STARKVILLE — Malik Newman and Quinndary Weatherspoon are making a huge impact.
The Mississippi State freshmen were expected to be impact players from the beginning, but, like many freshmen, they endured their struggles.
In Southeastern Conference play, though, Newman and Weatherspoon have combined to average 27 points per game. They hope to continue that play at 6 tonight (SEC Network) when MSU (8-10, 1-5 SEC) takes on South Carolina (17-2, 4-2) at Colonial Life Arena in Columbia, South Carolina.
“The freshmen have grown up,” South Carolina coach Frank Martin said. “They’re 20 games into their freshman season. They understand college better, they understand Ben better, Ben understands them better.”
Newman is averaging 13.4 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 2.2 steals. The five-star guard and McDonald’s All-American from Jackson Callaway High School faced huge expectations when he arrived at MSU. Many expected Newman to take over the team, but a turf toe injury in the preseason caused him to miss the team’s exhibition game and the season-opening win against Eastern Washington.
“I thought he’s handled it well,” MSU first-year coach Ben Howland said. “It’s tough. There’s so much expectations on a kid like Malik who comes in as one of the top players out of high school from the previous year. He was playing catchup for the first month. I think he’s really settling in now and he’s doing a good job.”
Newman has scored in double digits 12 times, but he hadn’t taken over a game over a game until Saturday, when he scored a career-high 25 points in an 83-77 victory against Ole Miss at Humphrey Coliseum. Newman made seven 3-pointers, the second most in school history, to help the Bulldogs give Howland his first SEC victory.
“He let the game come to him, didn’t force the issue, didn’t force it offensively,” Howland said. “He’s getting better and better defensively, which is exciting. I thought he made some really good plays distributing the ball, making the extra pass to his teammates. He had a very good all around game.”
MSU junior point guard I.J. Ready said early in the season that Weatherspoon was the most complete freshman on the team. Weatherspoon has showcased his skills since being inserted into the starting lineup. After starting two games in non-conference play, Weatherspoon has started against Tennessee, Florida, and Ole Miss. He is averaging a little more than 18 points per game. He had a career-high 23 points against Tennessee.
“It all starts with his practice habits,” Howland said. “He brings it every day. He plays so hard and has toughness. We’re asking him to do things that would be hard for most freshmen to handle. I’m asking him to play power forward in our offense and defense at 6-4. He’s really a two-guard. His toughness and his competitiveness and his willingness to help the team in anyway he can is just so impressive to me.”
Weatherspoon, who is averaging 9.9 points per game, has been more aggressive since becoming a starter, but Howland said that is nothing new for the former Velma Jackson High standout.
“He’s been aggressive for a while because he was on the second team in practice,” Howland said. “He was the one player that was really, really aggressive every day and had some incredible days of running that group. I think that’s kind of carried over and now he’s playing with the first team.”
Although the freshmen have played well, Howland said seniors Gavin Ware (16.2 ppg.), Craig Sword (12.7), and Fred Thomas (5.1) are the heart and soul of the team. All three have played valuable minutes since their freshman seasons.
Martin, whose team slipped from The Associated Press rankings after a loss to Tennessee on Saturday, said the Bulldogs have learned to mix the old and the new and have become more comfortable.
“When you’ve got a group of upperclassmen that all know one another and you’re trying to involve two younger guys that are trying to figure all that out, it takes a little time to make it work,” Martin said. “There’s not doubt Ben and his team are making it work.”
Ware hopes Newman and Weatherspoon will continue to produce like they did against Ole Miss, when they combined for 43 points. He said he was surprised by how well Newman and Weatherspoon handled the pressure of a rivalry game, and believes their strong play will keep the team going in the right direction.
“Some freshman kind of freeze up, but these guys showed what they can bring to the table as far as being a part of Mississippi State basketball,” Ware said.
Follow Dispatch sports writer Ben Wait on Twitter @bcwait
Ben Wait reports on Mississippi State University sports for The Dispatch.
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