After a week off, Chris Jans and Mississippi State ready for first true road game at Minnesota – The Dispatch

STARKVILLE — Chris Jans is aware of it’s at all times extra enjoyable to play with a lead than to play from behind.

That’s the message the Mississippi State basketball coach and the remainder of his employees have delivered to gamers over the previous few weeks in the case of their teachers.

Get up to the mark early, Bulldogs coaches have preached, and so they gained’t be a problem in the long run.

Jans mentioned Monday he hopes that strategy works as his gamers ready for per week of ultimate exams — however little basketball.

“I’ll be sincere with you, this can be a much less difficult week than most for me,” he mentioned. “We’ve performed loads of video games throughout finals previously.”

As a substitute, the Bulldogs’ first sport since an 82-52 rout of Mississippi Valley State on Dec. 3 is Sunday evening, a 7:30 p.m. tipoff at Minnesota (4-5, 0-2 Large Ten). The sport will probably be broadcasted on the Large Ten Community.

Mississippi State misplaced to the Golden Gophers final yr in Starkville, however Jans mentioned that consequence would haven’t any affect on the Bulldogs’ preparation for Sunday’s contest.

He mentioned it hadn’t even occurred to him to look at tape from a sport that was one yr, one MSU coach and two very totally different rosters in the past.

“Groups are so totally different from yr to yr now,” Jans mentioned. “It’ll make no distinction or bearing on the results of this yr’s matchup.”

Minnesota improved to 7-0 with its 81-76 win in Starkville final Dec. 5 however has struggled significantly since then. The Golden Gophers completed final yr at 13-17, and so they’re off to a 4-5 begin to this season.

Purdue and Michigan have each dealt coach Ben Johnson’s staff losses in early-season Large Ten Convention video games previously week, most just lately a 90-75 win by the Wolverines on Thursday in Minneapolis.

Minnesota is simply 3-2 contained in the pleasant confines of Williams Enviornment, together with a November loss to DePaul, however Jans is aware of Mississippi State’s first true highway sport of the season comes with raised stakes in addition to a raised courtroom.

That’s as a result of the Bulldogs checked in at No. 23 in Monday’s AP ballot, changing into ranked for the primary time this season.

Jans mentioned Monday morning that may result in certainly one of two outcomes.

“They’ll both assume that they’ve arrived and carried out one thing — that ‘paper champion’ factor that we talked about …  or it’ll encourage them extra and so they’ll need extra and so they’ll proceed to remain hungry and work even more durable and purchase in much more to what we’re doing and the way we have to play for this staff to achieve success,” he mentioned.

On the “Dawg Discuss” radio present Monday night, Jans mentioned a constructive Monday afternoon apply had him optimistic Mississippi State’s response could be extra according to the latter.

For a piecemeal roster cobbled collectively through the switch portal, that’s an excellent signal.

And Sunday evening’s sport in opposition to Minnesota is the Bulldogs’ first likelihood to show they’re deserving of that rating — and maybe extra.

“We nonetheless really feel like we’re attending to know one another higher,” Jans mentioned. “Finally, we’re going to must settle in, greater than probably as soon as we get into SEC play. However we nonetheless have 4 video games for these guys to type of present us the place they’re at.”

Theo DeRosa reviews on Mississippi State sports activities for The Dispatch. Observe him on Twitter at @Theo_DeRosa.