2020–21 Mississippi State Bulldogs women's basketball team

2020–21 Mississippi State Bulldogs women's basketball
2020–21 Mississippi State Bulldogs women's basketball
Conference	Southeastern Conference
Record	10–9 (5–7 SEC)
Head coach	Nikki McCray-Penson (1st season);
Assistant coaches	Keith Freeman; Scepter Brownlee; Brittany Young;
Home arena	Humphrey Coliseum
	Seasons ← 2019–20 2021–22 →

2020–21 SEC women's basketball standings
v t e	Conf				Overall
Team	W		L	PCT	W		L	PCT
No. 4 Texas A&M	13	–	1	.929	25	–	3	.893
No. 6 South Carolina †	14	–	2	.875	26	–	5	.839
No. 13 Tennessee	9	–	4	.692	17	–	8	.680
No. 10 Georgia	10	–	5	.667	20	–	6	.769
No. 15 Arkansas	9	–	6	.600	19	–	8	.704
No. 18 Kentucky	9	–	6	.600	18	–	8	.692
Alabama	8	–	8	.500	16	–	9	.640
LSU	6	–	8	.429	9	–	13	.409
Mississippi State	5	–	7	.417	10	–	9	.526
Missouri	5	–	9	.357	9	–	13	.409
Ole Miss	4	–	10	.286	15	–	12	.556
Florida	3	–	11	.214	12	–	14	.462
Auburn	0	–	15	.000	5	–	19	.208
Vanderbilt	0	–	3	.000	4	–	4	.500
Vanderbilt suspended their season on January 18, 2021

† 2021 SEC tournament winner As of March 21, 2021 Rankings from AP poll

The 2020–21 Mississippi State Bulldogs women's basketball team represented Mississippi State University during the 2020–21 NCAA Division I women's basketball season. The Bulldogs, led by first-year head coach Nikki McCray-Penson, played their home games at Humphrey Coliseum and competed as members of the Southeastern Conference (SEC).

Previous season

The Bulldogs finished the season with a 27–6 overall record and a 13–3 record in conference play. The Bulldogs lost to South Carolina in the Championship of the SEC tournament. Head coach Vic Schaefer resigned following the season to become head coach at Texas. Old Dominion head coach Nikki McCray-Penson was hired to replace him.^[1]^[2]

Offseason

Departures

Mississippi State Departures
Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Year	Hometown	Notes
Jayla Hemingway	00	G	5'11"	Freshman	Collierville, TN	Transferred to West Virginia.
Andra Espinoza-Hunter	2	G	5'11"	Junior	Ossining, NY	Transferred to Seton Hall.
Promise Taylor	13	G	6'5"	Sophomore	Issaquah, WA	Retired from basketball.
Bre'Amber Scott	23	G	5'11"	Junior	Little Rock, AR	Transferred to Little Rock.
Jordan Danberry	24	G	5'11"	Senior	Conway, AR	Graduated.
Chloe Bibby	55	F	6'1"	Junior	Warracknabeal, Australia	Transferred to Maryland.

2020 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight
Madison Hayes #7 G	Chattanooga, TN	East Hamilton High School	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	N/A
Madison Hayes #7 G	Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A ESPN: ESPN grade: 97
Charlotte Kohl C	Giessen, Germany	Theo Koch Schule	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	N/A
Charlotte Kohl C	Recruiting star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A
Overall recruiting rankings:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources:

Incoming transfers

Mississippi State Bulldogs Incoming Transfers
Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Year	Hometown	Previous school
Caterrion Thompson	23	G	5'11"	RS Senior	Lima, OH	Bowling Green

Preseason

SEC media poll

The SEC media poll was released on November 17, 2020, with the Bulldogs selected to finish in fifth place in the SEC.^[3]

Predicted finish	Team
Media poll
1	South Carolina
2	Kentucky
3	Texas A&M
4	Arkansas
5	Mississippi State
6	Tennessee
7	LSU
8	Alabama
9	Georgia
10	Missouri
11	Ole Miss
12	Florida
13	Vanderbilt
14	Auburn

Preseason All-SEC teams

The Bulldogs had two players selected to the preseason all-SEC teams.

First team

Rickea Jackson

Second team

Jessika Carter

Roster

2020–21 Mississippi State Bulldogs women's basketball team

Players

Coaches

Pos.	#	Name	Height	Year	Previous school	Hometown
G	0	JaMya Mingo-Young	5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)	So	Loranger HS	Bogalusa, LA
G	1	Myah Taylor	5 ft 7 in (1.7 m)	RS Jr	Olive Branch HS	Olive Branch, MS
G	3	Aliyah Matharu	5 ft 7 in (1.7 m)	So	Bishop McNamara HS	Washington, D.C.
F/C	4	Jessika Carter	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	Jr	Harris County HS	Waverly Hall, GA
F	5	Rickea Jackson	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	So	Detroit Edison Public School Academy	Detroit, MI
F/C	10	Sidney Cooks	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	RS Jr	St. Joseph Catholic Academy Michigan State	Kenosha, WI
G	11	Xaria Wiggins	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	Jr	Princess Anne HS	Virginia Beach, VA
C	20	Yemiyah Morris	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	Sr	Canyon Springs HS Cochise College	San Bernardino, CA
G	21	Madison Hayes	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	Fr	East Hamilton HS	Chattanooga, TN
C	22	Charlotte Kohl	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	Fr	Theo Koch Schule	Giessen, Germany
G	23	Caterrion Thompson	5 ft 11 in (1.8 m)	RS Sr	Lima Senior HS Bowling Green	Lima, OH

Head coach

Nikki McCray-Penson (Tennessee)

Assistant coach(es)

Keith Freeman (Huntington)
Scepter Brownlee (San Francisco)
Brittany Young (Francis Marion)

Legend

(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible
(W) Walk-on

Injured
Current redshirt

Roster

Schedule

Date time, TV	Rank^#	Opponent^#	Result	Record	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Site (attendance) city, state
Non-conference regular season
November 28, 2020* 9:00 am	No. 6	vs. Maine Hall of Fame Challenge	Canceled due to COVID-19					Mohegan Sun Arena Uncasville, CT
November 29, 2020* 4:00 pm	No. 6	Jackson State	W 88–58	1–0	19 – Jackson	9 – Mingo–Young	7 – Taylor	Humphrey Coliseum Starkville, MS
December 2, 2020*	No. 6	New Orleans	W 106–51	2–0	23 – Carter	10 – Carter	5 – Tied	Humphrey Coliseum Starkville, MS
December 5, 2020* 6:00 pm, ESPN+	No. 6	at South Florida	L 63–67 ^OT	2–1	18 – Jackson	9 – Tied	1 – Tied	Yuengling Center Tampa, FL
December 12, 2020*	No. 12	at Southern Miss	Canceled due to COVID-19					Reed Green Coliseum Hattiesburg, MS
December 14, 2020* 7:00 pm, SECN+	No. 13	Troy	W 103–76	3–1	30 – Jackson	7 – Tied	9 – Tied	Humphrey Coliseum Starkville, MS
December 18, 2020* 7:00 pm, SECN+	No. 13	Southern	W 79–55	4–1	17 – Carter	11 – Carter	6 – Mingo-Young	Humphrey Coliseum Starkville, MS
December 20, 2020* 3:00 pm, SECN	No. 13	Central Arkansas	W 72–48	5–1	29 – Carter	15 – Carter	4 – Tied	Humphrey Coliseum (1,000) Starkville, MS
SEC regular season
December 31, 2020 6:00 pm, SECN+	No. 12	at Georgia	W 69–62	6–1 (1–0)	13 – Tied	6 – Cooks	6 – Mingo-Young	Stegeman Coliseum Athens, GA
January 3, 2021 1:00 pm, ESPN2	No. 12	No. 13 Kentucky	L 86–92 ^OT	6–2 (1–1)	23 – Jackson	13 – Carter	4 – Matharu	Humphrey Coliseum Starkville, MS
January 7, 2021 5:00 pm, SECN+	No. 14	at Florida	W 68–56	7–2 (2–1)	25 – Carter	15 – Carter	4 – Jackson	O'Connell Center Gainesville, FL
January 10, 2021 5:00 pm, SECN	No. 14	Ole Miss	W 60–56	8–2 (3–1)	19 – Carter	9 – Carter	8 – Taylor	Humphrey Coliseum Starkville, MS
January 14, 2021 7:00 pm, SECN+	No. 14	Alabama	L 78–86	8–3 (3–2)	15 – Tied	9 – Carter	6 – Taylor	Humphrey Coliseum Starkville, MS
January 17, 2021 Noon, ESPN2	No. 14	at No. 7 Texas A&M	L 41–69	8–4 (3–3)	14 – Taylor	8 – Tied	3 – Hayes	Reed Arena College Station, TX
January 28, 2021 6:00 pm, ESPN	No. 21	No. 4 South Carolina	L 52–75	8–5 (3–4)	15 – Jackson	10 – Carter	5 – Taylor	Humphrey Coliseum Starkville, MS
February 1, 2021 6:00 pm, SECN		at Vanderbilt	Canceled due to Vanderbilt ending season^[4]					Memorial Gymnasium Nashville, TN
February 11, 2021 8:00 pm, SECN		at No. 18 Arkansas	L 80–86	8–6 (3–5)	22 – Taylor	7 – Jackson	7 – Taylor	Bud Walton Arena Fayetteville, AR
February 14, 2021 3:00 pm, SECN		at Ole Miss	Postponed due to winter weather.					The Pavilion at Ole Miss Oxford, MS
February 16, 2021 4:00 pm, ESPNU		Tennessee	Postponed due to winter weather.					Humphrey Coliseum Starkville, MS
February 21, 2021 2:00 pm, SECN+		at Alabama	L 63–71	8–7 (3–6)	18 – Jackson	12 – Carter	2 – Tied	Coleman Coliseum Tuscaloosa, AL
February 23, 2021 5:00 pm, SECN		Auburn	W 81–68	9–7 (4–6)	20 – Jackson	9 – Jackson	5 – Taylor	Humphrey Coliseum Starkville, MS
February 25, 2021 6:00 pm, SECN+		at LSU	W 68–59	10–7 (5–6)	19 – Matharu	9 – Carter	4 – Taylor	Pete Maravich Assembly Center Baton Rouge, LA
February 28, 2021 3:00 pm, SECN		Missouri	L 57–77	10–8 (5–7)	11 – Taylor	6 – Matharu	3 – Cooks	Humphrey Coliseum Starkville, MS
SEC Tournament
March 4, 2021 10:00 am, SECN	(9)	vs. (8) LSU Second Round	L 62–71	10–9	14 – Tied	8 – Mingo-Young	3 – Taylor	Bon Secours Wellness Arena Greenville, SC
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central Time. ^[5]

References

^ Voepel, Mechelle (April 5, 2020). "Texas hires Mississippi State's Vic Schaefer as new head coach". ESPN.com. Retrieved April 5, 2020.
^ Robb, Courtney (April 9, 2020). "Mississippi State to Name Nikki McCray-Penson Women's Head Basketball Coach". Columbus, MS: WCBI. Retrieved April 9, 2020.
^ "Gamecocks tabbed as 2021 SEC Women's Basketball champs".
^ Feinberg, Adam (January 18, 2021). "Vanderbilt women's basketball season discontinued over COVID-19, depleted roster". The Tennessean. Retrieved January 19, 2021.
^ "Women's Hoops 2020-21 Schedule Announced". HailState.com. Retrieved November 17, 2020.

[Schaefer-1] Voepel, Mechelle (April 5, 2020). "Texas hires Mississippi State's Vic Schaefer as new head coach". ESPN.com. Retrieved April 5, 2020.

[WCBI-2] Robb, Courtney (April 9, 2020). "Mississippi State to Name Nikki McCray-Penson Women's Head Basketball Coach". Columbus, MS: WCBI. Retrieved April 9, 2020.

[3] "Gamecocks tabbed as 2021 SEC Women's Basketball champs".

[4] Feinberg, Adam (January 18, 2021). "Vanderbilt women's basketball season discontinued over COVID-19, depleted roster". The Tennessean. Retrieved January 19, 2021.

[5] "Women's Hoops 2020-21 Schedule Announced". HailState.com. Retrieved November 17, 2020.

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[5]

v t e Mississippi State Bulldogs women's basketball
Venues	McCarthy Gymnasium (1974–1975) Humphrey Coliseum (1975–present)
Culture & lore	Bully "Hail State" Gillom Trophy
People	Head coaches Statistical leaders
Seasons	1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24
NCAA Final Four appearances in italics

Previous season

Offseason

Departures

2020 recruiting class

Incoming transfers

Preseason

SEC media poll

Preseason All-SEC teams

Roster

Schedule

See also

References