STARKVILLE — Vic Schaefer has said several times in the preseason that it would take at least 21 straight days for his Mississippi State University women’s basketball team to develop habits.
At 7 tonight, after 21 days of practice, Schaefer will get a chance to see how many of the tendencies his team has been working on have taken hold when it plays host to Division II Shorter in an exhibition game at Humphrey Coliseum.
“These kids are hungry, they want to please, and when they experience success it is really going to open their eyes to a whole different thing because none of these players has been the ‘it’ player,” said Schaefer, a longtime assistant coach at the University of Arkansas and Texas A&M University. “This year, we are looking for kids who can be the first, second, or the third option. None of the 11 on scholarship have been that yet. That is the exciting part, and the fun part for us as a staff is finding those young people and developing them.”
MSU is coming off a 14-16 season that was the last for head coach Sharon Fanning-Otis. Schaefer was hired in March after playing a key role in building Texas A&M into a national power. The Aggies won the national championship in 2011.
Schaefer’s job at MSU will be similar to the one he undertook with head coach Gary Blair at Texas A&M. While MSU advanced to the Sweet 16 of the NCAA tournament in 2010, it has had back-to-back losing seasons. Schaefer, whose nickname is the “Secretary of Defense”, aims to change that trend with a hard-nosed, aggressive defense and an offense that feeds off that defense. With only two starters — sophomores Kendra Grant and Martha Alwal — returning, Schaefer knows the process will take time. But Thursday at the women’s basketball team’s media day, Schaefer said he has liked what he has seen from his players in practice and that he is confident they will be able to compete if they play with the intensity and passion he and his coaches want.
“When we can start piecing and putting those together, two, three, four together, that’s when you’re making progress,” Schaefer said. “The thing about a young, inexperienced team is it hard for them because of their lack of maturity. When you have a young team like we have, that maturity level and the ability to stack good days is hard. We’re trying to stack back to back to back to develop whatever you’re doing.”
Guard Darriel Gaynor, the only senior on the team, said the Lady Bulldogs have developed a handful of new habits working with Schaefer. Not surprisingly, many of them are related to defense.
“Defensively, our habits are ball pressure, ball pressure, ball pressure,” Gaynor said. “We’re focusing a lot on help the help and back-side defense. Offensively, (we’re focusing on) being aggressive and attacking the basket.”
Sophomore Jerica James, who will compete for playing time at point guard with junior Katia May, said those aren’t the only habits MSU has learned.
“We have gained the habit of working hard continuously, the habit of being consistent, the habit of being motivated for each other to keep the spirits up so we continue to play hard like we should,” James said.
James also smiled when asked if she and her teammates had picked up another habit: Running Mount Schaefer, the steps inside Humphrey Coliseum. Schaefer has held the players accountable by having them run the stadium steps after they commit a turnover in practice. All of the players who talked to members of the media Thursday said the conditioning has helped the Lady Bulldogs work into great shape. They said that conditioning should help them step up the pressure on defense and get out and run.
If that turns out to be the first habit MSU learns, Schaefer will smile because it will play into his defensive mind-set.
“If you work hard, he is your best friend,” James said of Schaefer. “Once you’re slacking, he can become your enemy. I believe the ladies and I have learned his process and what he expects out of us.”
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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