| Tuesday, March 12, 2019 |
| City of Starkville closes College View Drive Tuesday | |
 | Both lanes of College View Drive will be closed Tuesday [March 12] from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. in order for utility work to be done for the new College View development. The utilities department has coordinated this work to occur during Spring Break to reduce vehicular inconvenience and delays. No thru traffic will be allowed during this time period. |
| Mississippi House ups ante on teacher pay; final sum unclear | |
 | The dam finally broke Monday on Mississippi lawmakers' desires to boost teacher pay by more than the pair of $500 raises over the next two years that leaders had originally proposed. A total of 20 Republicans broke ranks on a key House vote that kept alive a proposal to quadruple that original proposal, giving teachers a pair of $2,000 raises over the next two years. The move also would quadruple the cost of the plan, boosting it from $51 million over two years to $206 million, according to estimates by legislative staff. House Republican leaders acknowledged an increase from the $1,000 proposal is likely, but argued lawmakers must fund other priorities, beginning with a $67 million increase demanded by the Public Employees Retirement System. That would cover shortfalls in the state pension plan for employees of state agencies, public schools, community colleges, public universities and other government bodies. |
| Mississippi House passes $4K teacher pay raise | |
 | The House has upped the ante in Mississippi teacher pay raise negotiations in the Legislature. Representatives amended and a passed a bill Monday that would change the pay raise for teachers from $1,000 phased in over two years to $4,000 over the same period. House Education Chairman Richard Bennett, R-Long Beach, presented the bill before the amendment. He noted there will likely be more money in Mississippi's budget than previously anticipated, but several issues are competing for state money, including a state employee pay raise and increased costs for the state employee retirement system. Bennett stressed that the $1,000 raise was not a final figure, but a "placeholder." Rep. Steve Holland, D-Tupelo, felt that was a weak negotiating stance and offered an amendment to up the raise to $4,000. The $4,000 pay raise eventually passed the House, but is far from becoming a reality. |
| Abortion: Mississippi House passes 6-week ban | |
| Mississippi has inched closer to becoming the state with the most restrictive abortion law in the country. The House passed a bill Monday that outlaws abortion when a fetal heartbeat is detected, which can come as early as six weeks into a pregnancy. The Senate, where the bill originated, will have another chance to review and vote on the bill and minor House changes before it could head to Gov. Phil Bryant. Bryant has said he supports the legislation and would sign it into law. The bill would provide an exception if the pregnancy threatens a woman's life or would cause serious injury, though there is no exception in the case of incest or rape. Rep. Kathy Sykes, D-Jackson, asked whether lawmakers were doing anything for women and their children after birth. Rep. Sam Mims, R-McComb, who presented the bill, said Mississippi already provides services to women and children, such as Medicaid. |
| Health: Ambulance rides in rural Mississippi a growing concern | |
| The concern over the future the number of doctors and hospitals serving rural Mississippi is nothing new, but one growing concern that has garnered far less attention is the shrinking number of ambulances standing by in areas outside the state's most populated areas. When a Chickasaw County woman found herself gasping for breath, the nearest ambulance was supposed to be four or five miles away. It wasn't. It took 24 minutes for the ambulance to arrive after the initial 911 call. Shyteria Shardae "Shy" Shoemaker, 23, died that night. Her family believes she would have lived if the ambulance had arrived sooner. And the problem of longer response times is only getting worse for most rural areas. |
| Be a geofence: The story behind the technology that millennial-led Mississippi Votes uses to help more young Mississippians vote | |
 | Arekia Bennett throws herself into a chair in front of a dark red accent wall and rattles off a list of positions she hopes to fill as quickly as possible at Mississippi Votes, the nonprofit she has led as executive director for almost a year. Recently, Mississippi Votes, whose offices sit in the shadow of the Mississippi Capitol and state Supreme Court buildings, has hired a communications staffer. Now, Bennett is looking to hire a deputy director, a field director and a youth civic engagement coordinator to help expand the organization's mission, which she describes as creating a culture of civic engagement that is transformative to a particular electorate. More specifically, they focus on people ages 18 to 35 as well as young queer people and people who have experienced the juvenile justice system. With significant back-to-back elections taking place in the state, Mississippi Votes has had little choice but to mature from a nascent organization with Bennett as the only full time employee leading a coterie of interns, fellows, volunteers and consultants into adolescence. |
| Black women are the heart of the Democratic Party. What will it take for them to be its face? | |
| When Talamieka Brice saw that the presumptive Democratic nominee for lieutenant governor voted to stop women from getting abortions six weeks into their pregnancies, she swore. "If you want the P.G. version, it was 'Seriously?' It's another white progressive who claims to be in your corner, but really only takes your side when it's convenient," said Brice, a black woman who runs the Mississippi chapter of the progressive group Pantsuit Nation. Brice was not alone. In the days after the vote taken by state Rep. Jay Hughes, D-Oxford, his supporters, many of them black women like Brice, took to social media and expressed anger at Hughes. That anger took on new dimensions in response to Hughes' explanation that focused on white men like himself rather than his core constituency. In a Facebook message, Hughes explained his vote as a pragmatic move to appeal to moderates and keep white Democrats in power. |
| Mississippi governor candidate Velesha P. Williams: 'Isn't it time Democratic Party starts supporting black folks?' | |
| Velesha P. Williams' gubernatorial campaign unofficially began in late November of 2018 during a family meeting. At her home in Flora with her husband by her side, Williams shared with her two children the decision she had thought and prayed about for weeks. "They were like, 'If God laid it on your heart, who are we to dispute it?'" Williams told Mississippi Today. Williams, 57, is one of nine candidates running in the Democratic primary for governor this year but is the only woman. She has little name ID and reported about $6,500 in contributions in the January filing report, but she hopes she can follow in the 2015 footsteps of Robert Gray, who knocked off the front-runner in the 2015 Democratic primary for governor. Williams sat down with Mississippi Today to discuss her campaign and the politics of 2019. Her comments have been edited for length and clarity. |
| Mississippi health care providers breaking the law with large medical bills that patients don't have to pay, report finds | |
| Health care providers in Mississippi continue to break the law by sending patients large, out-of-pocket medical bills that they don't have to pay, concludes a Harvard Law School report released Monday. The Legislature passed a law in 2013 to prohibit what is known as "balance billing" -- when a provider bills a patient for the difference between the initial charges and the amount paid after insurance benefits are assigned. But the law contains few enforcement measures, so patients must know about the law and challenge balance bills in order to benefit from the legislation, which was enacted under the radar of many officials and health care providers. Feeble efforts to strengthen protections in the law during the 2019 legislative session were unsuccessful. House Insurance Chairman Rep. Gary Chism, R-Columbus, authored a bill to require the attorney general's office to enforce the law and establish binding arbitration to resolve any balance billing disputes between providers and patients. He never brought the bill to a vote in his committee, telling Mississippi Today that several lawmakers who are also medical professionals -- nurses and nurse practitioners -- voiced opposition to his bill. |
| DNC Picks Milwaukee For 2020 Democratic Convention, A Symbolic Choice | |
 | It wasn't the biggest city in the mix. Or the most diverse. Or the flashiest. But in the end, the winner is -- Milwaukee! Democrats have chosen the city on Lake Michigan as the site of their nominating convention to be held in the summer of 2020. It beats out two other finalists -- Houston and Miami. Each of those towns had much to entice the DNC: plenty of hotel rooms, major arenas, event space, experience with major conventions. Each also has a large Latino population -- voters Democrats need as a major element of any winning coalition in the next presidential election. But Milwaukee, Wisconsin, while the smallest of the cities in the running, had something big going for it as well: symbolism. A chance for the Democratic National Convention to send a message that no voter will be taken for granted, that the upper Midwest is extremely important, and that the party looks to reverse Trump's very narrow, upset win in Wisconsin in the last election. |
| The Library of Congress wants to attract more visitors. Will that undermine its mission? | |
 | Under Librarian of Congress Carla D. Hayden, the world's largest library is on its way to becoming another one of Washington's acclaimed museums. A splashy exhibition on baseball opened there just as Washington was hosting Major League Baseball's All-Star Game, and last May, the library added a major collection of comic books, including early images of Mickey Mouse, to its permanent holdings, which number 170 million. Two and a half years into her 10-year term, Hayden is making good on her promise to throw open the doors of America's "palace of knowledge" and invite ordinary citizens to join scholars in exploring its treasures. The former head of Baltimore's public library system and an Obama nominee, Hayden is focused on making the Library of Congress a cultural destination -- a museum of American letters that will inspire, educate and, yes, even entertain. |
| Louisiana crawfish season starts slow, but demand still high | |
| Louisiana leads the nation in crawfish production but cold weather, a shortage of workers to process them and other factors have contributed to a slow start to the 2019 season for the freshwater crustacean. A cold snap during Mardi Gras last week could deliver another hit to the season this week and the Lenten period that started the day after the Carnival celebrations concluded means even more demand as observing Christians seek seafood while abstaining from other meat. Crawfish prices are as high as $9 a pound in some restaurants. Federal limits on H-2B visas for temporary employees have also left many crawfish processors uncertain if they'll have enough people to staff plants as the industry, like many others in the U.S., often relies on foreign guest workers. The state's annual yield of crawfish is more than 100 million pounds, according to Louisiana State University's Agricultural Center. |
| USM hosts Alternative Spring Break for people with disabilities | |
 | This week is spring break for students at the University of Southern Mississippi, but the USM Institute for Disability Studies will be spending the week training youth and young adults with disabilities. The ToTAL Alternative Spring Break is a week-long event on the Southern Miss Hattiesburg campus where participants train for future employment opportunities. The event is for teens and young adults with disabilities ages 14 to 21, according to Southern Miss. "The ToTAL Alternative Spring Break will provide high school students with disabilities the opportunity to gain work skills for future employment," said Dr. Jerry R. Alliston, associate director at the Institute for Disability Studies. "The primary focus of the event is on assisting these future leaders in finding their voice, being involved in their communities and getting ready for work." The event will serve 20 participants from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. The participants will learn about college options, work opportunities while setting personal goals and developing a personal electronic portfolio. |
| Democratic Candidate Elizabeth Warren Sets Televised Mississippi Forum | |
| A Democratic presidential hopeful is planning a televised forum from Mississippi. Jackson State University says U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts will participate in a March 18 forum that will be televised on CNN. The Clarion Ledger reports CNN Chief Washington Correspondent Jake Tapper will moderate the event. It's planned as part of a Warren campaign swing through the Deep South. Jackson State President William Bynum Jr. says the 7,300-student university isn't endorsing Warren. |
| Meridian Community College garners NASA on Campus award | |
 | Meridian Community College is one of six community colleges in the country identified by the National Space Grant Consortia and NASA's Minority University Research and Education Project to participate in the pilot program, NASA On Campus. NASA On Campus, a campus-based adaptation of the successful NASA Community College Aerospace Scholars program, gives community college students who are focusing on STEM fields an authentic NASA experience at one of the NASA centers. NCAS encourages them to finish a two-year degree or transfer to a four-year university to pursue a NASA-related field or career. "Meridian Community College is very pleased to participate in NASA Community College Aerospace Scholars," said MCC President Thomas Huebner. "This will greatly benefit students, giving them a head start on careers in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics fields," he said. |
| College Republicans collect books in honor of first lady | |
 | A group of community college students are collecting books to donate to elementary school libraries in honor of first lady Deborah Bryant. "The first lady has a passion for childhood literacy and has promoted it throughout the state and the Mississippi Federation of College Republicans hopes to honor her efforts by hosting this book drive," said MFCR Executive Director Hannah Mason, of Brookhaven. Through March 22, members of Co-Lin College Republicans are collecting books that are new or in gently used condition. MFCR participates in annual group projects which benefit the state. Copiah-Lincoln Community College's group is one of eight chapters in Mississippi. "This year, they have unanimously chosen to host a book drive honoring first lady Deborah Bryant," Mason said. "College Republicans at Co-Lin hope that the community will help to make this a huge success," Mason said. |
| Mid-South states among the least educated in the U.S., study says | |
| With BLS data showing a correlation between higher education levels, higher income and lower unemployment rates, the personal-finance website WalletHub has released its report on 2019's Most & Least Educated States in the U.S. In order to determine where the most educated Americans live, WalletHub compared the 50 states in 20 key categories. The data set ranges from share of adults aged 25 and older with at least a high school diploma to average university quality to gender gap in educational attainment. Mississippi and Arkansas rank in the lowest percentile of high school diploma holders and higher education seekers for college, graduate, and post graduate degrees. |
| Clarke students learning leadership through UGA program | |
 | A new high school leadership development program has seen positive results in its first six months. Georgia Possible is designed to help students have success in the classroom and after graduation. Starting freshman year, students will participate in the program for three years. After nine sessions, administrators from the University of Georgia and Clarke County School District are pleased with the partnership and excited for the future of the program. "I am delighted that the University of Georgia and the Clarke County School District have partnered to create this innovative program," said UGA President Jere Morehead. "I look forward to the many outstanding contributions that these students will continue to have in our community." Administrators in the school district have seen major impacts. |
| Latest U.S. grad school rankings find some high performers in Georgia | |
| Georgia universities ranked among the nation's most elite for graduate schools of nursing, public affairs and engineering. The latest annual lists from U.S. News & World Report put Emory University in fourth place for nursing, behind John Hopkins, Duke and the University of Pennsylvania. Students seeking an advanced degree in public affairs will find a top program at the University of Georgia, ranked fifth. And Georgia Tech was seventh for engineering. |
| U. of Florida grad schools jump in rankings | |
 | Graduate school programs at the University of Florida made significant increases in the latest U.S. News and World Report 2020 grad school rankings released Tuesday. Of note, UF's medical school improved 12 spots to number 43 in the nation, while UF's law school jumped 10 spots to number 31. UF's full-time Master of Business Administration program moved up nine spots to 25th in the country for its highest ever ranking. UF Provost Joe Glover said initiatives such as the pre-eminence program and the Faculty 500 hiring program and state have contributed to the increases across the board. Overall, 28 graduate school programs at UF now rank in the Top 30 nationally, up from 20 two years ago. Seven programs rank in the top 10 nationally and 17 rank in the top 20. |
| Brenham man arrested after striking student with vehicle on Texas A&M campus | |
| Texas A&M University police arrested a Brenham man they say hit a student when he drove on a campus sidewalk to avoid a parking gate. Tass White, 67, was arrested for reckless driving Thursday after striking the student near the intersection of Spence Street and Ross Street on the Texas A&M campus. According to the Texas A&M University Police Department, White tried to enter a gated area he did not have a pass to access by driving in quickly behind another driver. White told police he noticed he couldn't make it through the gate in time, so while the gate arms were coming down, he swerved onto the sidewalk to avoid damaging his vehicle. Police say White said, "he did not realize that someone was on the sidewalk and she was struck by the vehicle." University police said the student was treated at a local hospital for non-life threatening injuries. |
| U. of Missouri education professor wins Kemper fellowship | |
 | A teaching professor who coordinates a statewide program for educators seeking doctorate degrees won the first of five $10,000 prizes for teaching that will be awarded this week at the University of Missouri. Jennifer Fellabaum-Toston, associate professor in the Department of Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis in the College of Education, received the 2019 William T. Kemper Fellowship for Teaching Excellence during an 8 a.m. class Monday from Provost Latha Ramchand and Steve Sowers, president and CEO of the central and eastern Missouri region of Commerce Bank. Fellabaum-Toston has been a member of the MU faculty since 2012, when she was hired as associate director of the Statewide Cooperative EdD Program. The program is a partnership between MU and regional universities to provide doctorate degrees for education scholars. Fellabaum-Toston became director of the program in 2017. |
| White House wants 12 percent cut in education spending | |
 | President Trump called for a $7.1 billion cut to funding at the Education Department with a proposed budget that retreads familiar higher education ideas for this White House. The budget proposal released on Monday asks Congress to open Pell Grants to "high-quality" short-term programs, eliminate Public Service Loan Forgiveness and subsidized student loans, and streamline income-driven repayment programs for student borrowers. It also called for deep cuts to scientific research. The White House proposal included suggested cuts of 9 percent for the National Science Foundation and 12 percent for the National Institutes of Health. Peter McPherson, president of the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities, said those cuts "would begin to cede American strength in science and innovation to our global competitors, slow the search for cures and make it more challenging for students to access higher education and climb the economic ladder." |
| Here's What Trump's 2020 Budget Proposal Means for Higher Ed | |
 | President Trump's proposed federal budget for the 2020 fiscal year, unveiled on Monday, includes a $7-billion cut for the Department of Education, a streamlined repayment process for student loans, and the elimination of the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program. The proposal, for the fiscal year that begins on October 1, is unlikely to be enacted in a divided Congress. But, as is the case every year, the wish list does signal the White House's priorities, including those for higher education. This year's proposal is yet another effort by the administration to streamline the student-loan system, which could bring down costs for taxpayers and students, said Robert Kelchen, an assistant professor of higher education at Seton Hall University. But the department and the president, he said, "have little ability to change the terms of federal student loans," a process that must involve Congress. |
| The Trump Administration Really Wants to Cut Education Funding. Congress Doesn't. | |
| On Monday, Donald Trump's administration released its budget proposal for the 2020 fiscal year, and the plan isn't pretty for the Education Department. The proposal requests a roughly $7.1 billion cut in funding for the department compared with 2019, which represents a 10 percent decrease in its budget. The proposed cut is unlikely to go anywhere; like years past, Congress is expected to disregard it for the most part. Instead, more than anything, the proposal is an exposition of the administration's philosophy on education: It is a state and local issue that the federal government shouldn't have its hands in. At a granular level, the budget request looks similar to the ones released by the administration in 2017 and 2018. It would, again, eliminate a range of programs such as the Public Service Loan Forgiveness program, an incentive program that forgives the student loans of public-service workers, and there would be steep cuts to the National Institutes of Health, which funds a lot of research in higher education. |
| Trump's budget proposal seeks cuts to science and medical research funding | |
 | President Trump's third budget request, released Monday, again seeks cuts to a number of scientific and medical research enterprises, including a 13% cut to the National Science Foundation, a 12% cut at the National Institutes of Health and the termination of an Energy Department program that funds speculative technologies deemed too risky for private investors. The NSF, which funds roughly a quarter of all federally supported basic science and engineering research in the U.S., would see its budget fall from $8.1 billion this year to $7.1 billion in 2020. The Trump budget proposes to eliminate three environmental programs at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration: Sea Grant, the National Coastal Zone Management grants, and the Pacific Coastal Salmon Recovery Fund. Trump has roiled the research establishment since he came into office, not only by embracing scientifically discredited theories and casting doubt on mainstream climate science, but also by proposing massive cuts to science and medicine programs funded by the federal government. |
| Members of Congress are rich with student debt | |
 | As lawmakers look to reshape the federal loan process in the upcoming reauthorization of the Higher Education Act, a cohort knows firsthand the pain of rising college costs --- 68 members, or 13 percent of Congress, reported that either they or their family members are mired in student debt. Collectively, the 44 Democrats and 24 Republicans have higher education liabilities of $2.5 million, according to recent financial disclosures. The median student loan debt is $15,000, while average debt is $37,000. Eight members have student loan debt in excess of $100,000. And all 68 have obligations of at least $10,000. Thirteen percent is a slight increase compared to the previous Congress, when Roll Call's Wealth of Congress project found that one in 10 members held student loans. One-third of Congress' educational debt comes from new members. Three of the more recent college graduates in Congress are paying for their own education after earning a bachelor's degree. Freshman Democratic Reps. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Abby Finkenauer of Iowa, and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York all graduated in 2011 and owe more than $15,000 each. |
| Over 24 And Thinking About College? You're Not Alone | |
| A new father trying to provide for his family. A grandmother finishing what she started more than four decades ago. A man navigating multiple schools, hidden curriculums and financial hurdles. These are just some of the older students working toward a degree in the U.S. The majority of today's college students have characteristics that describe them as "nontraditional": They work; they're raising children; they're not coming straight from high school. And while some just take a couple-year detour to make money or care for family, others are going back far later in life. In 2018, nearly 7.6 million college students were 25 years old and over, according to estimates from the federal government. That's about 2 in 5 students in higher education. And being on older student comes with its own challenges -- think of the years separating them from their last high school math class. But those students tell NPR that studying later in life also has advantages: They have skills and tools that could only have come with age and maturity. |
| More states are encouraging undocumented students to pursue tuition-free programs | |
| When Tennessee and Nevada started tuition-free community college programs several years ago, state lawmakers made no allowances for students who were undocumented immigrants. The two states were not alone. Among the approximately 15 states that now offer tuition-free programs, only a handful allow such students to participate. That trend may be changing. Maryland, which is starting its Promise Scholarship program this year, and New York, which passed legislation in January to extend state aid to undocumented students, are the latest states to join California, Delaware, Oregon, Rhode Island and Washington in offering financial aid and grants or scholarships to students who live in those states but lack legal-immigrant status. In a political climate where undocumented students are increasingly feeling unwelcome under the Trump administration's stated opposition to illegal immigration and risk deportation under its tough law enforcement policies, some states are openly promoting their tuition-free programs to those very students and encouraging them to apply. |
SPORTS
| Mississippi State sweeps Howell, Gillom trophies | |
| Mississippi State's Quinndary Weatherspoon won the Howell Trophy and Teaira McCowan took home the Gillom Trophy as the Bulldogs completed another sweep of the state's top individual awards in college basketball. The 6-foot-4 Weatherspoon won the Howell for a second straight season after averaging 18.5 points per game, including 19.4 per game during Southeastern Conference play. The Howell is given to the top men's college basketball player in Mississippi. The senior guard is nearing 2,000 points for his career and helped lead the Bulldogs to a 22-9 record in the regular season, including a 10-8 mark in the Southeastern Conference. The 6-foot-7 McCowan won the Gillom, given to the top women's basketball player in Mississippi, after averaging 17.8 points and 13.5 rebounds per game. She's led Mississippi State to a 30-2 record, including SEC championships in the regular season and in last weekend's conference tournament. |
| McCowan, Weatherspoon win Gillom, Howell Trophies as best basketball players in Mississippi | |
| The two best basketball players in the state of Mississippi call Starkville home. Mississippi State Bulldogs Teaira McCowan and Quinndary Weatherspoon won the 2019 Gillom and Howell Trophies, respectively. The awards were given out Monday afternoon during a ceremony presented by C Spire at the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and Museum. Weatherspoon, a senior at State, won the Howell Trophy for the second-straight season. McCowan, also a senior, won the Gillom Trophy to give Mississippi State the hardware for the fifth-straight year. Victoria Vivians won it the previous four times. "I think it's really symbolic of the jobs their coaches have done," director of athletics John Cohen said. "Coach [Ben] Howland and Coach [Vic] Schaefer have done an incredible job with their programs. You can't do it without great leadership and without great players, which is certainly what Q and T represent. This has been a great year for basketball in the state of Mississippi, and certainly it was a great year because of those two players. We're just really proud of them, and the thing I'm most proud of is to see how far they've come in four years." |
| Weatherspoon, McCowan are biggest winners in a season filled with Mississippi success | |
| Mississippi sports columnist Rick Cleveland writes: Mississippi celebrated, collectively, the best college basketball regular season in recent memory Monday at the C Spire Howell/Gillom Awards luncheon at the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and Museum. First things first: Mississippi State's Teaira McCowan won the Gillom Trophy and State's Q Weatherspoon won the Howell Trophy as the most outstanding female and male college basketball players, respectively, in Mississippi this season. McCowan won over teammates Jordan Danberry and Anriel Howell, as State players made up all three Gillom finalists for the second consecutive year. Weatherspoon won over Breein Tyree of Ole Miss and Cortez Edwards of Southern Miss. All six were key figures in a banner Magnolia State basketball season, highlighted by the Vic Schaefer's State women's team, which won the Southeastern Conference regular season championship and the SEC Tournament Championship for the first time in school history. |
| The evolution of women's hoops at Mississippi State University | |
 | Logan Lowery writes for the Northeast Mississippi Daily Journal: As much success as Mississippi State women's basketball is having on the court, another winning story is being written in the stands. The boom in Bulldogs backers didn't really begin until the end of Vic Schaefer's second season in 2013-14, when the Bulldogs lost in the quarterfinals of the WNIT. Since then, the MSU fan base simply cannot get enough of the sport. Much of the credit goes to Schaefer, who in his seven years in Starkville has created a brand of basketball that is enjoyable to watch. The players have also endeared themselves to the crowd by staying on the floor after games to sign autographs and take pictures. It's taking Schaefer and his team longer and longer to reach the postgame press conference as their success and popularity have skyrocketed. |
| Teaira McCowan in late running for national honors | |
| Mississippi State senior center Teaira McCowan has been selected as a semifinalist for the Naismith Trophy and a finalist for the Wooden Award, both of which are presented to the player of the year in women's basketball. McCowan has already earned SEC Player and Defensive Player of the Year and SEC Tournament MVP. On Monday, McCowan won the Gillom Trophy which goes to the top women's basketball player in Mississippi. The 6-foot-7 native of Brenham, Texas leads the Bulldogs averaging 17.8 points, 13.5 rebounds and 2.4 blocks per game. Four finalists for the Naismith Trophy will be revealed on March 22 and the Wooden Award winner will be named on April 3rd. |
| Mississippi State Hosting NCAA Tournament Selection Show at The Hump | |
 | Mississippi State women's basketball will map its path to a third consecutive Final Four on Monday, March 18. Bulldog fans can join the team in Starkville for the NCAA Tournament Selection Show in Humphrey Coliseum. Admission is free, and doors will open at 4:45 p.m. MSU's clear bag policy and regular game day security screening will be in place. Concessions will be available at the event. The SEC Champion Bulldogs will sign autographs on the concourse from 4:45-5:30 p.m. The NCAA prohibits the sale of items signed by student-athletes. Student-athletes will only sign the SEC Champions posters available at no cost on the concourse. Both the SEC regular season and tournament trophies will be available on the concourse for fans to take photographs. Following their autograph session, the Bulldogs will be introduced to open the show at 5:45 p.m. The Selection Show program on ESPN will air live on the video board beginning at 6 p.m. Blank brackets will be available at the door for fans to fill in as the teams are revealed. |
| Mississippi State soars into SEC baseball season on 11-game win streak | |
| Another week, another seven days gone by without a Mississippi State loss. The No. 5 Diamond Dawgs haven't lost since their series-opening 1-0 defeat to Southern Miss on Feb. 22. There have been 11-straight wins since then. The Bulldogs are rolling into the start of SEC play. Here's how they won five games last week in addition to some things they need to get right before facing No. 7 Florida in Gainesville this weekend. Lost in the sweep over Maine is that Mississippi State played a ranked East Carolina team last Tuesday and came out on top in an efficient 4-1 win. The Bulldog bullpen was active in that one; six different pitchers touched the mound for State. Senior Peyton Plumlee had the longest of any in throwing three innings, and he didn't even start. |
| Report: Auburn basketball assistant Ira Bowman named part of bribe scheme at Penn by former coach | |
 | Auburn basketball assistant coach Ira Bowman was named by former Penn coach Jerome Allen to have played part in a bribe scheme at Penn back when Bowman was an assistant coach there, per a Monday night report by Philly.com. The Philly.com report cited Law360.com on Allen's testimony saying he took bribes from a Florida businessman to get the man's son into Penn as a basketball player, and that Bowman was eventually involved in the scheme. Bowman coached at Penn for six seasons from 2012-18. He worked under Allen until the 2015-16 season, for which Steve Donahue took over as the team's head coach. It was then when Allen left Penn that Bowman was brought into the scheme, according to Allen per the Philly.com report. Bowman was named to Auburn's staff in July 2018 ahead of this season. |
| Naz Reid cleared for SEC tournament; LSU still awaiting word on Javonte Smart and Will Wade | |
 | LSU is still awaiting the fate of coach Will Wade and freshman guard Javonte Smart, at least as far as this week's Southeastern Conference tournament is concerned. But Monday night, interim men's basketball coach Tony Benford delivered a sliver of good news: freshman forward Naz Reid is ready to go when the Tigers open SEC tournament play in Friday's quarterfinals. Benford, speaking during the weekly Will Wade radio show, said that Reid has been cleared to play when No. 1-seeded LSU faces off against the winner of Thursday's second-round game between Florida and Arkansas. The Tigers (26-5, 16-2 SEC) will play the Gators or Razorbacks at noon in Nashville, Tennessee. "Naz is ready to go," Benford said. "He's be out to practice (Tuesday) and he's excited to go. |
| After year off from college basketball, Mark Fox 'eager' to return | |
| Road trips to Starkville and Knoxville may be a thing of the past for Mark Fox, but he's been well-traveled since his time as Georgia's basketball coach came to an end. There was Thanksgiving in Italy with wife Cindy. A summer getaway to New York with a close friend from his Nevada days with their sons to see a Yankees game, Hamilton on Broadway and Ellis Island. He smoked cigars in Havana, Cuba while there for a few days as an assistant coach with the USA World Cup Qualifying Team. That role also took him to Mexico City, Panama City and La Rioja, Argentina. Fox has remained busy, but it hasn't been the nonstop grind of being a college basketball coach. For the first time in 25 years, a college basketball season went on without Fox on a bench as either a head coach or assistant. Fox, who turned 50 in January, was fired by Georgia a year ago this week after nine seasons as head coach. After rising from an assistant coach at three programs to calling his own shots at Nevada and Georgia, Fox found himself out of a job. |
| Memphis AD Tom Bowen agrees to six-month contract extension | |
| University of Memphis Athletic Director Tom Bowen has agreed to a six-month extension of his current contract while he and the school negotiate a new multi-year agreement and await news from the American Athletic Conference about its media rights deal. "Tom and I have agreed to extend the existing terms of his contract through the end of the calendar year until our new AAC conference media rights deal is finalized and the overall financial picture of the University of Memphis Athletic Department for the next several years is clear," University of Memphis President M. David Rudd said in a statement released to The Commercial Appeal Monday. Bowen initially signed a five-year contract that included an annual salary of $400,000 annually when he took over as Memphis athletic director in 2012. He then agreed to a two-year extension in 2015 that did not alter terms of the original agreement. |
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