Josh Hubbard leads Mississippi State into opener vs. North Alabama

Because of the transfer portal and the arrival of a slew of new players, Mississippi State is working on finding its identity ahead of the season opener against North Alabama on Wednesday in Starkville, Miss.

"Talking to other coaches," Bulldogs coach Chris Jans said, "there's similar feelings going on across the country. You're not quite there yet. Your personality hasn't formed yet as a basketball team because you haven't had the necessary time, reps or faced any adversity."

The Bulldogs have played in the NCAA Tournament in all three seasons under Jans, though they lost their opening tourney contest each time. Mississippi State has four returnees and 11 newcomers from last year's squad that went 21-13 overall, 8-10 in the Southeastern Conference.

As a part of the record-setting 14 SEC teams to make the NCAA Tournament, the Bulldogs bowed out of March Madness with a 75-72 opening-round loss to Baylor.

Junior guard Josh Hubbard returns with his team-leading average of 18.9 points per game.

Jans said Hubbard has stepped into a "crucial leadership role" this fall.

"He's as hard of a worker as we have in the program," the coach said. "He has more confidence in his ability to say things to teammates."

The Bulldogs' Wednesday opposition, the Lions, are a veteran team with 10 returnees from last year's team that shared the Atlantic Sun Conference regular-season title with Lipscomb. North Alabama made its first NIT appearance, losing 71-62 to Bradley in the first round to end a 24-11 season (14-4 ASUN).

The success earned coach Tony Pujol a five-year extension to stay in Florence, Ala.

North Alabama was voted the 2025-26 preseason ASUN favorite by the media, while the coaches slotted them second behind Queens.

"We are experiencing a unique time in our athletic department," Pujol said. "We are aligned and ready to create historic memories."

The Lions were the only team that placed two players on the preseason All-ASUN team, Corneilous Williams and Donte Bacchus.

Williams started all 35 games in the frontcourt last season, averaging 9.7 points, and he led the conference in rebounding (9.1 per game) while racking up 11 double-doubles. Bacchus served as the Lions' sixth man, contributing 8.3 points and 4.2 rebounds per game.

--Field Level Media