots and try to give us a chance to get back in the game," Jans said.

And it's not the worst thing ever for an aggressive shooter to continue to shoot. Even if he's missing shots. When nobody else is scoring, maybe give the young guy chances to grow and prove what he's capable of.

Credit to Jans for doing just that.

As Mississippi State basketball's head coach continued his praise, Jans suggested that Hubbard might just possess a pretty uncommon amount of poise for his age.

"Josh doesn’t get fazed by too much, and hopefully he’ll continue to play well for us.”

I'm all on board with that sentiment. Hubbard is playing well and he's confident, even in less-than-ideal circumestances. I'm all on board with him continuing to play well for the Bulldogs. How can we make that happen? Let's make that happen.