STARKVILLE – Mississippi State head coach Vic Schaefer and graduate guard Jordan Danberry met with the media Thursday to discuss this past offseason, how practice is going and to preview the upcoming year.

The Bulldogs had a busy offseason, representing the United States at the World University Games. The squad brought home the silver medal behind a 6-1 record. The team received some good news in August when the NCAA announced that it had granted Danberry an extra year of eligibility and was able to play this season.

With practice officially beginning this week, the start of the 2019-20 season isn't far away. Mississippi State hosts Lubbock Christian on Nov. 4 for an exhibition before opening the campaign at home on Nov. 9 against Southern Miss.

Head Coach Vic Schaefer

Opening Statement

VS: "Obviously, I am glad to have Jordan Danberry sitting next to me today. I'm really excited about our team. Like I have said the last three years, this will be a different team, but they are really talented and skilled. They are going to be extremely fun to watch. Jordan, in her month that she has been back, has been sensational. She's doing a great job of trying to lead this young team. She has done it any way you could think of: on the court, off the court, verbally. She has been a blessing, and we were really fortunate to get her back. I want to thank our compliance office. Jordan has only actually had two full seasons of actual competition. I am excited about her and our entire team.

"We had a great experience this summer. That was beneficial for us. We practiced in June like it was January. That's good and bad. We were able to get four weeks of workouts in and then go compete against some really good teams in the World University Games. You have to be careful about wearing them out too soon, especially with these freshmen, so that's why we sent them home for the second summer session and let them get their legs back underneath them before we started the fall.

"The television schedule came out yesterday, and we have a lot of opportunities. I think people around the country have been able to see Mississippi State is a positive environment for our basketball program and have seen what it looks like on gamedays in The Hump and how special it is. That is great for TV. I'm excited to continue having the opportunity to show the country and world what our great university is all about.

"We are getting ready and practicing every day this week. I will give them the weekend off. Next week, we will go through Thursday. I have given the team fall break off the last three years, and it's worked out well. They will get Friday, Saturday and Sunday off again this year, and once they come back, we are going to be in it to win it from that point. It's usually a six-day week for us."

Q: Jordan Danberry said she was nervous waiting for the news. Were you nervous considering how inconsistent these things can sometimes go?

VS: "Yeah, I mean you're anxious. I just think that it's the right decision and the right thing for her. I've always felt in my heart that we had a great shot at it. But again, you just never know with a committee. I certainly had some days where I was wondering, but I also wanted to make sure this was something that Jordan was 100 percent locked in and ready to do. When she's 100 percent locked in, she's really good. It's hard to find at any time of year, 14 points a game in the SEC to add to your game, and it's really hard to find it in August. That's what she averaged last year. She didn't turn the ball over, she averaged two or three steals a game and two or three assists. To add a player like her to our current roster was really special. Certainly, I knew what the implications and the ramifications could be if we could get her. I'm sure that there were probably 13 other schools that weren't really excited to see that because I think she's earned their respect throughout her career here and the impact that she's had on our program."

Q: Many would say Teaira McCowan was the biggest loss of the offseason, but I think you would argue it was Jazzmun Holmes. Can you talk about what you have at the point guard position?

VS: "I think Jordan can help us there. Myah Taylor is going into her third year, and she is someone that we are going to need to play. If you can play Myah, JaMya Mingo-Young or Aliyah Matharu at point, then it lets Jordan be in her position that she needs to play, which is the off guard. If I have to play Jordan at the point, my job is to put her in a position where she is still an offensive player. Replacing a point guard is an important piece. It's like replacing the quarterback of a football team. It's a really important position. We have to make sure we continue developing our guards, especially our point guards, and getting them ready to play. A point guard's play affects everybody. Myah is probably my best help-side defender and maybe one of our better on-ball defenders. Our job is to help her become the overall player she needs to become; just like with every player we have. JaMya has played some point in high school, and Aliyah has as well. We have to get them ready in case we have to go to option three or four."

Q: How has Rickea Jackson acclimated to life in the SEC and what are your expectations for her this year?

VS: "First of all, she has acclimated well to our university and community. I talked to her yesterday, and she is just a happy, smiling kid. She enjoys our community. She really seems to be comfortable. She obviously had a big summer for us. You talk about somebody that is really talented, loves the game, works at it and is highly motivated. Her top end is off the chart. I don't know where it will end up, but she has the chance to be really special. She is going to be a big key for us as a freshman. How is she acclimated to the SEC? That is yet to be determined. We all know this league is a well-coached and defensive league. She is going to meet some defenses that are ramped up for her throughout the course of the year. She is going to have to be able to respond on those nights. She isn't scared. She had 35 points one night while we were overseas and averaged 22 points a game. She shot 50 percent as well. From an offensive standpoint, she is really hard to deal with. I am really excited about her."

Q: What did this team need to work on after the World University Games?

VS: "I think the Australians exposed us a little bit. They were very talented, and we just weren't ready to beat them for the gold medal. They were a veteran team. They were really fundamentally sound, and the exposed us on a couple of different things. But again, when you have only practiced for a month together, it's hard to go through every scenario. When we played against Japan in our friendly, we were down four with 1:04 to go, and they had the ball. We ended up getting a stop. We scored. We got another stop. We then scored again on an offensive rebound on a stick back and got fouled for an and-one from Jessika, so we were then up one point with five seconds left. Japan had to go the length of the floor to score, and we were telling them in a timeout that we were going to switch everything. Unless you have really had an opportunity to work on that, it's easier said than done. Sure enough, we screwed it up, and the kid made the shot. She just happened to be standing out of bounds with one foot when she made it. Thankfully, the referee saw it and waved the basket off. Otherwise, we would have gotten beat in our friendly. That's a great example of us working on some situations, but we are so early in the process, especially with our younger kids, that it's natural to have to work on that. For us, we have a long way to go. It's a long fall getting ready. When we go to Victoria, Canada, to play, we are going to run into three NCAA Tournament teams, and we could face Stanford, who is No. 3 in the country and had one of the top recruiting classes in the country. We have to get ready to go. We have a good non-conference schedule full of teams that win their conference. We have to play a bunch of mid-majors on a neutral floor, which is what they want. If you're a mid-major and get to play a top-10 team on a neutral floor, it doesn't get any better. We will have to do that as well. I'm excited about getting this team. They work extremely hard, and they want to do what it takes every day. They are working really hard. Their attitudes are good. They are fun to see every day."

Q: How good do you think Jessika Carter can be in her second year here at Mississippi State?

VS: "I need her to be really good. Right now, she is probably more comfortable because she has been in the system. I need Yemiyah Morris to come on. She's our junior college player, and I need her to come on and continue to work and get better. It would be nice to get Promise Taylor healthy. I was telling Johnnie Harris this morning that I would love to see what our big lineup in. Promise probably has more poise and presence in the low post than anyone we have, but she's just not able to practice yet. I'd love to see what that big lineup looks like. You could put her and Jessika on the floor together with Jessika at the four, which is where I would ultimately love to see her moved to but might not be until her senior year. Then we would play Rickea at the three at 6-2 and play Jordan at the two. That is a big lineup, and I would love to see what that looks like. You could cover a lot of ground and play the matchup. You could do a lot of things, and then just chuck it and go get it. I'm anxious to get Promise and Yemiyah to where we can function a little bit and maybe look at that. I do like our low-post presence. I think those three are doing a great job. Sidney Cooks, our transfer from Michigan State, can't play right now, but she is practicing every day. Man, you talk about a kid that can fill it up. That is an exciting piece to the puzzle to have in the future. She is really going to be special for us. We have some options, but it's still early."

Graduate Guard Jordan Danberry

Q: How would you characterize the offense for the 2020 season?

JD: "I think for this season, we have a lot of different combinations with a lot of different players that can do a lot of different things. We have a nice post game. We have a lot of big post players and a lot of big guards this year. We have some people that can shoot it well from the three as well as drive. I think it will be hard to stop us."

Q: When did you find out about being able to play an extra year, and what were your feelings on getting the opportunity to play one more year in college?

JD: "We put in the waiver over the summer, and I got the news the day before school started. Coach Schaefer called me and said he wanted to check on me and chat with me. So, I came to the office, and I really wasn't expecting that news. I don't know why I wasn't expecting something like that because we had been waiting on it. At that point, for some reason on that day, my mind wasn't really thinking about that. I was in complete shock when I was given the news. He asked me if I still wanted to do it, and I told him that I did. They started ringing cowbells and told me that I got my year back. A lot of different emotions came through when I heard those words. We were able to call my mom and grandpa. I felt excited and relieved a little bit. It was a good feeling."

Q: Now that you're a veteran, when you see these newcomers, who stands out to you and is doing a good job?

JD: "I think that they're all doing a good job. Rickea is doing really good just getting up and down the floor. I've seen a lot of her in the passing lanes, and I know Coach Schaefer likes to see her denying the ball out there in practice. With our guards, Aliyah, Jayla and JaMya, I've seen progress from the first practice in the summer to now. With their defense and willingness to learn, they all have some fight in them, which is very exciting to watch. I think it will be very exciting to see them play."