Sports
MSU'S Sydney waiting
By BRAD LOCKE
Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal
STARKVILLE, Miss. (AP) — Renardo Sidney might never suit up for Mississippi State’s basketball team, but he hasn’t let that uncertainty derail his offseason workouts.
Sidney, the 6-foot-10 freshman who’s the subject of an NCAA amateurism evaluation, Continued working with his new teammates when the Bulldogs opened formal preseason workouts on Friday.
The five-star signee’s status for the season isn’t promising, with his attorney, Donald Jackson, and the NCAA at loggerheads over Jackson’s refusal to turn over certain family financial records.
“Any of us put ourselves in his situation, human nature, it would probably not be as easy as it would be if you’re knowing where everything is,” coach Rick Stansbury said Wednesday in a meeting with reporters. “But to his credit, I think he’s handled everything very well. He hasn’t let what’s around him or the unknowns affect his effort and his attitude and his work ethic.
“I think he’s probably handled that better than we anticipated him handling it, considering everything that’s going on around him.”
Sidney’s not the only freshman who could make a big impact this season for MSU, which returns all five starters from its SEC Tournament champion squad of 2008-09. Guard Shaun Smith, forward-center Wendell Lewis and center John Riek could be counted on to varying degrees.
“We need all of them to step up,” Stansbury said. “It depends on injuries and all those kinds of things, which ones we need to step up more than others. I think all four of them in time are going to be very good players.”
The 6-8, 240-pound Lewis, from Selma, Ala., is the least-heralded of the recruits. But Stansbury really likes him, and he could wind up being center Jarvis Varnado’s backup.
“He’s one of those guys that our program’s kind of made a living on,” Stansbury said. “You’ll look up in about a year-and-a-half from now and wonder where he came from. I like that about him.”
One reason Lewis could play early is because 6-8 junior Elgin Bailey is still trying to recover from the severely dislocated ankle he suffered late last season. Bailey was cleared a couple of months ago to return to full-time conditioning and playing pickup games, but Stansbury said he won’t be practicing right away, and he’s not sure about his availability for this season.
Reserve guard Riley Benock will be out about another two weeks after foot surgery. Smith, from Noxubee County, seems to be over hip and wrist injuries that limited him for part of the summer.
The 7-1 Riek, who had surgery on his ACL in the summer of 2008, is holding up well.
“When we start the pounding of two-a-days for the next two weeks, we’ll see how he holds up,” Stansbury said of Riek’s knee.
Riek must sit out MSU’s first nine games because of money received during pre-NBA Draft workouts prior to his injury.
Stansbury, who’s entering his 12th season as MSU’s head coach, said the Bulldogs will hold their first practice Friday afternoon, then get into the two-a-days routine on Saturday.
State’s first exhibition game is Oct. 31 against Oklahoma City, and the regular season begins Nov. 13 versus Rider at Humphrey Coliseum.
“It feels a lot different this time this year than it did this time last year,” Stansbury said. “This time last year, we had two players returning, Jarvis and Barry (Stewart), and everybody else was an unknown element, factors you just didn’t know.
“We should be at this time this year, versus this time last year, ahead of the game some.”
- Sports
-
-
Tide moves to 2-0
For the second straight week, Picayune lost the turnover battle.
But more importantly, for the second consecutive game, the Maroon Tide won the overall war. -
PRC falls
There’s no way to put a “happy face” on a 34-12 loss, and first-year Pearl River Central Blue Devil head coach Eric Collins did not mince any words in his post-game comments here in Lumpkin-Magee Stadium Friday night, following the loss to the Bearcats.
-
Hornets fall
Prior to kickoff Friday night, the public address announcer welcomed Lumberton High to Hornet Stadium, adding that “we hope you enjoy your night in Poplarville.”
-
Lady Tide still working out kinks
Picayune has one week left before the Lady Tide begins district play in prep slow pitch softball.
And even though Picayune stands just 7-5 overall after Tuesday night’s 10-1 loss to Greene County, veteran Lady Tide head coach feels like her team is on the right track to defend their league title. -
Lady Hornets breeze by FCAHS
The one-two punch of Poplarville’s Miranda Fazende and Ashton Rogers proved to be to much for visiting Forrest County AHS to handle Tuesday night.
-
Picayune pounds Moss Point
After being fed a double dose of defeat by Moss Point last season, Picayune running backs Jamal Hall and Scottie Merrill decided to double team the Tigers Friday night.
-
PRC beats Poplarville
How sweet it is! Winning, that is!
And Pearl River Central Blue Devils and their fans got a chance to see how good it feels when the Blue Devils defeated the Poplarville Hornets 28-7 in Hendrix stadium on Friday night, breaking a 13-game losing streak. -
Can Favre do it again?
Even Brett Favre was amazed by what he did last season as a 40-year-old quarterback for the Minnesota Vikings.
-
Meet the Wildcats Thursday
Fans will get a chance to meet the 2010 version of the Pearl River CC Wildcats football team on Thursday, just a week before they open the season.
Pearl River Community College’s annual "Meet the Wildcats Night" is set for 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 26, at Dobie Holden Stadium. -
Lady Tide drops three of four games
After starting the season with four straight wins, Picayune dropped three of four games over the past few days in slow pitch softball.
- More Sports Headlines
-
