STARKVILLE — The line said it all.
Five seasons ago, the Mississippi State women’s basketball team struggled to draw more than 1,000 fans for its home games.
On Monday, MSU senior guard Dominique Dillingham took special pride in looking up from signing autographs and seeing a line of 100-150 fans stretch from the lobby to Mize Pavilion out the door. It didn’t matter that it was a rainy afternoon in Starkville. The assembled fans wanted to take advantage of what could possibly be their last chance to get autographs from all of their favorite Bulldogs.
For Dillingham, the hour spent signing autographs prior to the NCAA tournament Selection Show was another sign of how far the MSU women have come in a short amount of time.
“It has sunk in,” Dillingham said. “It is still a crazy feeling to see everything come full circle.”
At 1:30 p.m. Friday (ESPN2), second-seeded MSU will get another chance to show the nation that Starkville has become a hotbed for women’s basketball when it plays host to 15th-seeded Troy (22-10) in the first round of the NCAA tournament at Humphrey Coliseum.
This will be the second-straight season MSU (29-4) will play host to the NCAA tournament. The Bulldogs earned the honor by eclipsing last season’s single-season record for wins (28) and setting a new standard for wins in the Southeastern Conference (13). The success helped MSU advance to the NCAA tournament for the third-straight season for the first time in program history.
All of it wouldn’t have been possible without the contributions of Dillingham and classmates Ketara Chapel, Chinwe Okorie, and Breanna Richardson, who have led the Bulldogs on a magical ride from 22 to 27 to 28 to 29 victories and a record of 106-33, which is the best mark of any class in the history of the program.
MSU’s style of play has helped it forge a bond with its fans. Thanks to a tenacious brand of in-your-face defense replete with a willingness to help their teammates and to take charges, the Bulldogs have built a program that is seventh in the nation in average attendance (6,793).
The development of the program wasn’t lost on Dillingham or Richardson on Monday as they signed autographs and then watched the unveiling of the NCAA tournament brackets with hundreds of the Bulldogs’ fans.
“When we were signing autographs earlier and seeing that huge line, I talked to a reporter and he was just like four years ago people wouldn’t have been staying out in the rain just to get autographs,” Dillingham said. “It is amazing. It is humbling to see how fast a program can change. It is amazing to know we are a part of it and we have left our mark.”
Dillingham admits MSU’s ability to take another step forward this season adds to the responsibility the players feel to live up to the No. 2 seed. She feels the Bulldogs have accomplished enough to deserve that seed and they have to go out and play their best basketball.
Richardson, whose right hand/wrist was taped and ready to go for practice and every-day stuff, agrees. Don’t worry, though, because she didn’t need the tape to alleviate any pain from signing too many autographs. Still, the autograph session was an example of how far the Bulldogs have come from Schaefer’s first season — a 13-win campaign in 2012-13. The first group of seniors didn’t have to believe Schaefer or any member of his staff that times were going to change in Starkville.
On Monday, all the seniors had to do was look at the line of fans and feel a sense of pride that they have played integral roles in starting something special.
On Friday, a national television audience will get a chance to see again what Schaefer and his Bulldogs have built.
“I knew coming in that we were going to change the program, but to this extent, not really,” Richardson said. “I feel like when you come in and you work hard I feel like at the end of the day the hard work is paying off.
“Coach said we have to come in and change the program. I feel like he brought in the pieces with us and he continued it with the next class and the next class after that. Once we got our freshman year under our belt, it was just helping the one below us understand the system. It went from us being like the students to the teachers.”
NOTE: MSU fans will have a chance to get a preview of the NCAA tournament action from 7-8 tonight when Schaefer takes part in a special edition of DawgTalk at The Veranda in Starkville. Fans can join the show in person or talk to Schaefer via phone at 866-998-4893. Fans unable to come to The Veranda can listen online at hailstate.com/plus or the TuneIn app, or listen on WKBB-FM 100.9, WFCA-FM 107.9, or WVBG-FM (105.5, Vickburg).
Follow Dispatch sports editor Adam Minichino on Twitter @ctsportseditor
Adam Minichino is the former Sports Editor for The Commercial Dispatch.
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