STARKVILLE — The Mississippi State men’s basketball team’s backcourt already was a man down Saturday when Lamar Peters limped off the court in the second half.
MSU coach Ben Howland wasn’t sure who was going to emerge to help fill the void left by the absence of senior point guard I.J. Ready, who missed his fourth-consecutive game, and Peters.
Enter Mario Kegler.
The 6-foot-7 freshman guard from Jackson continued a recent stretch of strong play with 16 points, six rebounds, two assists, and two steals in 32 minutes in a 77-73 loss to then-No. 19 South Carolina at Humphrey Coliseum.
In his last three games, Kegler has scored 16 or more points — the first time he has accomplished that feat this season — and grabbed 19 rebounds. He also is shooting 17 of 26 from the field, including 9 of 13 from 3-point range.
With Howland unsure if Peters will be able to play at 8 tonight (ESPNU) against Georgia, MSU likely will need more of the same to snap a two-game losing streak and a four-game road losing streak.
“I feel like (the game has) kind of slowed down,” Kegler said after the South Carolina game.
Without Ready and Peters in the second half, Kegler had 11 points and six rebounds in 18 minutes. He made his last four shots.
“He’s improved steadily throughout the season,” Howland said. “I think he has a lot of fight in him in that he really competes. He made some big shots in that game that gave us a chance. He made one at the foul line that put us down one, then comes down and scores on a left-handed layup. (It was a) really nice finish for a kid with his size.”
Kegler’s 3-point shooting is the best it has been all season. He is 34 of 88 (38.6 percent) from 3-point range and 85 of 192 (44.3) from the field.
“I’ve been comfortable with the 3. It’s just going in more for me now,” Kegler said.
Said Howland, “I think he’s putting time into it and getting shots up, which is a big part of it.”
Howland also has noticed Kegler on the other end of the floor. He said Kegler is capable of contributing like he did with two steals and a blocked shot against South Carolina.
“Defensively, he’s taken a lot of pride in that respect,” he said. “He’s grown as a player in all ways. That’s part of being a freshman, getting better, and I think it’s paying dividends for him down the stretch.”
Keeping up his current 3-point shooting pace against Georgia could prove to be tricky. Georgia’s last two opponents failed to shoot better than 33 percent from 3-point range. However, Kegler shot 50 percent from 3-point range against South Carolina, which entered the game first in the nation in 3-point field goal percentage defense.
Follow Dispatch sports writer Brett Hudson on Twitter @Brett_Hudson
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