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Auburn Basketball: Mississippi State Q&A With Maroon & White Nation

By Nicholas Ian Allen

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The Auburn basketball team enters Wednesday’s huge SEC matchup with Mississippi State with a 10-7 overall record and a 2-2 mark in conference play following Saturday’s win over South Carolina.

Looking ahead to the game, what can we expect from the 8-9, 1-3 Bulldogs? We asked Josh Barnhill, the editor of fellow FanSided network site Maroon and White Nation.

Jan 17, 2015; Starkville, MS, USA; Mississippi State Bulldogs forward Roquez Johnson (25) brings the ball up court during the game against the Vanderbilt Commodores at Humphrey Coliseum. Mississippi State Bulldogs defeat the Vanderbilt Commodores 57-54. Mandatory Credit: Spruce Derden-USA TODAY Sports

Fly War Eagle: The Bulldogs enter Wednesday’s matchup 8-9 overall and 1-3 in the SEC. It’s been a bit of an up-and-down season in Starkville so far – what do the fans think at this point of the season?

Maroon and White Nation: I would say 90% of State fans would be perfectly fine with Rick Ray being fired today. The other 10% are just being nice and willing to wait until the end of the season.

The season started out pretty good at 5-0, then hit rock bottom multiple times for about a month, but last week was decent. If the team can build off what they’ve done in their last two games then maybe some hope will be restored.

FWE: Mississippi State beat Vanderbilt 57-54 at home in their last game, and Auburn lost to the Commodores on the road in their league opener. What do you think those results tell us about Wednesday’s game at Auburn Arena?

M&WN: I’m not sure I’d look too much into it other than home court advantage. Winning a road game is a huge obstacle for Rick Ray – he hasn’t done it in two full years.

FWE: So far this season, Fred Thomas and Roquez Johnson have been State’s most consistent scorers. What can you tell us about them?

M&WN: That’s pretty depressing because both are known as defensive players. Thomas can shoot the three pretty well…sometimes. Johnson is more of a low post player who has come off the bench most of the year.

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Scoring is MSU’s biggest problem. They use defense to create offense and that usually works except for the part about putting the ball in the hoop.

FWE: Neither team has a dominant presence in the post, but the Bulldogs do have some size on their roster with 6-foot-9, 260-pound forward Gavin Ware. What can you tell us about MSU’s top rebounder?

M&WN: I think Gavin is a solid player for the most part. When he really plays hard he’s a force down low. The problem with him is there hasn’t been much improvement during his three years (he’s been starting since his freshman year). So the Gavin you saw the last two years is similar to the one you’ll see on Wednesday.

FWE: Finally, these are two rebuilding teams looking to make a move in the SEC rankings. Care to make a prediction?

M&WN: I’d say Auburn wins a close one, 58-53.

Thanks Josh, we look forward to a good game Wednesday night at Auburn Arena.

Next: Football Recruiting: What We Learned From Big Boom Weekend

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