STARKVILLE — As Vic Schaefer sat behind the podium in the underbelly of Humphrey Coliseum Sunday afternoon, there was an heir of apology in his voice.
Just minutes after his team was “out-toughed” by a West Virginia squad that has been in and out of the Associated Press top 25 all year, Schaefer maligned his team’s rebounding ability and propensity for turnovers as the Bulldogs dropped their first regular season non-conference game since 2012.
“We just got kind of taken to the woodshed, really,” he said postgame. “It’s a great lesson to learn. When you’re a coach and you’ve been doing it this long you can see things like this coming. We’re still learning.”
If the quote sounded familiar, well, it should have. Following MSU’s 40-point win over Troy Nov. 18, Schaefer offered a comparable sermon that called out his team’s toughness and inability to rebound. In that fiery speech, the eighth-year head coach was frank — the Bulldogs are not where they need to be.
“It’s nice to score all those points,” Schaefer said after the win over Troy. “But all we did was show the country is we can’t get back in transition defense, and we have a hard time picking up in transition, and if you play just a little bit harder and add a little more toughness you can get a bunch of rebounds from us.”
Through 10 games this season, the Bulldogs have struggled to find a true form despite lopsided results against the likes of University of Tennessee-Martin and Murray State. And while wide margins of victory can mask the underlying issues, Sunday’s loss to the Mountaineers offered an affirmation of Schaefer’s concern for his team’s ability to match up with the nation’s best physically.
At present, the Bulldogs have out-rebounded opponents by an average of 3.5 boards per game. And while the overall statistics are encouraging, the disparity lies in games against major conference competition. In MSU’s two losses this season to No. 1 Stanford and No. 22 West Virginia, the Bulldogs were beaten on the boards 97-65.
By contrast, in seven regular season and SEC tournament games against ranked competition last year, MSU won the rebounding battle by an average of 13.6 per game.
Further, while the Bulldogs have been beaten on the boards against the country’s elite, turnovers — particularly from their guards — remain a constant issue. With the loss of incumbent starting point guard Jazzmun Holmes to graduation, redshirt sophomore Myah Taylor and freshman Aliyah Matharu have handled the bulk of the minutes at the No. 1 — albeit to mixed results.
Taylor — who spent most of last season as Holmes’ understudy — has shown flashes of playmaking ability, but her 2.5:1 assist/turnover ratio leaves room for improvement.
Matharu has offered similar glimpses of dynamism. A former five-star recruit, she’s more of a scoring threat than Taylor having played more of an off-guard role in high school. But like her veteran backcourt mate, Matharu has been prone to turnovers as well — boasting nine assists to 11 turnovers this season.
“She’s an offensive threat, but she’s got to work harder on keeping the ball in front of her,” Schaefer said. “That’s the tradeoff. I’ve got to coach her better and make her into a better defender. And at the same time, offensively, there are days where you have a hard time dealing with her — she’s really good. We’ve got to get her ready.”
As Schaefer concluded his podium session Sunday, his tone shifted from negative lecturer to hopeful. While the first month of the season has been trying for he and his staff, he remains encouraged by his youthful squad.
“This is a good, young group,” Schaefer said. “I love them and we’ll be better — we’re going to be ok. I know people around here think the sky is falling because we lost a non-conference game today, but it happens.”
Ben Portnoy reports on Mississippi State sports for The Dispatch. Follow him on Twitter at @bportnoy15.
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