STARKVILLE — Jerica James learned accountability as a sophomore.
If she or point guard mate Katia May turned the ball over in practice, first-year Mississippi State women’s basketball coach Vic Schaefer sent them off to scale “Mount Schaefer,” also known as the steps inside Humphrey Coliseum.
James’ education continued last season as she and May played integral roles in helping MSU return to the postseason after a three-year absence. The Bulldogs accomplished that feat thanks in part to May’s ability to go from a -31 differential in assists to turnovers to a +66 differential. James did her part, too, going from a -9 as a sophomore to a +37.
A year later, James is learning how to “value” the basketball even more as a senior. Her success through eight games is one reason why MSU is undefeated and has climbed to No. 22 in this week’s The Associated Press rankings.
“When (Schaefer) says ‘value the ball,’ I have an understanding that if we don’t turn it over, that is more possessions for us,” James said, “meaning there are more opportunities for my teammates to score, which allows us to put up those big numbers.”
James’ statistics aren’t eye-popping (6.1 points, 4.1 assists, 1.6 rebounds per game), but her ability to lead the team and to work well with freshman point guard Morgan William has MSU (8-0) leading the Southeastern Conference (fourth nationally) in scoring (90.4 points per game).
MSU will look to continue to its high scoring and winning ways at 7 tonight when it plays host to Louisiana Tech (3-3) at Humphrey Coliseum. The game can be seen on SEC Network + and heard locally on WKBB-FM 100.9.
Schaefer has stressed the importance of solid point guard play ever since he arrived at MSU for his first season in 2012-13. With Schaefer and assistant coach Aqua Franklin, a former point guard for Schaefer at Texas A&M, focusing on the point guards, MSU committed 603 turnovers and had 334 assists. Last season, the Bulldogs committed 583 turnovers and had 503 assists. As a result, MSU went from 13 wins in Schaefer’s first season to 22-14 last season and a trip to the quarterfinals of the Women’s National Invitation Tournament.
This season, Schaefer again has stressed James, a senior, and William need to take care of the basketball and dictate tempo on defense if the Bulldogs are going to be successful. So far, Schaefer has liked what he has seen from his point guards. He feels James has a greater understanding of what she needs to do to help the team be successful.
“Aqua has done a great job with (James),” Schaefer said. “Valuing the basketball is something that sometimes can get lost, especially with the way we play. I don’t think our kids have lost the importance of that. It starts with point play. Kendra, JJ, and Martha, of those three, and we all know where Martha (a first-team All-SEC performer last season) is as far as how good she is and the accolades, but JJ has improved just as much in her own way. I think she has learned through the school of hard knocks sometimes that you have to play this way and you can’t do this and you have to do that.”
James’ shooting also has seen a marked improvement from her first two seasons, when she shot 29.1 and 26.6 percent from the field. Last season, she improved to 34.5 percent from the field (35.6 percent from 3-point range) and averaged a career-best 5.2 ppg.
This season, James is shooting 44.7 percent (17 of 38) from the field and is 7 of 15 (46.7) from 3-point range. She also has a 3-to-1 ratio of assists-to-turnovers (33-to-11) and has 14 assists vs. two turnovers in the past three games.
James said she has worked on her own to improve her shooting and isn’t surprised how much her statistics have improved.
“Like I have said once before, once I get the open shot, I have to be able to knock it down,” James said. “We don’t get many shots, considering I do have shooters now, so when I do get an open shot I have to make it.”
Schaefer said he has the confidence in James to hit open shots. On Wednesday, he said there were a couple of times in a 97-36 victory against Southeastern Louisiana on Sunday that she passed up shots and tried to find her teammates. He said James is a good enough shooter that he wants her to take those shots. She had six points on 2-of-5 shooting with a career-high seven assists against Southeastern Louisiana.
“Part of it is understanding her value to our team and her getting in the gym and working a little bit on her shooting,” Schaefer said. “When you have a good skill set, you have confidence. I think she is a lot more confident in her senior year.”
James understands defenses might play her and the Bulldogs differently once they get into the SEC. She said she will be ready to shoot the basketball and to prove she can hit shots if left open.
Schaefer also feels William has made James even better. He said both players run the team in different ways. William is the quicker of the two and is more apt to break defenses down off the dribble, while James is more experienced and knows how to pick her spots and to make things click in half-court sets.
The marriage of James and William has worked well. James is averaging 16.4 minutes, while William is logging 21.9 per game. The division of labor helps both players stay fresh and focused on how important it is for them to value the basketball.
“If they leave me open, I am going to take the shot,” James said. “I have confidence in my teammates down low to get the rebound if it is a miss. That will change (once we get to SEC play) because I want them to respect my shooting game and not play off me.
“I will play to the best of my ability, just like I have done in the previous games. I am going to try to be consistent with it. I can’t say I won’t make those turnovers, but if I do, I will straighten up pretty quickly. I am going to try to keep that ‘value-the-ball’ mind-set.”
Follow Dispatch sports editor Adam Minichino on Twitter @ctsportseditor
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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