# 2020–21 Mississippi State Bulldogs women's basketball team

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.

## 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

College recruiting information :
| 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 |
| 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 |
| 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.
Media poll :
| Predicted finish | Team |
| 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.

## 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 | Canceled due to COVID-19 | Canceled due to COVID-19 | Canceled due to COVID-19 | 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 | Canceled due to COVID-19 | Canceled due to COVID-19 | Canceled due to COVID-19 | 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 | Canceled due to Vanderbilt ending season | Canceled due to Vanderbilt ending season | Canceled due to Vanderbilt ending season | Canceled due to Vanderbilt ending season | 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. | Postponed due to winter weather. | Postponed due to winter weather. | Postponed due to winter weather. | 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. | Postponed due to winter weather. | Postponed due to winter weather. | Postponed due to winter weather. | 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. |||||||||