Men's Basketball

In the first scrimmage of the 2017-18 campaign, third-year coach Ben Howland wanted to see his team push the basketball up and down the court, guards hit shots and his bigs be active on the post. Check. Check. And check.

With Southeastern Conference referees on hand to officiate and explain all the new rules, sophomore guard Eli Wright led all scorers with 19 points, while Aric Holman and Schnider Herard added 18 and 17, respectively.

“We were able to see a lot of things, and for our younger guys, it was an opportunity for them to get a feel for the speed,” Howland said. “We'll use the film to show the guys what was good and what we need to work on.”

Wright was 7-of-12 shooting with five made 3-pointers, whole both Herard and Holman were 8-14.

As far as newcomers are concerned, Abdul Ado poured in 17 points and grabbed seven rebounds to go along with his two blocked shots. KeyShawn Feazell had 15 points and 5 boards, while Nick Weatherspoon had nine points and 10 assists.

In addition, All-SEC guard Quinndary Weatherspoon totaled 13 points, three assists and two steals, while Xavian Stapleton had 16 points, followed by Tyson Carter with 15.

Lamar Peters, who is overcoming dental issues, had three points, five assists and two steals.

“It was a good start,” Weatherspoon said. “We have a lot of talent on the court. But everyone is playing as a team. We have a lot to work on, and we'll use the film to get better.”

If there was one player that stood out for Howland, it was E.J. Datcher.

The sophomore forward had 13 points on 4-4 shooting and made 5 of his 7 free throw attempts. He also had six rebounds, two steals and one assist.

The Bulldogs, who will showcase their talent at Friday's 8:30 p.m. Maroon Madness at Humphrey Coliseum, are off Sunday and Monday before returning to practice on Tuesday.

Men's Tennis

TULSA, Okla./HOUSTON, Texas – After a tremendous run through qualifying that included victories against three-consecutive ranked foes, Giovanni Oradini concluded play at the Intercollegiate Tennis Association All-American Championships on Saturday.

The sophomore battled hard again, but dropped a tough 7-5, 6-3 decision to 93rd-ranked Valentin Vacherot of Texas A&M in Saturday's Round of 16 in the consolation bracket.

In Houston, MSU freshman Florian Broska dropped a hard-fought three-setter to Aron Pierce (ATP 1881) 2-6, 6-3, 7-5 in the USTA Futures event being held there.

The next competition for the Bulldogs will come in two weeks when State's second-ranked Nuno Borges will travel to the USTA Futures event in Harlingen, Texas, where the All-American will be one of the top seeds in the main draw, which runs Oct. 17-22.

Six other Bulldogs will be in Baton Rouge, La., for the 2017 ITA Southern Regional Championships running Oct. 19-23.

Soccer

A pair of teams looking to remain in contention for the 2017 Southeastern Conference Tournament will square off today, as Mississippi State (7-2-3, 1-2-2 SEC) hosts Kentucky (6-8-0, 1-4-0) at 2 p.m.

The match at the MSU Soccer Field will mark the 19th meeting between the two teams on the pitch, with the Bulldogs looking to earn a second-straight victory against the Wildcats.

Admission is free and the match will be streamed live on SEC Network+.

When the Bulldogs were last on the pitch, they dropped a tough overtime contest at third-ranked South Carolina, in which Payton Gruenewald and Brooke McKee each netted goals for State. Both goals marked career highs in goals scored in a season for Gruenewald (two) and McKee (five).

Volleyball

COLLEGE STATION — Finishing up its twogame road swing, Mississippi State (9-11, 0-5 Southeastern Conference) heads to Texas A&M (47, 1-3 SEC) coming off a loss at LSU.

First serve is set for 1:30 p.m. from Reed Arena on the SEC Network +. Fans can also access the match on the WatchESPN app.

“We're finishing up the weekend against Texas A&M on their home court, and we're eager to get started,” State third-year coach David McFatrich said. “Texas A&M has had a couple of injuries this year, but they're always solid. I'm ready to see how we fair, and if the things we've changed in practice and the things we are focusing on can translate into some wins.”

The Bulldogs face the Aggies for the eighth time. Texas A&M has won every game in the series. High School Football Division Standings

MAIS District 2-AAA Starkville Academy (2-0)

Heritage Academy (2-0) Canton Academy (1-2) Leake Academy (1-1) Winston Academy (0-3)

Friday, Oct. 6 Starkville Academy 38, Canton Academy 0

Heritage Academy 28, Winston Academy 7

Leake Academy 21, Manchester Academy 14

MHSAA Class 6A, Region 2 Starkville (3-0)

Madison Central (3-0) Clinton (2-1) Northwest Rankin (2-1) Greenville (1-2) Warren Central (1-2) Murrah (0-3) Provine (0-3)

Friday, Oct. 6 Starkville 61, Greenville 14

Madison Central 31, Warren Central 27, 2OT

Northwest Rankin 42, Provine 7 Clinton 41, Murrah 7

Class 3A, Region 4

Choctaw County (2-0) Aberdeen (1-1) South Pontotoc (1-1) Houston (1-1) Nettleton (1-1) Hatley (0-2) Winona (1-1)

Friday, Oct. 6

Choctaw County 47, Aberdeen 16 Nettleton 43, South Pontotoc 42 Houston 34, Hatley 0

Class 2A, Region 4

Calhoun City (1-0) LeFlore County (1-0)

Eupora (1-1) East Webster (0-2)

Friday, Oct. 6 Calhoun City 67, East Webster 15 Winona 35, Eupora 18

Class A, Region 3

Nanih Waiya (5-0) French Camp (3-1) Noxapater (3-1) Vardaman (3-1) Leake County (3-2) Hamilton (2-2) Sebastopol (1-3) Ethel (0-5) West Lowndes (0-5)

Friday, Oct. 6

French Camp 21, Noxapater 20 Nanih Waiya 54, West Lowndes 0 Leake County 40, Sebastopol 20 Vardaman 49, Ethel 0

College Football SEC Standings WESTERN DIVISION

Team…SEC...Overall Alabama…3-0…6-0 Auburn…3-0…5-1 Texas A&M…2-1…4-2

Miss. State…1-2…3-2

LSU…1-1…4-2 Ole Miss…0-2…2-3 Arkansas…0-2…2-3

EASTERN DIVISION

Team…SEC...Overall Georgia…3-0…6-0 Florida…3-1…3-2 Kentucky…2-1…5-1 S. Carolina…2-2…4-2 Tennessee…0-2…3-2 Vanderbilt…0-3…3-3 Missouri…0-3…1-4

Saturday, Oct. 7

Auburn 44, Ole Miss 23 Georgia 45, Vanderbilt 14 LSU 17, Florida 16 S. Carolina 48, Arkansas 22 Alabama 27, Texas A&M 19 Kentucky 40, Missouri 34

Saturday, Oct. 14 BYU at Miss. State, 11 a.m.

Arkansas at Alabama, TBD Auburn at LSU, TBD

Texas A&M at Florida, TBD S. Carolina at Tennessee, 11 a.m. Vanderbilt at Ole Miss, 2:30 p.m. Missouri at Georgia, 6:30 p.m.

AP Top 25 Fared Saturday

No. 1 Alabama (6-0) beat Texas A&M 2719. Next: vs. Arkansas, Saturday.

No. 2 Clemson (6-0) beat Wake Forest 2814. Next: at Syracuse, Friday.

No. 3 Oklahoma (4-1) lost to Iowa State 38-31. Next: at Texas, Saturday.

No. 4 Penn State (6-0) beat Northwestern 31-7. Next: vs. No. 7 Michigan, Saturday, Oct. 21.

No. 5 Georgia (6-0) beat Vanderbilt 45-14. Next: vs. Missouri, Saturday.

No. 6 Washington (5-0) vs. California. Next: at Arizona State, Saturday.

No. 7 Michigan (4-0) vs. Michigan State. Next: at Indiana, Saturday.

No. 8 TCU (5-0) beat No. 23 West Virginia 31-24. Next: at Kansas State, Saturday. No. 9 Wisconsin (4-0) at Nebraska. Next: vs. Purdue, Saturday.

No. 10 Ohio State (5-1) beat Maryland 6214. Next: at Nebraska, Saturday.

No. 11 Washington State (5-0) at Oregon. Next: at California, Friday.

No. 12 Auburn (5-1) beat Mississippi 4423. Next: at LSU, Saturday.

No. 13 Miami (4-0) beat Florida State 2420. Next: vs. Georgia Tech, Saturday. No. 14 Southern Cal (5-1) beat Oregon State 38-10. Next: vs. No. 20 Utah, Saturday.

No. 15 Oklahoma State (4-1) did not play. Next: vs. Baylor, Saturday.

No. 16 Virginia Tech (5-1) beat Boston College 23-10. Next: vs. North Carolina, Saturday, Oct. 21.

No. 17 Louisville (4-2) lost to No. 24 NC State 39-25, Thursday. Next: vs. Boston College, Saturday.

No. 18 South Florida (5-0) did not play. Next: vs. UMass, Saturday.

No. 19 San Diego State (5-0) at UNLV. Next: vs. Boise State, Saturday.

No. 20 Utah (4-0) vs. Stanford. Next: at No. 14 Southern Cal, Saturday.

No. 21 Florida (3-2) lost to LSU 17-16. Next: vs. Texas A&M, Saturday.

No. 21 Notre Dame (5-1) beat North Carolina 33-10. Next: vs. No. 14 Southern Cal, Saturday, Oct. 21. No. 23 West Virginia (3-2) lost to No. 8 TCU 31-24. Next: vs. Texas Tech, Saturday. No. 24 NC State (5-1) beat No. 17 Louisville 39-25, Thursday. Next: at Pittsburgh, Saturday.

No. 25 UCF (3-0) at Cincinnati. Next: vs. East Carolina, Saturday.

South Scores

Albany St. (Ga.) 30, Lincoln (Mo.) 10 Appalachian St. 45, New Mexico St. 31 Butler 44, Morehead St. 6 Campbell 49, Valparaiso 10

Centre 38, Austin 3

Clemson 28, Wake Forest 14 Cumberland (Tenn.) 58, Christian 0

ETSU 16, Robert Morris 3

Elon 25, William & Mary 17 Fayetteville St. 24, Shaw 21 Furman 41, Chattanooga 17 Gallaudet 73, Anna Maria 23 Gardner-Webb 42, Shorter 14 Georgetown (Ky.) 41, Bethel (Tenn.) 7 Hampden-Sydney 21, Guilford 18 Hampton 17, Savannah St. 10 Huntingdon 27, Averett 7 Jacksonville 35, Davidson 21 Jacksonville St. 34, Austin Peay 14 Johns Hopkins 45, Franklin & Marshall 7 LaGrange 51, NC Wesleyan 44 Langston 27, Lane 21

Marshall 14, Charlotte 3

Mercer 24, The Citadel 14 Methodist 41, Greensboro 16 Miami 24, Florida St. 20

Middle Tennessee 37, FIU 17 Murray St. 13, UT Martin 10

NC A&T 44, Delaware St. 3

NC Central 13, Howard 7 Newberry 34, Lenoir-Rhyne 7 Nicholls 14, Northwestern St. 10 Norfolk St. 35, Florida A&M 28 Notre Dame 33, North Carolina 10 Point (Ga.) 34, Pikeville 31 Presbyterian 26, St. Francis (Pa.) 14 Randolph-Macon 52, Bridgewater (Va.) 24 Richmond 41, Albany (NY) 38, 2OT S. Virginia 45, Apprentice 23

SE Louisiana 49, Incarnate Word 30 Salisbury 17, Christopher Newport 7 Samford 26, VMI 7 Shenandoah 47, Emory & Henry 24 Southern U. 35, Alabama A&M 14

St. Augustine’s 30, Livingstone 29 Stetson 17, Brown 13

Temple 34, East Carolina 10 Tennessee St. 45, E. Kentucky 21 Tulane 62, Tulsa 28

Tuskegee 23, Morehouse 17

UAB 23, Louisiana Tech 22

Virginia 28, Duke 21

Virginia St. 56, Elizabeth City St. 0 Virginia-Wise 51, Urbana 41

W. Virginia St. 35, Kentucky St. 23

WPI 31, Catholic 14

Walsh 56, Kentucky Wesleyan 29 Washington & Lee 28, Washington (Mo.) 21

Wesley 27, Frostburg St. 24, OT West Georgia 42, Valdosta St. 13 Winston-Salem 27, Johnson C. Smith 22 Wofford 35, W. Carolina 28, OT

National Football League

Standings All Times EDT

NATIONAL CONFERENCE East Division

Philadelphia (3-1) Dallas (2-2) Washington (2-2) N.Y. Giants (0-4)

South Division

Atlanta (3-1) Carolina (3-1) New Orleans (2-2) Tampa Bay (2-2)

North Division

Detroit (3-1) Green Bay (3-1) Minnesota (2-2) Chicago (1-3)

West Division

L.A. Rams (3-1) Arizona (2-2) Seattle (2-2) San Francisco (0-4)

AMERICAN CONFERENCE East Division

Buffalo (3-1) New England (3-2) N.Y. Jets (2-2) Miami (1-2)

South Division

Jacksonville (2-2) Houston (2-2) Tennessee (2-2) Indianapolis (1-3)

North Division

Pittsburgh (3-1) Baltimore (2-2) Cincinnati (1-3) Cleveland (0-4)

West Division

Kansas City (4-0) Denver (3-1) Oakland (2-2) L.A. Chargers (0-4) Ricky Stenhouse