STARKVILLE — Lamar Peters’ week didn’t start on a strong note.
The Mississippi State freshman guard overslept for a 6 p.m. game against Northwestern State on Monday. MSU coach Ben Howland sent a manager to Peters’ dorm and when the manager informed him Peters had overslept, Howland told the manager to tell Peters not to show up to the gym. It was the second time Peters was suspended for a game. He missed the game against Central Florida on Nov. 17 for undisclosed reasons.
But Peters isn’t going to let those suspensions define him.
On Sunday, Peters showed what he can do when he comes to play by scoring a career-high 24 points to help MSU dismantle Georgia State 82-60 at Humphrey Coliseum.
“I just wanted to work hard,” said Peters, who was 9 of 12 from the field, including 6 of 9 from 3-point range. “I knew I owed it to my team to come out and show those guys I’m a team player. That was kind of selfish of me oversleeping, so I just wanted to be a good team player.”
On Monday, Howland said Peters oversleeping was “embarrassing,” and wasn’t pleased with the New Orleans, Louisiana, native. But he said Peters responded Wednesday in practice and gave good effort.
“You can see what he’s capable of when he’s locked in, and he’s going to keep getting better,” Howland said. “It’s all about having a great attitude and being positive and being coachable and listening. He’s got a lot of high level ability.
“When he gets his adrenaline going, his shot becomes better because he gets more lift out of his legs. He has a lot of confidence. He’s not lacking believing in himself.”
Howland said Peters had a “great floor game” with six rebounds, four assists, and one turnover in 26 minutes.
In his first game back, Peters scored 10 points in 15 minutes Thursday in a 74-57 victory against Oregon State.
As a senior at Landry-Walker High School, Peters made 12 3-pointers against Chalmette and 10 in a 67-61 victory against University High in the AllState Sugar Bowl National Prep Classic.
In his first five games this season, Peters was 9 of 20 from 3-point range. He said he made more 3-pointers in pre-game warmups than he missed and he felt good about his shot entering the game.
“I just wanted to go out and let the game come to me and when I got my open shots, just take my time and knock them down,” Peters said. “I was just listening to coach Howland, and he always tells me to be patient and things will come to you, and that’s all I wanted to do.”
Peters said every day is tough at this level, but he said he has to battle through it mentally and physically. After responding to his mistake with his best game as a Bulldog, Peters feels motivated.
“Every time I step onto the court I have a lot of motivation,” Peters said. “I feel like as soon as I come off the bench I want to bring a lot of energy off the bench, play hard and keep that spark going.”
MSU freshman guard Mario Kegler scored a career-high 16 points, while freshman center Schnider Herard had a career-high eight points and seven rebounds. Quinndary Weatherspoon scored 14 points and I.J. Ready added 11.
With MSU (6-2) trailing 16-14, Peters scored 14-straight points to tie the game at 28 with 6 minutes, 14 seconds remaining in the first half. He made four-straight 3-pointers in the stretch.
“We were concerned about Weatherspoon, and we knew Peters was a streaky shooter,” Georgia State coach Ron Hunter said. “Every shot he made seemed like it cut our momentum, and I thought he did a nice job with that. When he’s making shots like that, they’re a really good basketball team.”
MSU finished the first half on an 11-4 run to lead 44-36 at halftime. MSU outscored Georgia State 38-24 in the second half.
MSU was 13 of 34 from 3-point range — the most 3-pointers made since it hit 15 against North Carolina A&T on Dec. 12, 2010.
Isaiah Williams led the Panthers (4-3) with 16 points.
MSU, which has won three in a row, won’t play again until it plays host to East Tennessee State at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 14 (SEC Network).
Follow Dispatch sports writer Ben Wait on Twitter @bcwait
Ben Wait reports on Mississippi State University sports for The Dispatch.
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